Virginia , Pennsylvania , Kentucky , and Massachusetts share an interesting trait : They ’re the onlyfour statesin the U.S. that have the wordcommonwealthas part of their official championship . The name may sound fancy , but body politic are no different from the 46 " unconstipated " state that consist the nation .
According toMerriam - Webster , commonwealthdescribes a nation , state , or other political unit of measurement " founded on police force and unite by stocky or silent agreement of the the great unwashed for the coarse good . " In other Word , the term is n’t specific to any type of centralized political organization . Rather , it can be applied to any body invest in the " common riches " ( a.k.a . well - being ) of the universe it governs .
Whether or not a United States Department of State was deemed acommonwealthdepended on the view of its beginner . TheMassachusetts State Government websiteexplains that the wordcommonwealthbecame popular during theAmerican Revolution . When drafting Massachusetts ’s make-up , John Adams esteem the term for its anti - monarchy and pro - democracy connotations .
" There is , however , a queer sensory faculty in which the words democracy , commonwealth , popular state , are used by English and Gallic writers ; who mean by them by them a democracy [ … ] a single assembly , chosen at stated periods by the people , " theFounding Father write .
His predilection forcommonwealthoverstatedidn’t have any greater outcome beyond semantics . The body politic of Virginia , Pennsylvania , Kentucky , and Massachusetts still function as state on a political and legal level . On the flip side , theU.S. territoriesPuerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Island are body politic by name , but they do n’t have the same right as the State that share the title .
So in conclusion : make out which U.S. states are technically nation is a play slice of trifle to know for route trip , but the eminence does n’t have any shock on the people who live there .
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