The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (commonly known as Rhode Island) is the smallest state by land area in the United States, and the state with the longest official name. Rhode (pronounced "Road") Island is part of the New England region, and was the first of the thirteen original American colonies to declare independence from British rule, signaling the start of the American Revolution.

The state's common name, Rhode Island, actually refers to the largest island in Narragansett Bay, also known as Aquidneck Island, on which the city of Newport is located. Aquidneck Island is also locally referred to as Newport - though it in fact has three distinct townships on it. The origin of the name is unclear. Some historians think that Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano, upon discovering Block Island, just southwest in the Atlantic Ocean, named it Rhode Island because of its similarity in shape to the Greek island of Rhodes. Later settlers, mistaking which island Verrazzano was referring to, gave the name to Aquidneck Island instead. Other historians believe that the name is derived from Roodt Eylandt, old Dutch for "red island," given to the island by Dutch explorer Adriaen Block due to the red clay on the island's shore.

Despite most of the state being part of the mainland, the name Rhode Island leads some out-of-staters to believe—mistakenly—that the entire state is an island. Rhode Island is nicknamed "The Ocean State".

More on [ Rhode Island ]

Rhode Island - Twitter Search

Enjoying my wimpy skimpy yummy. Gotta love rhode island words haha.
x3beautyxqueen (Tori) Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:54:50 -0000
Enjoying my wimpy skimpy yummy. Gotta love rhode island words haha.
RT @woolley_annewoolley_anne Thnk u~Chck out some of our favorite Rhode Island tweeters! @jessicaljimenez @HeatherMAllard @woolley_anne
jessicaljimenez (Jessica Jimenez) Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:49:40 -0000
RT @woolley_annewoolley_anne Thnk u~Chck out some of our favorite Rhode Island tweeters! @jessicaljimenez @HeatherMAllard @woolley_anne
Enjoyed touring in Rhode Island/CT. Saw Battleships,Atlantic Ocean & Dunkin Donuts on every corner! Praying my Pastor can help revive R.I.!
kDrama513 (K-Drama) Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:47:13 -0000
Enjoyed touring in Rhode Island/CT. Saw Battleships,Atlantic Ocean & Dunkin Donuts on every corner! Praying my Pastor can help revive R.I.!
Thank you~Check out some of our favorite Rhode Island tweeters! @jessicaljimenez @HeatherMAllard @woolley_anne @L... http://post.ly/BEu1
woolley_anne (Annemarie E. Woolley) Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:47:08 -0000
Thank you~Check out some of our favorite Rhode Island tweeters! @jessicaljimenez @HeatherMAllard @woolley_anne @L... http://post.ly/BEu1
Check out some of our favorite Rhode Island tweeters! @jessicaljimenez @HeatherMAllard @woolley_anne @LivingRheum (via @RhodeIslandMag)
woolley_anne (Annemarie E. Woolley) Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:46:46 -0000
Check out some of our favorite Rhode Island tweeters! @jessicaljimenez @HeatherMAllard @woolley_anne @LivingRheum (via @RhodeIslandMag)
@cmpriest Central Falls. It's a real town in Rhode Island but I can guarantee no one wants to be there.
stin (stin) Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:39:48 -0000
@cmpriest Central Falls. It's a real town in Rhode Island but I can guarantee no one wants to be there.

Subscribe to Rhode_Island RSS feed