Q 01/05

The Mississippi traditionally begins at which Minnesota lake?

A) Itasca

B) Bemidji

C) Leech

D) Winnibigoshish

Answer · why

A) Itasca

The lake sits 1,475 feet above sea level in Itasca State Park, and visitors can walk across the river on stepping stones there.

Q 02/05

Which is the only US river longer than the Mississippi?

A) The Ohio

B) The Missouri

C) The Rio Grande

D) The Yukon

Answer · why

B) The Missouri

Measured from the Missouri's own source in Montana, the combined system runs about 3,710 miles, the fourth longest in the world.

Q 03/05

Per the USGS, how long is the Mississippi from its source lake to the Gulf of Mexico?

A) 1,450 miles

B) 1,890 miles

C) 3,020 miles

D) 2,340 miles

Answer · why

D) 2,340 miles

The traditional figure has shifted over the years as engineers straightened bends and the delta grew.

Q 04/05

The name Mississippi comes from Misi-ziibi, a phrase in which Native American language?

A) Lakota

B) Cherokee

C) Ojibwe

D) Choctaw

Answer · why

C) Ojibwe

The French rendered it as Misi zipi; a Sioux guide travelling with the first French explorers called it Ne Tongo, 'big river'.

Q 05/05

What does the name Misi-ziibi, from which 'Mississippi' derives, mean?

A) Father of Waters

B) Muddy Water

C) Long Snake

D) Great River

Answer · why

D) Great River

Upstream sections had less flattering Ojibwe names, including one translated as 'Miserable Wretched Dirty Water River'.