United States
USA: population, cities
Population
Population
According to Countryaah website, the USA now has a population of around 330 million (2020).

Ethnic groups
The United States is a melting pot of many nations and ethnic groups. The
country's population is made up of:
Caucasians (Europeans) approx. 70%
Afro-Americans approx. 11%
Latinos approx. 12%
Asians approx 4%
indigenous people (only comparatively few)
Religions
There are no state religions in the United States. State and church are
officially strictly separated from each other. Faith and religion play an
extremely large role in the country. Around 63% of the population are members of
around 240 religious communities - around 26% of them are in the Roman Catholic
Church. Over 90% describe themselves as religious, and around 50 million even as
extremely religious. Most of them are Protestant (including Baptists,
Methodists, Lutherans or from particularly conservative Evangelical
churches). The minorities include Orthodox Christianity, Judaism and Islam
Language The
official language is English. In recent years, however, there has been an
increase in immigration from Latin America, so that Spanish is slowly developing
into the second national language in many states (including New Mexico, Texas,
California). It is estimated that around 12% of the population now speaks
Spanish.
Capital and other cities
The capital and seat of government of the USA is Washington DC with
a population of around 600,000 people and an area of 177 km². The city does
not belong to any state and manages itself as the seat of the US
government. Washington DC is not to be confused with the state of Washington in
the northwest on the coast of the Pacific. The abbreviation DC stands for
"District of Columbia". Washington DC was named after George Washington
(1732-1799), the first President of the United States of America. The city lies
on the left bank of the Potomac River between the states of Maryland (NE) and
Virginia (SW). According to Abbreviation Finder, USA stands for United States in English. Click to see other meanings of this 3-letter acronym.
For more cities and their population, see the table of 50 states.
USA: map
National borders
The USA is located in the central part of North America and is bordered by
the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the west and Canada to the
north. Check topmbadirectory for politics, flags, famous people, animals and plants of United States.

Most of the United States is located between the 24th and 49th parallel north
and between the 68th and 125th longitude west.
The USA is divided into four time zones.
The easternmost time zone is the Eastern Standard Time Zone (EST; UTC − 5,
MEZ-6). This is followed by the Central Standard Time Zone (CST; UTC − 6, MEZ-7)
and the Mountain Standard Time Zone (MST; UTC −7, MEZ-8) and the Pacific
Standard Time Zone (PST; UTC − 8, MEZ-9) on the west coast.
Alaska and Hawaii occupy a special position. The east-west extension of the
USA, i.e. the distance between the Atlantic and Pacific, is around 4,500 km, the
north-south extension, i.e. the distance between the Canadian and Mexican
borders, is around 2,700 km.
The land border with Canada is approximately 8,895 km long, of which
approximately 2,477 km is between Canada and Alaska. The border between the two
countries is the longest undefended border in the world and is only monitored by
police units. A special highlight are the world-famous Niagara Falls, which lie
on the border between the USA and Canada.
The Mexico border is approximately 3,326 km and runs from
Brownsville, Texas and Maramoros (Tamaulipas) in the east to San
Diego, California and Tijuana (Baja California) in the west. In the eastern
part, the border follows the course of the Rio Grande. The border is one of the
most crossed borders in the world. In addition to around 250 million legal
border crossings, there are also numerous illegal ones. The illegal crossing of
the border is to be contained by a security fence with a length of approx. 1,125
km.
In addition, the Bering Strait separates the USA and Russia, even if this is
not a land border, the easternmost point of Asia and the westernmost point of
the American continent are opposite. At the narrowest point of the Bering Strait
(between the Chukchi Peninsula and Cape Deschnjow), the USA and Russia are only
82 km apart.
This brings the total length of the US borders 19,924 km. The total land area of
the United States is 9,161,924 km² and the area covered by water, such as
lakes and rivers, is 64,706 km². This results in a total national area of
9,826,630 km².
Coastline
The coasts to the Pacific, Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico have a total
length of 19,924 km.
