It’s official — ‘Utahn’ (not ‘Utahan’) is now the state’s name for its citizens

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Governor Spencer Cox signed a bill Tuesday to make “Utahn” the official designation for a citizen of the Beehive State.

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.”

“There is no need to include the ‘A,'” bill sponsor Sen. Dan McCay (R – Salt Lake County) said on the Senate Floor on Feb. 19. “It’s improper … a demonym is how locals like to refer to themselves, and now we are creating a state demonym should S.B. 230 pass.”

Rep. Jordan Teuscher (R – Salt Lake County), the bill’s House sponsor, echoed this sentiment during floor debate, quoting Confucius and saying that things must be called by their proper names.

“U-T-A-H-N is the common way that Utahns would spell it, ” Teuscher said during floor debate. “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.”

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.

The bill was the only one signed by the governor during the March 18 bill review session, bringing the total number of bills he has signed so far to 40. There are 542 bills left for Cox to act on before the Mar. 27 deadline. If a bill is not acted upon before that deadline, it becomes law without needing the Governor’s signature.

According to the governor’s office, Cox will be reviewing bills for the rest of the week, which means there will likely be more bills that will be signed or vetoed throughout the week.

The governor has not indicated if there are any specific bills he plans to veto, but he has said he might veto some. For more legislative updates, visit Inside Utah Politics.