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United States

geography Maturity 11-13 Vital Level 3 politics Next article →

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The United States of America is a huge country in North America.

USA orthographic
USA orthographic

Most of its land sits between Canada and Mexico. Alaska is located in the northwest, far from the other states. Hawaii is a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean.

US insular areas SVG
US insular areas SVG

The country is very large in size and has many people. There are more than 341 million people living there. It is the third largest country in the world by land area.

Uspaintedrelief
Uspaintedrelief

The history of the land began long before the United States existed. Paleo-Indians moved from North Asia at least 15,000 years ago. They formed many different and clever civilizations.

Later, people from Europe arrived to build colonies. The Spanish started a colony in Florida in 1513. The British built the Virginia Colony in 1607. This was one of the original Thirteen Colonies. During this time, many Africans were brought to the colonies as enslaved people to work on plantations.

The colonies eventually fought a war to become their own nation. They wanted to be free from the rule of the British Crown. This was called the American Revolution.

Declaration independence
Declaration independence

The colonies won the war between 1775 and 1783. This victory helped the new country grow toward the west. Later, the country faced a hard time called the Civil War from 1861 to 1865. This war was fought between the North and the South over slavery. After the North won, slavery was ended across the whole nation.

Today, the United States has a very strong government and economy. It is a federal republic with 50 states.

US state Legislature and Governor Control
US state Legislature and Governor Control

The government has three parts: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The President leads the country, and Congress makes the laws. The country has the largest economy in the world.

It is also known for having very powerful military forces.

The Pentagon, Headquarters of the US Department of Defense (cropped2)
The Pentagon, Headquarters of the US Department of Defense (cropped2)

The United States is a place where many different cultures meet. Millions of people have moved there from all over the world.

This makes the culture very diverse and influential globally. You can see this diversity in big cities and through new ideas. The country is a leader in science, education, and new inventions.

It plays a very big role in how the whole world works today.

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🖼️ Images & Media (45)
Star Spangled Banner instrumental.ogg
"The Star-Spangled Banner" - Choral with...
File:USA orthographic.svg
USA orthographic.svg
File:US insular areas SVG.svg
US insular areas SVG.svg
File:NOAA Map of the US EEZ.svg
NOAA Map of the US EEZ.svg
File:Extreme Makeover, Mesa Verde Edition - panoramio.jpg
Extreme Makeover, Mesa Verde Edition -...
File:Nouvelle-France map-en.svg
Nouvelle-France map-en.svg
File:Declaration independence.jpg
Declaration independence.jpg
File:U.S. Territorial Acquisitions.png
U.S. Territorial Acquisitions.png
File:US SlaveFree1858.gif
US SlaveFree1858.gif
Emigrants (i.e. immigrants) landing at...
File:Trinity shot color (4x3 cropped).jpg
Trinity shot color (4x3 cropped).jpg

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