Illinois

Illinois (pronounced or "ill-i-NOY") is a U.S. state located in the Midwest region of the United States. more...

Geography

Illinois is in the north-central U.S. and borders on Lake Michigan. Surrounding states are Wisconsin to the north; Iowa and Missouri to the west; Kentucky to the south; and Indiana to the east. Illinois also borders Michigan, but only via a water boundary in Lake Michigan.

Illinois has three major geographical divisions. The first is Chicagoland, including the city of Chicago, its suburbs, and the adjoining exurban area into which the metropolis is expanding. This region includes a few counties in Indiana and Wisconsin and stretches across much of northern Illinois toward the Iowa border, generally along Interstates 80 and 90. This region is cosmopolitan, densely populated, industrialized, and settled by a variety of ethnic groups.

Southward and westward, the second major division is central Illinois, an area of mostly flat prairie. Known as the Land of Lincoln or the Heart of Illinois, it is characterized by small towns and mid-sized cities. Agriculture, particularly corn and soybeans, as well as educational institutions and manufacturing centers, figures prominently. Major cities include Peoria - the second largest metropolitan area in Illinois at 370,000 and home of Bradley University and University of Illinois College of Medicine, Springfield (the state capital), Decatur - home of Millikin University, Bloomington-Normal - home of Illinois State University and Illinois Wesleyan University, and Champaign-Urbana - home of the University of Illinois.

Read more at Wikipedia.org