Portal:Arizona


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Arizona
State of Arizona
Location of Arizona in the United States
Location of Arizona in the United States
Websiteaz.gov

Arizona is a landlocked state in the Southwestern United States, sharing the Four Corners region with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the northwest and California to the west, and shares an international border with the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California to the south and southwest. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix, which is the most populous state capital and fifth-most populous city in the United States. Arizona is divided into 15 counties.

Arizona is the sixth-largest state by area and the 14th-most-populous of the 50 states. It is the 48th state and last of the contiguous states to be admitted to the Union, achieving statehood on February 14, 1912. Historically part of the territory of Alta California and Nuevo México in New Spain (Spanish Empire), it became part of independent Mexico in 1821. After being defeated in the Mexican–American War, Mexico ceded much of this territory to the United States in 1848, where the area became part of the New Mexico Territory. The southernmost portion of the state was acquired in 1853 through the Gadsden Purchase.

Southern Arizona is known for its desert climate, with extremely hot summers and mild winters. Northern Arizona features forests of pine, Douglas fir, and spruce trees; the Colorado Plateau; mountain ranges (such as the San Francisco Mountains); as well as large, deep canyons, with much more moderate summer temperatures and significant winter snowfalls. There are ski resorts in the areas of Flagstaff, Sunrise, and Tucson. In addition to the internationally known Grand Canyon National Park, which is one of the world's seven natural wonders, there are several national forests, national parks, and national monuments.

Arizona is home to a diverse population. About one-quarter of the state is made up of Indian reservations that serve as the home of 27 federally recognized Native American tribes, including the Navajo Nation, the largest in the state and the country, with more than 300,000 citizens. Since the 1980s, the proportion of Hispanics has grown significantly owing to migration from Mexico and Central America. A substantial portion of the population are followers of the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Arizona's population and economy have grown dramatically since the 1950s because of inward migration, and the state is now a major hub of the Sun Belt. Many large companies, such as PetSmart and Circle K, have headquarters in the state, and Arizona is home to major universities, including the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, and Northern Arizona University. (Full article...)

Selected article -

The center in April 2017

The Chinese Cultural Center (Chinese: 鳳凰城中國文化中心), now the Outlier Center, was a Chinese-themed retail complex in Phoenix, Arizona. It was developed in 1997 by BNU Corporation, a subsidiary of COFCO, a Chinese state-run enterprise and the country's largest food processor, manufacturer and trader. Although the center was developed as a for-profit investment by its owners, it was portrayed as a "cultural center" for the Chinese community in the greater Phoenix area. The developers thought the traditional Chinese architecture and landscaping, its concentration of Chinese-related businesses, and its use as a venue for celebrating Chinese holidays would attract both tourists and local Asian-Americans, and make Chinese business people feel more at home and welcome in Phoenix, thus helping Phoenix attract more foreign investment. The center opened in 1998 with visual elements imported from China and installed by Chinese craftsmen. It struggled with low occupancy, suffered further during the recession of the mid-2000s, and never recovered. In 2017, a new owner announced the property would be repurposed as a modern office building and the distinctive Chinese roof would be removed. This led to a sustained multi-year effort by the Chinese-American community to block the redevelopment and preserve the center as it was built. Despite demonstrations, petitions, lobbying, and several lawsuits, the new owner ultimately prevailed and most of the Chinese elements were gone by 2022. (Full article...)

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Arizona cap canal
Arizona cap canal

The Central Arizona Project Aqueduct is a diversion canal in Arizona in the United States. The aqueduct diverts water from the Colorado River from Lake Havasu City into central and southern Arizona. The Central Arizona Project is a multipurpose water resource development and management project that was designed to provide water to nearly one million acres (4,000 km²) of Indian and non-Indian irrigated agricultural land areas as well as municipal water for several Arizona communities.

More did you know -

Did you know?
  • ...that the Baptist Foundation of Arizona (BFA) filed for the largest bankruptcy of a religious organization in U.S. history after its 600 million dollar fraud went undetected by the same Big Five firm that audited Enron?

WikiProjects

You are invited to participate in WikiProject Arizona, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about Arizona.
Parent project
  • WikiProject United States
Main project
  • WikiProject Arizona
Related projects
  • WikiProject California
  • WikiProject Colorado
  • WikiProject Nevada
  • WikiProject New Mexico
  • WikiProject Utah

Selected biography -

Cooney in 1985

Joan Ganz Cooney (born Joan Ganz; November 30, 1929) is an American television writer and producer. She is one of the founders of Sesame Workshop (formerly Children's Television Workshop or CTW), the organization famous for the creation of the children's television show Sesame Street, which was co-created by her. Cooney grew up in Phoenix and earned a Bachelor of Arts in education from the University of Arizona in 1951. After working for the State Department in Washington, D.C., and as a journalist in Phoenix, she worked as a publicist for television and production companies in New York City. In 1961, she became interested in working for educational television, and became a documentary producer for New York's first educational TV station WNET (Channel 13). Many of the programs she produced won local Emmys.

In 1966, Cooney hosted what she called "a little dinner party" at her apartment near Gramercy Park. In attendance was her then-husband Tim Cooney, her boss Lewis Freedman, and Lloyd Morrisett, an executive at the Carnegie Corporation, in which the potential of television to teach young children was discussed. Cooney was chosen to oversee and direct the creation of what eventually became the children's television program Sesame Street, which premiered in 1969, and the CTW, the organization that oversaw its production. Cooney was named CTW's first executive director. As one of the first female executives in American television, her appointment was called "one of the most important television developments of the decade". (Full article...)

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The following are images from various Arizona-related articles on Wikipedia.

Arizona news

August 30, 2026 – 2026 Grand Canyon flood
The body of one man is found near the Colorado River while 15 other people remain missing after a flash flood at Bright Angel Creek in the Grand Canyon in Arizona, United States. (Euronews)
August 29, 2026 –
A flash flood in the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, United States, leaves about 15 people missing and prompts the evacuation of at least 62 others. (AFP via France 24)
June 4, 2026 – Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election
The office of Arizona attorney general Kris Mayes says that it will seek new indictments against fake electors involved in attempting to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election in the state following a denial of an appeal by Mayes that would require prosecutors to send the case back to the grand jury. (AP via The Guardian) (The Hill)
June 3, 2026 –
The U.S. state of Arizona reports its first death of the Sin Nombre strain of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. (Forbes)

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