Massachusetts (/ˌmæsəˈtʃuːsɪts/ ( listen), /-zɪts/), officially known as the Commonwealth of

Massachusetts, is the most populous state in the New England region of the northeastern United

States. It borders on the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island to the
south, New Hampshire and Vermont to the north, and New York to the west. The capital of
Massachusetts is Boston, which is also the most populous city in New England. It is home to
the Greater Boston metropolitan area, a region influential upon American history, academia,
and industry.[41] Originally dependent on agriculture, fishing and trade,[42] Massachusetts was transformed
into a manufacturing center during the Industrial Revolution.[43] During the 20th century, Massachusetts's
economy shifted from manufacturing to services.[44] Modern Massachusetts is a global leader
in biotechnology, engineering, higher education, finance, and maritime trade.[45]
Plymouth was the site of the second colony in New England after Popham Colony in 1607 in what is
now Maine.[46] Plymouth was founded in 1620 by the Pilgrims, passengers of the Mayflower. In 1692, the
town of Salem and surrounding areas experienced one of America's most infamous cases of mass
hysteria, the Salem witch trials.[47] In 1777, General Henry Knox founded the Springfield Armory, which
during the Industrial Revolution catalyzed numerous important technological advances,
including interchangeable parts.[48] In 1786, Shays' Rebellion, a populist revolt led by
disaffected American Revolutionary War veterans, influenced the United States Constitutional
Convention.[49] In the 18th century, the Protestant First Great Awakening, which swept Britain and
the Thirteen Colonies, originated from the pulpit of Northampton preacher Jonathan Edwards.[50] In the
late 18th century, Boston became known as the "Cradle of Liberty"[51] for the agitation there that led to
the American Revolution.
The entire Commonwealth of Massachusetts has played a powerful scientific, commercial, and cultural
role in the history of the United States. Before the American Civil War, Massachusetts was a center for
the abolitionist, temperance,[52] and transcendentalist[53] movements.[54] In the late 19th century, the sports
of basketball and volleyball were invented in the western Massachusetts cities
of Springfield and Holyoke, respectively.[55][56] In 2004, Massachusetts became the first U.S. state to
legally recognize same-sex marriage as a result of the decision in Goodridge v. Department of Public
Health by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.[57] Many prominent American political dynasties
have hailed from the state, including the Adams and Kennedy families. Harvard
University in Cambridge is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States,[58] with the
largest financial endowment of any university,[59] and Harvard Law School has educated a
contemporaneous majority of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States.[60] Kendall
Square in Cambridge has been called "the most innovative square mile on the planet", in reference to
the high concentration of entrepreneurial start-ups and quality of innovation which have emerged in the
vicinity of the square since 2010.[61][62] Both Harvard and MIT, also in Cambridge, have been ranked
among the most highly regarded academic institutions in the world.[63] Massachusetts' public-school
students place among the top tier in the world in academic performance;[64] and according to the World
Population Review's 2020 ranking, Massachusetts' residents demonstrated the highest average IQ of all
U.S. states.[65] The state has been ranked as one of the top states in the United States for citizens to live
in, as well as one of the most expensive.[66]
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was named after the indigenous population, the Massachusett, likely
derived from a Wôpanâak word muswach8sut, segmented as mus(ây) "big" + wach8 "mountain" + -
s "diminutive" + -ut "locative" (the '8' in these words refers to the 'oo' sound according to the Wôpanâak
orthographic chart).[67] It has been translated as "near the great hill",[68] "by the blue hills", "at the little big
hill", or "at the range of hills", referring to the Blue Hills, or in particular the Great Blue Hill which is
located on the boundary of Milton and Canton.[69][70] Alternatively, Massachusett has been represented
as Moswetuset—from the name of the Moswetuset Hummock (meaning "hill shaped like an arrowhead")
in Quincy, where Plymouth Colony commander Myles Standish, hired English military officer,
and Squanto, part of the now disappeared Patuxet band of the Wampanoag peoples, met
Chief Chickatawbut in 1621.[71][72]
The official name of the state is the "Commonwealth of Massachusetts".[73] While this designation is part
of the state's official name, it has no practical implications.[74] Massachusetts has the same position and
powers within the United States as other states.[75] It may have been chosen by John Adams for the
second draft of the Massachusetts Constitution because unlike the word "state", "commonwealth" at the
time had the connotation of a republic, in contrast to the monarchy the former American colonies were
fighting against. (The "State of Massachusetts Bay" was in the first draft that had been rejected by the
legislature.)[76]