Which States Have A Panhandle

What is a Panhandle?

Oklahoma's panhandle includes three counties.

It is like shooting fish in a barrel to spot a panhandle on a pan; the part that is used to lift the pan off the surface. The aforementioned concept is likewise used to describe a geographical feature on land. In geography, a panhandle is a long, narrow, strip of land that projects from the main body of an surface area. The narrow strip is shaped in the handle of a pan from where information technology derives its proper noun. Panhandle is non a peninsula simply rather a narrow extension of a geographical surface area such as a sovereign state or a subnational entity. The deviation between a panhandle, as well known as a salient, and a peninsula is that the panhandle is non bordered past water on any three sides. Instead, information technology is bordered by land on two or more sides and protrudes out from the principal geographical body. The concept of panhandle may not exist purely geographic but can as well include demographic component.

Origin of the Term "Panhandle"

The protruding geographical surface from the chief surface is commonly referred to as a salient surface. However, the American English apply the word "panhandle" to refer to a long and narrow strip of land such equally the northernmost expanse of Texas. Terms such every bit chimney and bootheel are also used to refer to such an area. The term "salient" may have been derived from military machine salient which is a battlefield feature or surface area that extends into enemy territory. A military salient, like the geographical salient, is surrounded by the enemy on multiple sides (geographical salient is surrounded by land on multiple sides). The use of the give-and-take "panhandle" is mainly confined to the United States and is derived from the part that is used to elevator off a cooking pan.

Panhandles in the US

Ix states in the United States have panhandles, all of diverse sizes and shapes. These states include Alaska, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Maryland, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia. The extreme northern department of Idaho panhandle is often referred to as "The Chimney" because it resembles a chimney when viewed from the map. Although Utah has a protrusion, the area is not usually referred to as a panhandle since information technology is the dwelling house to the state capital and contains half of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area which is the nigh populous surface area in the country. New York also has a protrusion on the southern portion which is more conspicuous than some panhandles like Texas and Nebraska. Even so, it is never considered a panhandle as it is the most densely populated region in the country. Due west Virginia is the only country with two panhandles; eastern W Virginia and northern West Virginia.

Why Do Panhandles Be?

When one looks at a map, they may wonder why these narrow strips of land remained an extension of a geographical entity rather than merge with the other expanse surrounding information technology. For instance, Namibia should have surrendered the Caprivi Strip to Botswana or Western Oklahoma should have been part of Texas. However, most geographical entities such equally countries and states were not willing to relinquish a office of their country mainly for political, geographical, and topographical reasons. The existence of panhandles tin can only be explained by how countries, states, and territories got their shapes.