Alabama is located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks second in the size of its inland waterways and had approximately 4.6 million residents in 2006. Alabama is known as the "Heart of Dixie" and is also nicknamed the Yellowhammer State. The capital of Alabama is Montgomery, but the oldest city is Mobile. The largest city by population is Birmingham and the largest city by total land area is Huntsville.
The state has heavily invested in aerospace, education, health care, banking, and various heavy industries including automobile manufacturing, mineral extraction, steel production and fabrication.