United States Country Overview
Where is United States located? The ‘United States of America’ comprises 50 states in North America. It also includes a part of Oceania with Hawaii. The capital of America is Washington DC and the largest is New York City. Since America covers a very large area, it includes 4 time zones. The world time zone map divides areas into time zones based on how far they deviate from official world time (UTC). Accordingly, the ‘Eastern Standard Time Zone’ stretches across the eastern mainland of America, which is 5 hours behind the world clock. Further west is the ‘Central Standard Time Zone’, which is a 6 hour time shift from UTC. Again to the west of this time zone is the ‘Mountain Standard Time Zone’. Here the time difference is 7 hours. In the far west of America is a time zone called the ‘Pacific Standard Time Zone’ which is 8 hours behind Universal Time. In addition, there are 5 other time zones outside of the mainland area of America. During the summer, it is common practice in most states to switch to Daylight Saving Time. Only Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are exceptions.
Bordering Countries of United States
According to abbreviationfinder, the United States is a country located in North America, bordered by four other countries. To the north lies Canada, while to the south lies Mexico. Further west is the Pacific Ocean, while to the east lies the Atlantic Ocean.
The United States has a long history of cultural exchanges with its neighbouring countries due to its strategic location in North America. This has led to strong cultural ties between US and its neighbours as well as strong political cooperation in recent years. In addition, US also has strong economic ties with its bordering countries due to its thriving manufacturing industry which have attracted foreign investment.
The relationship between US and its neighbours is complex but largely peaceful despite occasional disputes over matters such as energy resources or border issues. In recent years there have been efforts by both sides to improve relations as well as increased trade between them for mutual benefit. For example, US has signed several free trade agreements with neighbouring countries that have helped boost economic growth in both nations. Furthermore, there have been efforts by all sides to promote regional stability through joint military exercises or peacekeeping operations in conflict zones such as Cuba or Haiti.
Population Distribution
As of 2023, the latest population of United States is 332,639,102, based on our calculation of the current data from UN (United Nations).
| Total population | 332,639,102 |
| Population growth rate | 0.72% |
| Birth rate | 12.50 births per 1,000 people |
| Life expectancy | |
| Overall life expectancy | 78.62 years |
| Men life expectancy | 76.19 years |
| Women life expectancy | 81.17 years |
| Age structure | |
| 0-14 years | 18.62% |
| 15-64 years | 65.35% |
| 65 years and above | 16.03% |
| Median age | 37.80 years |
| Gender ratio (Male to Female) | 0.97 |
| Population density | 33.85 residents per km² |
| Urbanization | 80.10% |
| Ethnicities | |
| 72.4% White, 12.6% Black, 4.8% Asians, 0.9% Native Americans / Inuit / Aleutians, others 9.3%; 16.3% Hispanics | |
| Religions | |
| Protestants 51.3%, Catholics (Roman Catholic) 23.9%, other Christian rescues Mormons 1.7%, Jews 1.6%, Muslims 1%; Members of other religions 10% non-denominational 10% [2002] | |
| Human Development Index (HDI) | 0.920 |
| HDI ranking | 15th out of 194 |
People in United States
Who are the Americans? The native people of America were the Indians. They were ousted by the Europeans (see History of the USA) and today only make up 1 percent of the US population. In Alaska, it is primarily the Aleutians that we would call Eskimos.
Most Americans are white, 72.4 percent. They are descended from Spaniards, French, English, Germans, Italians, Irish, Scandinavians and Eastern Europeans. 12.6 percent of Americans are black. They are also called African American. Many of their ancestors were brought to America as slaves from the 17th century. 4.8 percent of Americans are from Asia or with Asian ancestry. They come mainly from China, Japan, Korea, India and the Philippines.
Many people of Latin American origin live in the southwest of the USA, for example from Mexico. They are also called Latinos or Hispanics. Many of them have come to the United States from their home country to escape economic hardship. They often live illegally in the US, so they don’t have a passport and are not insured. Latinos make up 16 percent of the total US population.
On the map you can see that a lot of people in the USA have German roots (everything in light blue). Do you know famous actors whose ancestors come from Germany? Leonardo DiCaprio is one of them, for example, his mother was born in Germany.
Languages in United States
English is the main language spoken in America. Since the English founded the first colonies here, they brought their language with them. However, it changed over time. There is a more typically American pronunciation, even if it can of course be very different and there are many dialects. An American from Texas sounds different than one from Vermont.
Differences from British English
A typical contrast to British English (British English) – as it is so spoken in the UK – is the pronunciation of a. While the English pronounce the a in banana or the a in tomatoe like a German “a”, the Americans tend to say “ä”.
And then there are certain vocabulary that can make understanding between English and Americans quite difficult. So the elevator in England is called lift, in America elevator, and the biscuit (biscuit) becomes a cookie. By the way, in America a biscuit is a soft bun. Bill is the bill in England, a bank note in America. This can lead to misunderstandings… An apartment is called flat in England, and apartment in America. Americans also put the month first, then the day of the date. So 5/6/14 is May 6th and not June 5th…
There are also differences in the spelling. Where the English write –re, the American writes –an, for example center and center. The ending -our becomes -or in America, for example color and color.
Spanish
In addition to English, Spanish is also spoken in the south-west of the country. The immigrants, especially from Mexico, speak Spanish and sometimes don’t even learn English. In the southwestern states, for example, there are sometimes even bilingual signs. In Florida it is immigrants from Cuba and Colombia who speak Spanish. Spanish is also spoken in Puerto Rico, an island in the Caribbean that is part of the United States as a suburb.
Because the southwest and Florida were colonized by Spaniards from the 16th century, you will also find many place names of Spanish origin here. Los Angeles (The Angels), San Francisco (Saint Francis) or Santa Fe (Holy Faith) are among them.
Religions in United States
About 75 percent of Americans belong to a Christian church, of which just under 24 percent belong to the Roman Catholic church, the rest (i.e. 51 percent) to a Protestant church. 1.7 percent are Mormons, 1.7 percent are Jews, 0.7 percent are Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the same number are Buddhists.