Outline of the United States

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The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the United States:

United States of America – federal republic located primarily in North America, and the world's third-largest country by both land and total area. It shares land borders with Canada to its north and with Mexico to its south and has maritime borders with the Bahamas, Cuba, Russia, and other nations. With the Soviet Union's collapse and the subsequent end of the Cold War in 1991, the United States emerged as the world's sole superpower.

General reference

  • Pronunciation: /jʊˌnaɪ.tɪd ˈsteɪts/
  • Abbreviations: USA or US
  • Common English country name: United States or America
  • Languages of the United States: English, Spanish, Hawaiian and Native American languages
  • Official English country name: United States of America
  • Common endonyms: United States, U.S., U.S.A., America
  • Official endonym: United States of America
  • Common exonyms: United States; America or The States (chiefly British/Commonwealth); North America (chiefly Latin America)
  • Adjectivals: United States, American
  • Demonyms: American (among others)
  • Etymology
  • International rankings of the United States
  • ISO country codes: US, USA, 840
  • ISO region codes: See ISO 3166-2:US
  • Internet country code top-level domain: .us, .com, .org, .net, .gov, .edu

Geography of the United States

  • The United States is: a megadiverse country
Canada 8,893 km (5,525 mi)
Mexico 3,145 km (1,954 mi)
  • Coastline: 19,924 km (12,380 mi)

Environment of the United States

Geographic features of the United States

  • Fjords of the United States
  • Glaciers of the United States
  • Islands of the United States
  • Lakes of the United States
  • Mountain peaks of the United States
    • The 104 highest major summits of the United States
    • The 129 most prominent summits of the United States
    • The 112 most isolated major summits of the United States
    • Alaska Range
    • Appalachian Mountains
    • Black Hills
    • Cascade Range
    • Ozark Mountains
    • Sierra Nevada
    • Rocky Mountains
    • Volcanoes of the United States
  • Rivers of the United States
    • Arkansas River
    • Columbia River
    • Colorado River
    • Connecticut River
    • Hudson River
    • Mississippi River
    • Missouri River
    • Potomac River
    • Rio Grande
    • Ohio River
    • Delaware River
    • Snake River
    • Susquehanna River
    • Yukon River
  • Waterfalls of the United States
  • Valleys of the United States
  • World Heritage Sites in the United States

Regions of the United States

Physiographic divisions of the United States

The geography of the United States varies across their immense area. Within the contiguous U.S., eight distinct physiographic divisions exist, though each is composed of several smaller physiographic subdivisions. These major divisions are:

  • Laurentian Upland – part of the Canadian Shield that extends into the northern United States Great Lakes area.
  • Atlantic Plain – the coastal regions of the eastern and southern parts includes the continental shelf, the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf Coast.
  • Appalachian Highlands – lying on the eastern side of the United States, it includes the Appalachian Mountains, Adirondacks and New England province.
  • Interior Plains – part of the interior contiguous United States, it includes much of what is called the Great Plains.
  • Interior Highlands – also part of the interior contiguous United States, this division includes the Ozark Plateau.
  • Rocky Mountain System – one branch of the Cordilleran system lying far inland in the western states.
  • Intermontane Plateaus – also divided into the Columbia Plateau, the Colorado Plateau and the Basin and Range Province, it is a system of plateaus, basins, ranges and gorges between the Rocky and Pacific Mountain Systems. It is the setting for the Grand Canyon, the Great Basin and Death Valley.
  • Pacific Mountain System – the coastal mountain ranges and features in the west coast of the United States.

Administrative divisions of the United States

States of the United States

At the Declaration of Independence, the United States consisted of 13 states, former colonies of the United Kingdom. In the following years, the number of states has grown steadily due to expansion to the west, conquest and purchase of lands by the American government, and division of existing states to the current number of 50 United States:

  • Alabama (AL)
  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • Arkansas (AR)
  • California (CA)
  • Colorado (CO)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • Delaware (DE)
  • Florida (FL)
  • Georgia (GA).
  • Hawai'i (HI)
  • Idaho (ID)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Indiana (IN)
  • Iowa (IA)
  • Kansas (KS)
  • Kentucky (KY)
  • Louisiana (LA)
  • Maine (ME)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • Minnesota (MN)
  • Mississippi (MS)
  • Missouri (MO)
  • Montana (MT)
  • Nebraska (NE)
  • Nevada (NV)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New Mexico (NM)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Carolina (NC)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Ohio (OH)
  • Oklahoma (OK)
  • Oregon (OR)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • Rhode Island (RI)
  • South Carolina (SC)
  • South Dakota (SD)
  • Tennessee (TN)
  • Texas (TX)
  • Utah (UT)
  • Vermont (VT)
  • Virginia (VA)
  • Washington (WA)
  • West Virginia (WV)
  • Wisconsin (WI)
  • Wyoming (WY)

