Lawmakers Say Officially…It’s Utahn, not Utahan

As a resident of Utah, have you ever been called a Utahn and think that sounds weird? Well, you’ll probably have to get used to it thanks to a newly signed bill from Utah lawmakers. 

Our news partners at ABC4 Utah reported on this change through an article written by Matthew Drachman.  

Drachman wrote, “H.B. 230 — or Utah Resident Terminology Amendments — was passed during the 2025 General Session. The bill designates the term “Utahn” as the official name of citizens of Utah, and codifies that the term isn’t spelled ‘Utahan.’” 

This isn’t a joke, it took a signed bill to officially designate Utah residents at Utahns. Lawmakers had meetings to figure out if this was the right move and went along with it. 

It’s not like I don’t like the name Utahn, I just think it’s funny how lawmakers had to take time out of their day to put into writing. 

Rep. Jordan Teuscher said, “U-T-A-H-N is the common way that Utahns would spell it, but there are those misfits out there who spell it with an ‘-an,’ and so we want to make sure that it’s consistent in government documents, media, and education materials. This reflects our historical and local usage and aligns with our state’s identity and heritage.” 

Apparently, Utah isn’t the only state to make this kind of decision as Massachusetts did something similar, and no, they aren’t called Masschusans....or Massachusettans....or Masochists. 

Drachman wrote, “Utah is one of two states that has enshrined an official designation for citizens within state code. The other is Massachusetts, which officially calls its citizens “Bay Staters” in official government documents. The Federal Government uses a publishing guide for citizen designations as well.” 

Governor Spencer Cox only signed one bill during the Mar. 18 bill review session, meaning the Utahn bill was the only one to see ink that day. I know it’s silly to be overdramatic about this, but Cox still has over 500 bills to review by Mar. 27. 

Sounds a little silly, doesn’t it? For now, I guess I’ll see you on the flip side...my fellow Utahn.