United States

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"United States of America", "America", "US", "U.S.", "USA", and "U.S.A." redirect here. For
the landmass encompassing North and South America, see Americas. For other uses, see
America (disambiguation), US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States
(disambiguation).
Coordinates:

40N 100W

United States of America

Flag

Great Seal

Motto:
"In God we trust"[1][2]
Other traditional mottos [show]
Anthem: "The Star-Spangled Banner"

Menu
0:00
March: "The Stars and Stripes Forever"[3]

Menu
0:00

The contiguous United States plus Alaska and Hawaii

The United States and its territories

Capital
Largest city

Washington, D.C.
3853N 7701W

New York City

4043N 7400W

None at federal level[a]

English[b]
72.4% White
12.6% Black
9.1% Other/Multiracial
Ethnic groups
4.8% Asian
0.9% Native
0.2% Islanders[4][c]
70.6% Christian
22.8% non-religious
1.9% Jewish
Religion
0.9% Muslim
0.7% Buddhist
2.5% other faiths[5]
Demonym
American
Federal presidential constitutional
Government
republic
President
Barack Obama
Vice President
Joe Biden
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan
Chief Justice
John Roberts
Legislature
Congress
Official languages
National language

 Upper house
Senate
Lower house
House of Representatives
Independence from Great Britain
Declaration
July 4, 1776
Confederation
March 1, 1781
Treaty of Paris
September 3, 1783
Constitution
June 21, 1788
Last polity admitted March 24, 1976
Area
9,833,517 km2[6][d] (3rd/4th)
Total area
3,796,742 sq mi
Water (%)
6.97
9,147,593 km2
Total land area
3,531,905 sq mi
Population
2016 estimate
324,720,797[7] (3rd)
2010 census
309,349,689[8] (3rd)
35/km2 (180th)
Density
90.6/sq mi
GDP (PPP)
2016 estimate
Total
$18.558 trillion[9] (2nd)
Per capita
$57,220[9] (10th)
GDP (nominal)
2016 estimate
Total
$18.558 trillion[9] (1st)
Per capita
$57,220[9] (6th)
40.8[10][11][12]
Gini (2013)
medium
0.915[13]
HDI (2014)
very high 8th
Currency
United States dollar ($) (USD)
Time zone
(UTC4 to 12, +10, +11)
Summer (DST)
(UTC4 to 10[e])
Date format
MM/DD/YYYY
Drives on the
right[f]
Calling code
+1
ISO 3166 code
US
Internet TLD
.us .gov .mil .edu
^ English is the official language of 32 states; English and
Hawaiian are both official languages in Hawaii, and English and 20
Native American languages are official in Alaska. Algonquian,
a.
Cherokee, and Sioux are among many other official languages in
Native-controlled lands throughout the country. French is a de
facto, but unofficial, language in Maine and Louisiana, while New
Mexico law grants Spanish a special status.[14][15][16][17]
^ In five territories, English as well as one or more indigenous
languages are official: Spanish in Puerto Rico, Samoan in American
b.
Samoa, Chamorro in both Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.
Carolinian is also an official language in the Northern Mariana
Islands.
c. ^ Not including Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, see Race and
ethnicity in the United States for more information.

^ Whether the United States or China is larger has been disputed.

The figure given is from the U.S. Census and United Nations. [18]
e. ^ See Time in the United States for details about laws governing
time zones in the United States.
f.
^ Except American Samoa and the Virgin Islands.

d.

The United States of America (USA), commonly referred to as the United States (U.S.) or
America, is a federal republic composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing
territories, and various possessions.[fn 1] Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are
contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in
the far northwestern corner of North America, with a land border to the east with Canada and
separated by the Bering Strait from Russia. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the midPacific. The territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Nine time
zones are covered. The geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse.[20]
At 3.8 million square miles (9.8 million km2)[18] and with over 324 million people, the United
States is the world's fourth-largest country by total area (and fourth-largest by land area)[fn 2] and
the third-most populous. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural
nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries.[25] Urbanization
climbed to over 80% in 2010 and leads to growing megaregions. The country's capital is
Washington, D.C. and its largest city is New York City; the other top metropolitan areas, all with
around five million or more inhabitants, are Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco,
Boston, Philadelphia, Houston, Atlanta, and Miami.