Abbreviation for American States

[TheCakeLady]

Can anyone tell me if there is a rule to the abbreviation of the names of the states of america?
I thought it might be the first and last letters but that doesn't follow for all of them, it's not the first and second either.
Help! this is really bugging me!

[Hymie]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_states

[dzug]

There isn't a universal rule, no - one or other of the two you have spotted apply in most instances but not all.

I think they've avolded anything that could have two meanings but that's about it

[jno]

it's a post office thing; you couldn't have just the first and last letters, as that would make Alaska, Arizona and Alabama all AA.

http://en.wikipedia.o...#Postal_abbreviations

[dzug]

and I suspect ALabama is only AL (potential confusion with ALaska) because Alaska was not a state when the list was first drawn up.