Montana got its name from its land. In Spanish, Montana means “mountain.” This makes sense because mountains cover the western part of the state.
The rest of Montana is part of the Great Plains. The Great Plains are huge grasslands. They stretch from Montana to the Missouri River. These flat, grassy fields gave Montana its nickname – Big Sky Country. People also call Montana the Treasure State because it has lots of minerals. They call it the Last Best Place because its land is still pure and beautiful. Montana is the fourth-largest state in America. It’s bigger than New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., combined.
