Minneapolis back on top of ‘Most Literate City’ ranking

With Minneapolis first and St. Paul fourth, the Twin Cities fared well in the annual ranking from Central Connecticut State University.

By Joe Kimball

April 10, 2015

Minneapolis is this year’s Most Literate City, according to new rankings from Central Connecticut State University.

The ranking comes as Minneapolis hosts the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) annual conference this week.

St. Paul was fourth on the 2015 list.

Minneapolis has been ranked first in the past, but Washington, D.C., had taken the top honors for the past four years. Seattle, another perennial top-three contender, was third this year.

USA Today reports that Central Connecticut State University uses several criteria, including local bookstores, educational levels, Internet and library resources, and newspaper circulation, to make the determinations.

This year’s top 20:

1. Minneapolis
2. Washington, D.C.
3. Seattle
4. St. Paul, Minn.
5. Atlanta
6. Pittsburgh
7. Denver
8. San Francisco
9. Boston
10. St. Louis, MO
11. Portland, OR
12. Cincinnati
13. Raleigh, N.C.
14. Kansas City, MO
15. Baltimore, MD
16. Honolulu
17. Cleveland
18. Orlando, FL
19. Virginia Beach, VA
20. New York