Background: Britain's American colonies broke with the mother
country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States
of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th
centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation
expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of
overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's
history were the Civil War (1861-65) and the Great Depression of the
1930s. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold
War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation-state. The
economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and
rapid advances in technology.
Form of Government:
Federal republic
Capital: Washington, D.C.
Currency: 1 United States dollar (US$) = 100 cents
Geography of the United States
Location: North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North
Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico
Geographic coordinates: 38 00 N, 97 00 W
Area:
total: 9,629,091 sq km
land: 9,158,960 sq km
water: 470,131 sq km
note: includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia
Area - comparative: about one-half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the
size of Africa; about one-half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil);
slightly larger than China; about two and one-half times the size of Western Europe
Land boundaries:
total: 12,248 km
border countries: Canada 8,893 km (including 2,477 km with Alaska), Cuba 29 km (US
Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay), Mexico 3,326 km
note: Guantanamo Naval Base is leased by the US and thus remains part of Cuba
Coastline: 19,924 km
Climate: mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska,
semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of
the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in
January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
Terrain: vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east;
rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii.
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Death Valley -86 m
highest point: Mount McKinley 6,194 m
Natural resources: coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite,
gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas,
timber
Land use:
arable land: 19%
other: 81% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 214,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific
Basin; hurricanes along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts; tornadoes in the
Midwest and southeast; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding; permafrost in
northern Alaska, a major impediment to development.
Environment - current issues: air pollution resulting in acid rain
in both the US and Canada; the US is the largest single emitter of carbon
dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels; water pollution from runoff of
pesticides and fertilizers; very limited natural fresh water resources in
much of the western part of the country require careful management;
desertification.
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Hazardous Wastes
Geography - note: world's third-largest country by size (after
Russia and Canada) and by population (after China and India); Mt. McKinley
is highest point in North America and Death Valley the lowest point on the
continent.
People of the United States
Population: 295,734,134 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 21%
15-64 years: 66.4%
65 years and over: 12.6%
Population growth rate: 0.89%
Birth rate: 14.1 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 8.7 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: 3.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Infant mortality rate: 6.69 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.4 years
male: 74.5 years
female: 80.2 years
Total fertility rate: 2.07 children born/woman
Nationality:
noun: American(s)
adjective: American
Ethnic groups: white 77.1%, black 12.9%, Asian 4.2%, Amerindian and Alaska native 1.5%, native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.3%, other 4% (2000)
note: a separate listing for Hispanic is not included because the US Census Bureau considers Hispanic to mean a person of Latin American descent (especially of Cuban, Mexican, or Puerto Rican origin) living in the US who may be of any race or ethnic group (white, black, Asian, etc.)
Religions: Protestant 56%, Roman Catholic 28%, Jewish 2%, other 4%, none 10%
(1989)
Languages: English, Spanish (spoken by a sizable minority)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 97%
female: 97% (1979 est.)
SOURCE: The World Factbook (2002) |