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The state of Washington is located in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is named after the first President of the United States, George Washington. The state is popularly known as "The Evergreen State," due to the large fir and pine trees throughout the state. It borders Oregon to the south, Idaho to the east, the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is often called the "State of Washington" or "Washington State" to distinguish it from the U.S. capitol, Washington D.C. It is the 18th largest state in the United States with an area of 71,362 square miles, and is 13th in population, with 60 percent of residents living in the Seattle metropolitan area, which is a center of industry, business, and transportation along the Puget Sound region, which also has numerous islands, fjords, and bays created by glaciers. Other large cities include Spokane, Tacoma, and Vancouver.

The Cascade Mountains run through much of the state, with Mount Rainier being topographically the most prominent peak in the contiguous United States. In addition, there are temperate rainforests in the west and a semi-arid basin in the east, central, and south which is excellent for agriculture.

Washington is a prominent producer of lumber, with its landscape covered with Douglas fir, hemlock, ponderosa pine, white pine, spruce, larch, and cedar. Washington is the largest producer of apples, hops, pears, red raspberries, spearmint oil, sweet cherries, and is also a large producer of apricots, asparagus, dry peas, grapes, lentils, peppermint oil, and potatoes. Washington ranks second in the production of wine in the United States. Livestock and livestock products are also an important part of the farm economy, with commercial fishing of salmon, halibut and bottomfish. Manufacturing industries include aircraft and missiles, shipbuilding, and other transportation equipment, food processing, metals, chemicals, and machinery. The state has more than 1,000 dams built for irrigation, power, flood control, and water storage. Additionally, automotive, computer software development, real estate, and retail businesses are also a large part of the economy, with many large companies headquartered in Washington. The state also has major research universities, as well as technical schools, with five public state universities.