It also borders Wyoming to the northeast, Idaho to the north, and Nevada to the west. In comparison to all the U. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two regions: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which includes the state capital, Salt Lake City , and is home to roughly two-thirds of the population; and Washington County in the southwest, which has approximately , residents.
Utah has been inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous groups , such as the ancient Puebloans , the Navajo, and the Ute. The first Europeans to arrive β in the midth century β were the Spanish. Because of the region's challenging geography and harsh climate, it only became a peripheral part of New Spain and later of Mexico.
In , after the MexicanβAmerican War , the region was annexed by the U. Disputes between the dominant Mormon community and the federal government delayed Utah's admission as a state: in , after it agreed to outlaw polygamy, it was admitted as the 45th state.
People from Utah are known as Utahns. Utah has a highly diversified economy , with major sectors including transportation, education , information technology and research, government services, mining, multi-level marketing , and tourism.
George was the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the United States from to Over time and influenced by climate change , droughts in Utah have been increasing in frequency and severity, [ 18 ] putting a further strain on Utah's water security and impacting the state's economy. The name Utah derives from the name of the Ute tribe , meaning 'people of the mountains'. The meaning of Utes as 'the mountain people' has been attributed to the neighboring Pueblo Indians , [ 21 ] as well as to the Apache word Yuttahih , which means 'one that is higher up' or 'those that are higher up'.
