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United States - Introduction
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.
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The United States of America is a federal democratic republic situated
primarily in central North America. It comprises 50 states and one
federal district, and has several territories. It is also referred
to, with varying formality, as the United States, the U.S., the
U.S.A., the States, or simply and most commonly, America.
The official founding date of the United States is July 4, 1776,
when the Second Continental Congress—representing thirteen
British colonies—adopted the Declaration of Independence.
However, the structure of the government was profoundly changed
in 1788, when the states replaced the Articles of Confederation
with the United States Constitution. The date on which each of the
fifty states adopted the Constitution is typically regarded as the
date that state "entered the Union" (became part of the
United States). Since the mid-20th century, following World War
II in alliance with Great Britain, the United States has emerged
as the dominant global influence in economic, political, military,
scientific, technological, and cultural affairs.
The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy
in the world, with a per capita GDP of $40,100. In this market-oriented
economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the
decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods
and services predominantly in the private marketplace. US business
firms enjoy considerably greater flexibility than their counterparts
in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant,
to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At the
same time, they face higher barriers to entry in their rivals' home
markets than the barriers to entry of foreign firms in US markets.
US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances,
especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military
equipment; their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War
II. The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development
of a "two-tier labor market" in which those at the bottom lack the
education and the professional/technical skills of those at the
top and, more and more, fail to get comparable pay raises, health
insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically
all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households.
The response to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 showed
the remarkable resilience of the economy. The war in March/April
2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq, and the subsequent occupation
of Iraq, required major shifts in national resources to the military.
The rise in GDP in 2004 was undergirded by substantial gains in
labor productivity. The economy suffered from a sharp increase in
energy prices in the second half of 2004. Long-term problems include
inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising
medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade
and budget deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower
economic groups.
Embassies of the United States to Other Nations:
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