Official English Map

The 50 states at a glance

Visit the Modern Language Association's (MLA) map to view which languages are spoken in your state.

States with Official English (31):

Alabama: Constitutional Amendment (1990) passed by ballot
Alaska: Statutory Voter Initiative (1998)
Arizona: Constitutional Amendment (2006)
Arkansas: Statute (1987)
California: Constitutional Amendment (1986)
Colorado: Constitutional Amendment (1988)
Florida: Constitutional Amendment (1988) Petition Initiative
Georgia: Legislative Statutes (1986, 1996)
Hawaii: Constitutional Amendment (1978) by the Legislature
Idaho: Legislative Statute (2007)
Illinois: Statute (1969)
Indiana: Statute (1984)
Iowa: Legislative Statute (2002)
Kansas: Legislative Statute (2007)
Kentucky: Statute (1984)
Louisiana: The formerly predominantly French Territory of Louisiana adopted English as its official language as a precondition for its admission into the Union as a state (1807)
Massachusetts: The original constitution was interpreted as having established an official language (1975)
Mississippi: Legislative Statute (1987)
Missouri: Constitutional Amendment (2008) by popular vote
Montana: Legislative Statute (1995)
Nebraska: Constitutional Amendment (1920) by popular vote
New Hampshire: Legislative Statute (1995)
North Carolina: Legislative Statute (1987)
North Dakota: Legislative Statute (1987)
Oklahoma: Constitutional Amendment (2010)
South Carolina: Legislative Statute (1987)
South Dakota: Legislative Statute (1995)
Tennessee: Legislative Statute (1984)
Utah: Statute (2000) passed by Petition Initiative
Virginia: Legislative Statutes (1981, 1996)
Wyoming: Statute (1996)

States without official English (19):

States with private rights of actions (5):

A private right of action is the right of an individual to sue, or otherwise take legal action against a state for failure to enforce or implement a law. The following states' official English laws include private rights of action:

States requiring English for driver's licenses (9):