Territories of the United States

  • United States territory
    • Territorial evolution of the United States
Incorporated organized territories
  • none since 1959
Incorporated unorganized territories
  • Palmyra Atoll
Unincorporated organized territories
Unincorporated unorganized territories
  • Territory of American Samoa, technically unorganized, but self-governing under a constitution last revised in 1967
  • Baker Island, uninhabited
  • Howland Island, uninhabited
  • Jarvis Island, uninhabited
  • Johnston Atoll, uninhabited
  • Kingman Reef, uninhabited
  • Bajo Nuevo Bank, uninhabited (disputed with Colombia)
  • Serranilla Bank, uninhabited (disputed with Colombia)
  • Midway Islands, no indigenous inhabitants, currently included in the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge
  • Navassa Island, uninhabited (claimed by Haiti)
  • Wake Atoll consisting of Peale, Wake and Wilkes Islands, no indigenous inhabitants, only contractor personnel (claimed by the Marshall Islands)

Geography of the states and territories

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Demography of the United States

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Climate of the United States

History of the United States

Period-coverage

  • Prehistory of the United States
  • Pre-Columbian era
  • Colonial period
  • 1776 to 1789
  • 1789 to 1815
  • 1815 to 1849
  • 1849 to 1865
  • 1865 to 1917
  • 1917 to 1945
  • 1945 to 1964
  • 1964 to 1980
  • 1980 to 1991
  • 1991 to 2016
  • 2016 to present

History of the states and territories

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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History of cities

  • Outline of the history of Los Angeles

Presidents of the United States

  • George Washington: 1789–1797
  • John Adams: 1797–1801
  • Thomas Jefferson: 1801–1809
  • James Madison: 1809–1817
  • James Monroe: 1817–1825
  • John Quincy Adams: 1825–1829
  • Andrew Jackson: 1829–1837
  • Martin Van Buren: 1837–1841
  • William Henry Harrison: 1841
  • John Tyler: 1841–1845
  • James K. Polk: 1845–1849
  • Zachary Taylor: 1849–1850
  • Millard Fillmore: 1850–1853
  • Franklin Pierce: 1853–1857
  • James Buchanan: 1857–1861
  • Abraham Lincoln: 1861–1865
  • Andrew Johnson: 1865–1869
  • Ulysses S. Grant: 1869–1877
  • Rutherford B. Hayes: 1877–1881
  • James A. Garfield: 1881
  • Chester A. Arthur: 1881–1885
  • Grover Cleveland: 1885–1889
  • Benjamin Harrison: 1889–1893
  • Grover Cleveland: 1893–1897
  • William McKinley: 1897–1901
  • Theodore Roosevelt: 1901–1909
  • William H. Taft: 1909–1913
  • Woodrow Wilson: 1913–1921
  • Warren G. Harding: 1921–1923
  • Calvin Coolidge: 1923–1929
  • Herbert Hoover: 1929–1933
  • Franklin D. Roosevelt: 1933–1945
  • Harry S. Truman: 1945–1953
  • Dwight D. Eisenhower: 1953–1961
  • John F. Kennedy: 1961–1963
  • Lyndon B. Johnson: 1963–1969
  • Richard M. Nixon: 1969–1974
  • Gerald Ford: 1974–1977
  • Jimmy Carter: 1977–1981
  • Ronald Reagan: 1981–1989
  • George H. W. Bush: 1989–1993
  • Bill Clinton: 1993–2001
  • George W. Bush: 2001–2009
  • Barack Obama: 2009–2017
  • Donald Trump: 2017–2021
  • Joe Biden: 2021–2025
  • Donald Trump: 2025–present

Government and politics in the United States

Federal government

  • United States Constitution

Legislative branch

Executive branch

Federal executive departments

All departments are listed by their present-day name and only departments with past or present cabinet-level status are listed. Order of succession applies only to within the cabinet; the vice president has always been first in the line of succession, and the Speaker of the House and the President pro tem of the Senate have at times been included.