States
The USA covers an area of 9,826,630 km² with well over 300 million
residents. Two of the total of 50 states are not in the core area of the
USA, they are: Hawaii, the 50th state, is in the South Pacific and Alaska is in
the north of the continent - and is separated from the heartland of the USA by
Canada. A detailed description of the sights of the individual states can be
found under the respective state.
State |
Area in km2 |
Population (rounded) |
Capital |
Alabama |
131, 443 |
4.5 million |
Montgomery |
Alaska |
1,717,854 |
627,000 |
Juneau |
Arizona |
296,400 |
5.5 million |
Phoenix |
Arkansas |
134,874 |
2.7 million |
Little rock |
Colorado |
268,660 |
4.5 million |
Denver |
Connecticut |
12,550 |
3.5 million |
Hartford |
Delaware |
5,153 |
817,500 |
Dover |
Florida |
140.256 |
17 million |
Tallahassee |
Georgia |
150.010 |
8.7 million |
Atlanta |
Hawaii |
16,637 |
1.3 million |
Honolulu |
Idaho |
214.325 |
1.4 million |
Boise |
Illinois |
143.987 |
12.7 million |
Springfield |
Indiana |
92.904 |
6.2 million |
Indianapolis |
Iowa |
144.716 |
2.9 million |
Des Moines |
California |
423.970 |
36 million |
Sacramento |
Kansas |
211,922 |
2.7 million |
Topeka |
Kentucky |
102.907 |
4.1 million |
Frankfort |
Louisiana |
112,836 |
4.5 million |
Baton Rouge |
Maine |
79,939 |
1.3 million |
Augusta |
Maryla |
25,316 |
5.5 million |
Annapolis |
Massachusetts |
20,300 |
6.4 million |
Boston |
Michigan |
151,844 |
10.1 million |
Lansing |
Minnesota |
206.207 |
5.1 million |
Saint Paul |
Mississippi |
121.506 |
2.9 million |
Jackson |
Missouri |
178,446 |
5.7 million |
Jefferson City |
Montana |
376.991 |
917,600 |
Helena |
Nebraska |
199.113 |
1.7 million |
Lincoln |
Nevada |
284.397 |
2.2 million |
Carson City |
New Hampshire |
23,231 |
1.2 million |
Concord |
New Jersey |
19,215 |
8.6 million |
Trenton |
New Mexico |
314,334 |
1.9 million |
Santa fairy |
new York |
122.310 |
19.2 million |
Albany |
North Carolina |
126.180 |
8.4 million |
Raleigh |
North Dakota |
183.123 |
637,000 |
Bismarck |
Ohio |
106,067 |
11.4 million |
Columbus |
Oklahoma |
177,877 |
3.5 million |
Oklahoma City |
Oregon |
248,647 |
3.6 million |
Salem |
Pennsylvania |
116.083 |
12.4 million |
Harrisburg |
Rhode Isla |
2,706 |
1.1 million |
Providence |
South carolina |
77,988 |
4.2 million |
Columbia |
South Dakota |
196,575 |
765,000 |
Pierre |
Tennessee |
106,759 |
5.8 million |
Nashville |
Texas |
678.358 |
22.1 million |
Austin |
Utah |
212,816 |
2.4 million |
Salt Lake City |
Vermont |
23,956 |
613,000 |
Montpelier |
Virginia |
102,558 |
7.4 million |
Richmo |
Washington |
172,447 |
6.1 million |
Olympia |
West Virginia |
62,384 |
1.8 million |
Charleston |
Wisconsin |
140.673 |
5.5 million |
Madison |
Wyoming |
251.501 |
501.200 |
Cheyenne |
Some geography
The USA is the third largest country in the
world after Russia and Canada. Almost five percent of the country's area is
made up of bodies of water.
There are also:
- Forest
The forest area in the USA is around 265 million hectares = 2.65 million km2. That
is about 0.77 hectares per capita. Around 65% of this is used for forestry.
- Meadows and pasture land
Of the approximately 430 million hectares = 4.3 million km2 that
are cultivated by agricultural businesses, around 56% are permanent meadows
and pastures.
