Texas (IPAc-enen-us-Texas.ogg?t?ks?s) is the second-largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States. The name, meaning "friends" or "allies" in Caddo (Caddo language), was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in East Texas. Located in the South Central United States, Texas is bordered by Mexico to the south, New Mexico to the west, Oklahoma to the north, Arkansas to the northeast, and Louisiana to the east. Texas has an area of convert268820sqmikm2, and a growing population of 24.7 million residents.

Houston is the largest city in Texas and the fourth-largest (List of United States cities by population) in the United States, while San Antonio is the seventh largest in the United States. Dallas-Fort Worth (Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex) and Houston are the fourth and sixth largest United States metropolitan areas, respectively. Other major cities include San Antonio, El Paso, and Austin (Austin, Texas)?the state capital (Capital city). Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify Texas as an independent republic and as a reminder of the states struggle for independence from Mexico. The "Lone Star" can be found on the Texas State Flag and on the Texas State Seal today.

Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, Texas contains diverse landscapes (Geography of Texas) that resemble both the American South (Southern United States) and the Southwest (Southwestern United States). Although Texas is popularly associated with the Southwestern deserts (List of North American deserts), less than 10% of the land area is desert. Most of the population centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests (piney woods), and the coastline. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, and finally the desert and mountains of the Big Bend (Big Bend (Texas)).

The term "six flags over Texas" came from the several nations that had ruled over the territory. Spain (Spanish Texas) was the first European country to claim the area of Texas. France held a short-lived colony (French colonization of Texas) in Texas. Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic (Republic of Texas). In 1845 it joined the United States as the 28th state. The states annexation (Texas Annexation) set off a chain of events (Origins of the American Civil War) that caused the Mexican-American War in 1846. A slave state, Texas declared its secession from the United States in early 1861, joining the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. After the war and its restoration to the Union, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation.

One Texas industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle. Due to its long history as a center of the industry, Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy. The states economic fortunes changed in the early 1900s, when oil (petroleum) discoveries (Spindletop) initiated an economic boom (boom and bust) in the state. With strong investments in universities, Texas in the mid twentieth century developed a diversified economy (Economy of Texas), including many high tech industries. Today it has more Fortune 500 companies than any other U.S. state. With a growing base of industry, the state leads in many industries, including agriculture, petrochemicals, energy (energy industry), computers (computer industry) and electronics (consumer electronics), aerospace, and biomedical sciences (medical research). It leads the nation in export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product (Gross State Product). Texas GDP per capita (nominally) is ranked 23rd in the nation, which is below the national average.