State (subnational)

Most countries with a federal constitution are made up of a number of subnational entities called states or provinces. In many cases, these are creations of the national government, rather than sovereign states. They are sometimes called federal states.

As well as the usage of the term in English-speaking countries, a similar term that can be directly translated into English as state or province is found in countries using other languages.

Countries made up of states

Countries using the English term state

*The United States consists of 50 states (as well as the District of Columbia).
*India consists of 28 states (and 7 territories); see States and territories of India.
*Australia consists of 6 states (and 2 territories); see States and territories of Australia.
*Malaysia consists of 13 states (and 3 federal territories); see States of Malaysia.
*Nigeria consists of 36 states (and 1 territory); see States of Nigeria.
*Palau consists of 16 states; see States of Palau.
*The Federated States of Micronesia, a federal republic in free association with the United States, consists of 4 states.

Countries using the Portuguese term estado

*Brazil consists of 26 states (as well as the Federal District); see States of Brazil.

Countries using the Spanish term estado

*Mexico consists of 31 states (as well as the Federal District); see States of Mexico.
*Venezuela consists of 23 states (as well as the Capital District and the Federal Dependencies); see Subdivisions of Venezuela.

Countries using the German term Bundesland

*Austria consists of 9 Länder, commonly referred to as Bundesländer; see States of Austria.
*Germany consists of 16 Länder, commonly referred to as Bundesländer; see States of Germany.

Other equivalent terms used in various countries

*Both Canada and South Africa use the term province for the equivalent of a state in other countries; see Provinces and territories of Canada and Provinces of South Africa respectively.
*Similarly, Argentina and Cuba use the Spanish term provincia (literally, "province"); see Provinces of Argentina.
*Switzerland uses the term canton; see Cantons of Switzerland.
*Russia consists of a complex range of different types of federal subject; see Federal subjects of Russia.
*Belgium consists of two formally separate layers of federal entity (regions and communities); see Communities, regions and provinces of Belgium.
*Ethiopia consists of a number of entities conventionally translated into English as regions; see Subdivisions of Ethiopia.
*The comunidades autónomas (literally, "autonomous communities") of Spain are also arguably equivalent to states in other countries; see Autonomous communities of Spain.