State

States were semi-autonomous regions of countries which generally had broad powers over the affairs of their residents. The national government formed by the combination of the several states was often called the "federal government". (PROSE: Endgame) Notable examples of countries that had states were the United States of America and Australia. Canada effectively had states, but called them "provinces". (TV: Children of Earth: Day Three) Amongst the things that states and provinces did was issue licence plates for motor vehicles. Sarah Jane Smith, for instance, kept an Ontario licence plate in her attic. (TV: Enemy of the Bane)

Federated states were not the universal condition of governmental organisation on Earth, as some countries were not subdivided into states. The United Kingdom, for example, did not have states but rather constituent countries, some with varied autonomy with their own parliament. (AUDIO: Herald of the Dawn, Thoughts and Prayers, Changes Everything, TV: World War Three etc.) Other countries, like France, also had no states. (TV: The Reign of Terror, PROSE: Human Nature)

Australia
Australian states to which the Doctor or his friends and associates were known to travel included: allowcachedresults=true categorymatch=Australian states% namespace=0 columns=3 format = ,\n* %PAGE%

Brazil
The nation of Brazil had federal states. One such state was Rio de Janeiro. The Doctor had visited Rio de Janiero on multiple occasions. (PROSE: Rose, AUDIO: The Raincloud Man, Loups-Garoux) Rio de Janiero was a frequent destination the Doctor would take companions to, but on some occasions they would often fail to get there. (COMIC: Monstrous Beauty, TV: The Hungry Earth) São Paulo was another state of Brazil. (COMIC: Slaver's Song) In 1983, the Third Doctor's companion Jo Grant had lived in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso for about six months. (TV: Death of the Doctor, PROSE: Death of the Doctor)

Germany
The nation of Germany also had states. Bavaria was one state which the Doctor knew of. (AUDIO: Scaredy Cat) The Tenth Doctor explained to Rose Tyler that Saxe-Coburg was located in the Bavarian state of her time. (TV: Tooth and Claw) Other German states included Baden-Württemberg (AUDIO: Dominion) and Lower Saxony. (TV: The Day of the Clown)

Mexico
The Doctor knew of some Mexican states, but it was not always because he knew of them through personal travel there. One such state was Yucatán. (TV: The Enemy of the World) In 2012, Jo Jones planned to visit Yucatán, as well as the other Mexican states of Chiapas, Guerrero, and Oaxaca, as part of a conservation tour of the country. (AUDIO: The Infinite Today) San Luis Potosi was another Mexican state. (PROSE: Time Traveller's Diary)

United States
States were so integral to the structure of the United States of America that the concept was enshrined in the very name of the country. States were headed by governors and also had their own bodies of laws. People could be punished for breaking such state laws, and state governors could offer paroles to people imprisoned under their respective state's law. (TV: The New World)

The question of whether states could secede from the federal union was central to the American Civil War. After a long and bloody conflict, the answer to the question was determined to be "no". (PROSE: Blood and Hope) Specifically, state law differed on the issue of slavery. While the practice remained legal in southern states, northern states had outlawed it. Following the 1860 election of slavery abolitionist Abraham Lincoln to the presidency, the continuation of slavery was a decisive factor that led to the secession of the southern states from the union, immediately leading to the civil war. Together, the southern states formed a new nation, the Confederate States of America. (PROSE: Doctor Who and the War Games, Blood and Hope, COMIC: Backtime) Ultimately, slavery would be abolished nationwide by the federal government following the Confederacy's defeat. (PROSE: Warlords of Utopia)

US states included:


 * Alabama
 * Alaska
 * Arizona
 * Arkansas
 * California
 * Colorado
 * Connecticut
 * Delaware
 * Florida
 * Georgia
 * Hawaii
 * Idaho
 * Illinois
 * Indiana
 * Iowa
 * Kansas
 * Kentucky
 * Louisiana
 * Maine
 * Malebolgia
 * Maryland
 * Massachusetts
 * Michigan
 * Minnesota
 * Mississippi
 * Missouri
 * Montana
 * Nebraska
 * Nevada
 * New Hampshire
 * New Jersey
 * New Mexico
 * New York
 * North Carolina
 * North Dakota
 * Ohio
 * Oklahoma
 * Oregon
 * Pennsylvania
 * Rhode Island
 * South Carolina
 * South Dakota
 * Texas
 * Utah
 * Vermont
 * Virginia
 * Washington
 * West Virginia
 * Wisconsin
 * Wyoming

Provinces
The difference between states and provinces was unclear. But at least in their power to issue license plates for cars, they seemed to occupy a similar level of authority.

Canada
Canada was a nation that used the term province over state. Ontario was a province of Canada. (PROSE: Christmas in Toronto)