- Fields and fields
Of the approximately 430 million hectares that are cultivated by farms,
around 45% is arable land. This corresponds to around 19% of the country's
area. Mainly grain, fruit, vegetables and cotton are grown.
Particularly large agricultural zones (belts) can be found in the damp east
with rain-fed agriculture and intensive livestock farming. In the dry west,
dry farming, irrigation and extensive pasture farming dominate. In the
central part of the Inner Plains, agriculture is intensive; Mainly maize,
soybeans, wheat and oats are grown.
Geographical division
The USA can be geographically divided into larger areas: the coastal plain on
the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, the Appalachians, the Inner Plains and the
Cordilleras.
The Atlantic coastal plain extends south from the Atlantic
Ocean and includes the Florida Peninsula. In northwest Florida it merges into
the Gulf Coast Plain.
To the west is the Appalachian mountain range. It consists
of ridges, long valleys and plateaus.
The inner planes (Interior Plains) are formed by the flat
countries and plateaus in the interior of North America. They stretch along the
Mississippi and Missouri Rivers between the Rocky Mountains to the west, the
Canadian Shield to the northeast, the Appalachians to the east, and the Gulf
Coast Plain to the south. The Central Lowland extends around the Great Lakes.
The Cordilleras lie in the Pacific West. They extend over
the entire American double continent in a north-south direction from the Bering
Strait to Tierra del Fuego over a length of 15,000 km. The Cordilleras of North
America are up to 1,500 km wide. The eastern chain is formed by the Rocky
Mountains. The inner areas include the Columbiaplateau in the north, the Great
Basin and the Colorado Plateau. To the west are the Sierra Nevada and the
Cascade Range.
Islands
The following islands are offshore or are part of the USA:
American Samoa with an area of 199 km²
Baker Island with an area of 1.4 km²
Guam with an area of 549 km²
Howland Island with an area of 1.6 km²
Jarvis Island with an area of 4.5 km²
Johnston Atoll with an area of 2.8 km²
Kingman Reef with an area of 1 km²
Midway Islands with an area of 6.2 km²
Navassa Island with an area of 5.4 km²
Northern Mariana Islands with an area of 477 km²
Palmyra Atoll with an area of 11.9 km²
Puerto Ricowith an area of 9,104 km², Virgin Islands with
an area of 352 km²
Wake Island with an area of 6.5 km².
Tidal range
On the 3,500 kilometer long Atlantic coast there are sometimes significant
differences in the tidal wave. In Virginia Key, Florida, the tide horn is 0.9
meters, in Charlestown, South California, it is 1.9 meters, and in the north in
Eastport, Maine, the tide horn is 6.1 meters.
The tidal range on the Pacific coast is between about three and six meters.
For detailed explanations of ebb and flow, see Tides, Ebb and Flow.
Compare
Incidentally, the world's highest tidal range can be found in the Bay of Fundy
in Canada, where it is up to 16 meters, and at spring tide even over 20
meters. The Bay of Fundy is located on the Atlantic between the Canadian
provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, which is called Nova Scotia in
German and whose capital is Halifax.
On the German North Sea coast it varies between one and three meters. In the
western Baltic Sea, on the other hand, the tidal range is only 0.3 meters, while
it is barely noticeable in the eastern Baltic Sea.
Longitude and latitude
The heartland of the USA, i.e. without Alaska and Hawaii, extends up or down
over the following geographical latitude (abbreviation Δφ) and geographical
longitude (abbreviation Δλ):
Δφ = from 24 ° N to 48 ° N
Δλ = from 67 ° W to 125 ° W |
You can find detailed information on this subject under Longitude and
Latitude.
Time
The USA has four time zones excluding Hawaii and Alaska. In relation to
Central European Time (CET), i.e. the time without summer time, the following
value applies. A minus sign means that it is earlier there and a plus sign that
it is later than after CET:
Δt (CET) = from -6 h to -9 h |
Hawaii has a time difference of:
Further and detailed explanations of the time can be found under Time zones,
time.
