Vermont is the least religious state in America, according to the Monday results from a Gallup survey. Other least religious states included New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts, Live Science reported.
The survey is Gallup's latest attempt at measuring the religiosity of American states. The nation's least religious states tend to be in New England and the Pacific Northwest since Gallup began the polls in 2008. On the other hand, the most religious states still tend to be in the South.
The poll results were based on over 174,000 phone conversations. Being "very religious" meant the respondent sees religion as a significant part of daily life and that they regularly attend religious services, Live Science reported. Nearly 41 percent of Americans in general said they were "very religious."
In Mississippi, 61 percent of respondents said they were "very religious," making it the most religious state. Mississippi was also the most religious state in 2013, Live Science reported.
States in the South had the most Protestants compared to the rest of the U.S. The poll also found that southern Protestants have "above-average religiousness," making them more religious than Protestants in other states.
For example, Vermont Protestants were less religious than Mississippi Protestants, Live Science reported. Even those in Mississippi who did not belong to an organized religion were still more religious than those in Vermont with no religion, Live Science reported.
Gallup experts said this is because some areas in the country are culturally predisposed to strong religious practices.
Although most religious states were in the south, Utah, closer to the east coast, came in as the second most religious state. This is due to Utah's prominent Mormon population, which tends to be a devout religion, Live Science reported.
Only 22 percent of those surveyed in Vermont said they were "very religious," followed by New Hampshire with 24 percent, Main with 24 percent and Massachusetts with 28 percent. New York had 34 percent of respondents say they were "very religious."