Department Creation Order of
succession 		Modifications since creation 2007 Budget
in billions
of dollars 		Employees (2007)
State 1789 1 Initially named "Department of Foreign Affairs" 9.96 30,266
Treasury 1789 2 11.10 115,897
Defense 1947 3 Initially named "National Military Establishment" 439.30 3,000,000
Justice 1870 4 Position of Attorney General created in 1789, but had no department until 1870 23.40 112,557
Interior 1849 5 10.70 71,436
Agriculture 1889 6 77.60 109,832
Commerce 1903 7 Originally named Commerce and Labor; Labor later separated 6.20 36,000
Labor 1913 8 59.70 17,347
Health and Human Services 1953 9 Originally named Health, Education, and Welfare; Education later separated 543.20 67,000
Housing and Urban Development 1965 10 46.20 10,600
Transportation 1966 11 58.00 58,622
Energy 1977 12 21.50 116,100
Education 1979 13 62.80 4,487
Veterans Affairs 1989 14 73.20 235,000
Homeland Security 2002 15 44.60 208,000
Total budget (fiscal year 2007): 1,523.42 4,193,144

Commissions

  • Federal Trade Commission
  • U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

Judicial branch

State and territory governments

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Politics of the states and territories

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Foreign relations

International organization membership

Military

Intelligence organizations

Law of the United States

Culture of the United States

American cuisine

Historical cuisine

  • American Chinese cuisine
  • Cajun cuisine
  • Italian-American cuisine
  • Louisiana Creole cuisine
  • Midwestern cuisine
  • Native American cuisine
  • New England cuisine
  • Pacific Northwest cuisine
  • Southern cuisine
  • Southwestern cuisine
  • Tex-Mex cuisine

Cuisine of the regions

  • Cuisine of the Southwestern United States
  • Cuisine of the Mid-Atlantic United States
  • Cuisine of the Midwestern United States
  • Cuisine of the Northeastern United States
  • Cuisine of the Southern United States
  • Cuisine of the Western United States

Art in the United States

Film

Music in the United States

Genres
  • Alternative rock
  • Americana
  • Bluegrass music
  • Blues
  • Contemporary Christian music
  • Country music
  • Folk music
  • Gospel music
  • Hardcore punk
  • Heavy metal
  • Hip hop
  • Jazz
  • Punk rock
  • R&B music
  • Rock music
  • Soul music
Music in the states and territories

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Radio

  • National Association of Broadcasters
  • NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame

Sports in the United States

List of Major Sports Leagues in the United States

  • Major League Baseball (MLB)
  • National Basketball Association (NBA)
  • National Football League (NFL)
  • National Hockey League (NHL)
  • Major League Soccer (MLS)
Other top-level leagues and series
  • IndyCar Series
  • Legends Tour – for women's golfers age 45 and over
  • LPGA Tour (Ladies' Professional Golf Association)
  • Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
  • Major League Rugby (MLR) – rugby union
  • NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)
    • NASCAR Cup Series
  • National Lacrosse League (NLL)
  • National Women's Soccer League (NWSL)
  • PGA Tour
  • PGA Tour Champions – for men's golfers age 50 and over
  • Professional Bull Riders (PBR)
  • Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA)
  • Sports Car Club of America (SCCA)
  • Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Minor and developmental professional leagues and series
  • American Hockey League (AHL)
  • American Indoor Football Association (AIFA)
  • American National Rugby League (AMNRL)
  • Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL)
  • ECHL (formerly East Coast Hockey League)
  • Korn Ferry Tour – men's golf
  • Minor League Baseball
  • National Arena League
  • NBA G League
  • Professional Inline Hockey Association (PIHA)
  • Rugby Super League (RSL)
  • Symetra Tour – women's golf
  • United Indoor Football (UIF)
  • United States Australian Football League (USAFL)
  • Xfinity Series – NASCAR
College sports
  • College baseball
  • College football
  • College ice hockey
  • College lacrosse
  • College soccer
  • College softball
  • Collegiate wrestling
  • Athletic scholarship
  • College recruiting
  • National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
Sports governing bodies
  • Professional Golfers' Association of America (PGA of America)
  • United States of America Cricket Association (USACA)
  • United States Golf Association (USGA)
  • United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC)
  • United States Rowing Association
  • United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer)
  • United States Tennis Association (USTA)
  • USA Basketball
  • USA Cycling
  • USA Rugby – governs rugby union
  • USA Track and Field
  • U.S. Ski & Snowboard

Sports by state and territory

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Sports Museums in the United States

Education in the United States

Education in the states and territories

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO – MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Economy and infrastructure of the United States

The United States is the world's largest economy (IMF, 2010).

Economy by state and territory

AK – AL – AR – AZ – CA – CO – CT – DC – DE – FL – GA – HI – IA – ID – IL – IN – KS – KY – LA – MA – MD – ME – MI – MN – MO - MS
MT – NC – ND – NE – NH – NM – NV – NJ – NY – OH – OK – OR – PA – RI – SC – SD – TN – TX – UT – VA – VT – WA – WI – WV – WY

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Health in the United States

Tourism in the United States

  • Walt Disney World
  • Hollywood
  • Ski Resorts

See also

  • All pages with titles beginning with United States
  • All pages with titles beginning with American
  • All pages with titles containing United States
  • All pages with titles containing American

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