Generally, Alabama has very hot summers and mild winters with copious precipitation throughout the year
Alabama receives an average of  of rainfall annually and enjoys a lengthy growing season of up to 300 days in the southern part of the state
Summers in Alabama are among the hottest in the U.S., with high temperatures averaging over  throughout the summer in some parts of the state
Alabama is also prone to tropical storms and hurricanes
Areas of the state far away from the Gulf are not immune to the effects of the storms, which often dump tremendous amounts of rain as they move inland and weaken
South Alabama reports many thunderstorms
The Gulf Coast, around Mobile Bay, averages between 70 and 80 days per year with thunder reported
This activity decreases somewhat further north in the state, but even the far north of the state reports thunder on about 60 days per year
Occasionally, thunderstorms are severe with frequent lightning and large hail; the central and northern parts of the state are most vulnerable to this type of storm
Alabama ranks ninth in the number of deaths from lightning and tenth in the number of deaths from lightning strikes per capita
Several long-tracked F5/EF5 tornadoes have contributed to Alabama reporting more tornado fatalities since 1950 than any other state
The state was affected by the 1974 Super Outbreak and was devastated tremendously by the 2011 Super Outbreak
The 2011 Super Outbreak produced a record amount of tornadoes in the state
The peak season for tornadoes varies from the northern to southern parts of the state
Alabama is one of the few places in the world that has a secondary tornado season in November and December besides the typically severe spring
The northern part—along the Tennessee River Valley—is most vulnerable
The area of Alabama and Mississippi most affected by tornadoes is sometimes referred to as Dixie Alley, as distinct from the Tornado Alley of the Southern Plains
Winters are generally mild in Alabama, as they are throughout most of the Southeastern United States, with average January low temperatures around  in Mobile and around  in Birmingham
Historic snowfall events include New Year's Eve 1963 snowstorm and the 1993 Storm of the Century
The annual average snowfall for the Birmingham area is  per year
In the southern Gulf coast, snowfall is less frequent, sometimes going several years without any snowfall
Alabama's highest temperature of  was recorded on September 5, 1925, in the unincorporated community of Centerville
The record low of  occurred on January 30, 1966, in New Market
The state is usually ranked among the top in nation for its range of overall biodiversity
Alabama is in the subtropical coniferous forest biome and once boasted huge expanses of pine forest, which still form the largest proportion of forests in the state
It currently ranks fifth in the nation for the diversity of its flora
It is home to nearly 4,000 pteridophyte and spermatophyte plant species
Invertebrates include 97 crayfish species and 383 mollusk species
113 of these mollusk species have never been collected outside the state
This includes a natural increase since the last census of 121,054 (502,457 births minus 381,403 deaths) and an increase due to net migration of 104,991 into the state
Immigration from outside the U.S
resulted in a net increase of 31,180 people, and migration within the country produced a net gain of 73,811 people
The state had 108,000 foreign-born (2.4% of the state population), of which an estimated 22.2% were undocumented (24,000)
Alabama has the 5th highest African American population among US states at 25.8% as of 2020
The center of population of Alabama is located in Chilton County, outside the town of Jemison
According to HUD's 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, there were an estimated 3,752 homeless people in Alabama
Demographers estimate that a minimum of 20–23% of people in Alabama are of predominantly English ancestry and state that the figure is probably much higher
In 2011, 46.6% of Alabama's population younger than age1 were minorities
The largest reported ancestry groups in Alabama are American (13.4%), Irish (10.5%), English (10.2%), German (7.9%), and Scots-Irish (2.5%) based on 2006-2008 Census data
The Scots-Irish were the largest non-English immigrant group from the British Isles before the American Revolution, and many settled in the South, later moving into the Deep South as it was developed
In 1984, under the Davis–Strong Act, the state legislature established the Alabama Indian Affairs Commission
Native American groups within the state had increasingly been demanding recognition as ethnic groups and seeking an end to discrimination
In the past, their self-identification was often overlooked as the state tried to impose a binary breakdown of society into white and black
The state has officially recognized nine American Indian tribes in the state, descended mostly from the Five Civilized Tribes of the American Southeast
Language 
Most Alabama residents (95.1% of those five and older) spoke only English at home in 2010, a minor decrease from 96.1% in 2000
Alabama English is predominantly Southern, and is related to South Midland speech which was taken across the border from Tennessee
In the major Southern speech region, there is the decreasing loss of the final r, for example the "boyd" pronunciation of "bird"
In the northern third of the state, there is a South Midland "arm" and "barb" rhyming with "form" and "orb", respectively
Religion 

In the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey, 86% of Alabama respondents reported their religion as Christian, including 6% Catholic, with 11% as having no religion
The composition of other traditions is 0.5% Mormon, 0.5% Jewish, 0.5% Muslim, 0.5% Buddhist, and 0.5% Hindu