Highs of the sun in New York and Miami
New York lies at a north latitude of around φ = 41 ° N and Miami in Florida
at around 26 ° N.
If the sun is at the tropic, i.e. at δ = 23.5 °, summer starts in New York and
Miami, this is June 21st. Then, for the highest position of the sun at noon,
according to Eq. 1 (see position of the sun) in New York:
41 ° = (90 ° - h) + 23.5 °
so for New York:
and for Miami accordingly:
26 ° = (90 ° - h) + 23.5 °
so for Miami:
At noon on June 21, the sun reached its highest level of the year with 72.5 °
in New York and 87.5 ° in Miami.
mountains
The highest mountain in the country is Mount
McKinley in Alaska with a height of 6,195 m.
The highest mountain outside of Alaska is the 4,418 m high Mount Whitney in
the state of California.
Other high mountains are:
- Mount Elbert in Colorado (4,396 m)
- Mount Rainier in the Cascace Range (4,392 m)
- Mount Mitchell (2,037 m) and the
- Mount Washington in the White Mountains (1,917 m).
The lowest point in the United States is in Death Valley in
California and a small part in Nevada. This depression is 86 meters below sea
level.
Rivers
The longest river in the United States is the Mississippi-Missouri (also
known as the "Old Man River") with a length of 6,021 km. It is considered to be
the fourth longest river in the world and flows into the Gulf of Mexico.
Other rivers in the country are:
- Rio Grande with a length of 3,057 km
- Yukon River in Alaska with a length of around 3,190 km
- Colorado River with a length of approximately 2,330 km
- Tennessee River with a length of around 1,050 km
- Arkansas River with a length of approximately 2,350 km.
Lakes
The country includes numerous smaller and larger lakes. The largest of the
lakes, which play a major role in the country's water supply, are grouped
together under the name "Great Lakes". They are located in the
north of the country on the border with Canada and are connected to each
other. Their total area is around 244,000 km². They thus form the largest inland
freshwater area on earth. The height differences between the Great Lakes are
around 150 m, with Niagara Falls leading to the exchange of water between Lake
Erie and Lake Ontario.
- Lake Superior with a maximum depth of 405 m and an area
of around 82,100 km2
- Lake Michigan with a maximum depth of 281 m and an area
of around 57,800 km2
- Lake Huron with a maximum depth of 229 m and an area of
around 59,600 km2
- Lake Erie with a maximum depth of 64 m and an area of
around 25,700 km2
- Lake Ontario, the smallest of the
five lakes, with a maximum depth of 244 m and an area of around 18,960 km2
- Great Salt Lake in Utah with an area of around 6,000
km2
The great lakes are the only freshwater inland waters where tides can be
observed.
Lake Michigan lies entirely in the United States, while the
other four lakes also partially belong to Canada. The St. Lawrence River
connects the lakes with the Atlantic. There is a water connection to the
Mississippi via the Intracoastal Waterway and the Illinois Waterway.
Atlantic Ocean (Atlantic Ocean)
The Atlantic Ocean (Atlantic) , with an area of about 106 million square
kilometers of the Pacific is the second largest ocean world.
It separates America from Europe and Africa.
At 9,220 m, it has its deepest point in the Milwaukee Deep - part of the Puerto
Rico Trench.
Its salt content averages 3.54% (g/l).
Its water volume is approx. 355 million km³
Coming from the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Stream crosses the Atlantic to the
coast of Norway and is largely responsible for the climate in Western and
Northern Europe.
The Atlantic includes numerous so-called marginal seas - e.g. the American
Mediterranean.
In addition, the Atlantic - especially in seafaring - is divided into the North
Atlantic and South Atlantic.
The Strait of Gibralta is certainly a very well-known connection between the
Atlantic and the Mediterranean, where it separates Europe (Gibraltar/Great
Britain) from Africa (Morocco). The Panama Canal connects the Pacific with
the Atlantic for around 82 km. The Atlantic and Pacific meet at the legendary
Cape Horn on the southern tip of the American continent.
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