U.S. in focus: part one. (Almanac).How much do you know about the United States of America UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. The name of this country. The United States, now thirty-one in number, are Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, ? For instance, can you name the three branches of the federal government? How many Governors are Republicans, and how many are Democrats The List of notable Democrats is a list of prominent politicians, government officials, and organizational leaders of the Democratic Party of the United States. Prominent figures of the Democratic Party Currently notable Democrats
(2) A shortcut for identifying a recipient in an e-mail address book. is the Beaver beaver, either of two large aquatic rodents, Castor fiber and Castor canadensis, known for their engineering feats. They were once widespread in N and central Eurasia except E Siberia, and in North America from the arctic tree line to the S United State? Find these and many other facts in Part One of the U.S. in Focus. Our table provides a wealth of useful and interesting information. Read on and you'll you'll Contraction of you will. you'll you will or you shall you'll will be a well-informed well-informed Adjective knowing a lot about a great variety of subjects or about one particular subject Adj. 1. well-informed - possessing sound knowledge; "well-informed readers" intelligent citizen! Area: 3,717,796 square miles A square mil is a unit of area, equal to the area of a square with sides of length one mil. A mil is one thousandth of an international inch. This unit of area is usually used in specifying the area of the cross section of a wire or cable. ; ranks third in the world after Russia Russia, officially the Russian Federation, Rus. Rossiya, republic (2005 est. pop. 143,420,000), 6,591,100 sq mi (17,070,949 sq km). and Canada Canada (kăn`ədə), independent nation (2001 pop. 30,007,094), 3,851,787 sq mi (9,976,128 sq km), N North America. Canada occupies all of North America N of the United States (and E of Alaska) except for Greenland and the French islands of . Population: 284,796,887; ranks third after China and India India, officially Republic of India, republic (2005 est pop. 1,080,264,000), 1,261,810 sq mi (3,268,090 sq km), S Asia. The second most populous country in the world, it is also sometimes called Bharat, its ancient name. India's land frontier (c. . Capital: Washington Washington, town, England Washington, town (1991 pop. 48,856), Sunderland metropolitan district, NE England. Washington was designated one of the new towns in 1964 to alleviate overpopulation in the Tyneside-Wearside area. , D.C. Form of Government: Presidential-legislative democracy. The U.S. Constitution divides federal (national) powers among three independent branches of government: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial. Powers nor given to the federal government by the Constitution are held by the states. Chief Executive: George George, river, c.345 mi (560 km) long, rising in a lake on the Quebec-Labrador boundary, E Canada. It flows N through Indian Lake (125 sq mi/324 sq km) to Ungava Bay (an arm of Hudson Strait). W. Bush, 43rd President (Republican). 108th Congress: 100 Senators The term Senators can refer to:
* The Senate: 51 Republicans, 48 Democrats, 1 Independent (1); Majority Leader: Bill Frist v. t. 1. To sell upon credit, as goods. (Republican, Tennessee Tennessee, state, United States Tennessee (tĕn`əsē', tĕn'əsē`), state in the south-central United States. ). * The House of Representatives: 229 Republicans, 205 Democrats, 1 Independent (1); Speaker of the House: J. Dennis Dennis is a male first name derived from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius meaning "servant of Dionysus", the Thracian god of wine, which is ultimately derived from the Greek Dios (Διος, "of Zeus") combined with Nysos or Nysa (Νυσα), where the Hastert (Republican, Illinois Illinois, river, United States Illinois, river, 273 mi (439 km) long, formed by the confluence of the Des Plaines and Kankakee rivers, NE Ill., and flowing SW to the Mississippi at Grafton, Ill. It is an important commercial and recreational waterway. ). Chief Justice of the United States the presiding judge of the Supreme Court, and Highest judicial officer of the republic. See also: Chief justice : William William, crown prince of Germany William or Frederick William, 1882–1951, crown prince of Germany, son of William II. In World War I he commanded (1914) an army on the Western Front and was nominal commander in the German attack H. Rehnquist Rehn·quist , William Hubbs Born 1924. American jurist who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1972-1986) and was appointed chief justice in 1986. Noun 1. . State Governors: 24 Democrats, 26 Republicans.
STATE NAME ORIGIN
NICKNAME OF NAME
ALABAMA Named for the Alibamu
The Heart of Dixie Indian tribe
ALASKA Russian version of an Aleut
The Last Frontier (unofficial) word meaning great land
ARIZONA Indian word arizonac, which
The Grand Canyon State means small spring
ARKANSAS From an Indian word meaning
The Natural State land of downstream people
CALIFORNIA Named after a treasure island
The Golden State in a popular Spanish tale
COLORADO Spanish for colored red
The Centennial State
CONNECTICUT Algonquian Indian word that
The Constitution State means on the long tidal river
DELAWARE Honors Lord De La Warr,
The First State first Governor of Virginia
FLORIDA Spanish word meaning
The Sunshine State flowery
GEORGIA Honors King George II of
The Empire State of Great Britain
the South
HAWAII Named in honor of Polynesian
The Aloha State Chief Hawaii-Ioa
IDAHO Word invented by settlers;
The Gem State the meaning is unknown
ILLINOIS For the Iliniwek Indians; the
The Prairie State name means superior men
INDIANA The name means land of Indians
The Hoosier State
IOWA Indian word for beautiful land
The Hawkeye State
KANSAS For the Kansa Indians; the name
The Sunflower State means people of the south wind
KENTUCKY Cherokee word for meadowland
The Bluegrass State
LOUISIANA Honors Louis XIV, King
The Pelican State of France
MAINE Named by English explorers;
The Pine Tree State name is short for mainland
MARYLAND Honors Queen Henrietta Maria
The Old Line State; of England
The Free State
MASSACHUSETTS For the Massachusett Indians;
The Bay State the name means near the
great hill
MICHIGAN Chippewa word Michigama,
The Wolverine State which means great lake
MINNESOTA From two Sioux Indian words
The North Star State that mean sky-tinted waters
MISSISSIPPI Indian word that means big river
The Magnolia State or father of waters
MISSOURI Indian word that means
The Show Me State town of the large canoes
MONTANA Spanish world meaning
The Treasure State mountainous
NEBRASKA Oto Indian word nebrathka,
The Cornhusker State which means flat water
NEVAOA Spanish word meaning
The Silver State snow-clad
NEW HAMPSHIRE Named for Hampshire, a
The Granite State county in England
NEW JERSEY Named for Jersey, an island
The Garden State in the English Channel
NEW MEXICO Named for the country Mexico
The Land of Enchantment
NEW YORK Honors England's Duke of York
The Empire State
NORTH CAROLINA Honors King Charles 1 of England
The Tar Heel State;
The Old North State
NORTH DAKOTA Named for the Dakota Sioux
The Peace Garden State Indians of the region
OHIO Iroquois Indian word that
The Buckeye State means something great
OKLAHOMA Choctaw Indian words okla,
The Sooner State meaning people, and homma,
meaning red
OREGON French word ouragan,
The Beaver State meaning hurricane
PENNSYLVANIA Honors Sir William Penn, the
The Keystone State colony's founder; the name
means Penn's Woods in Latin
RHODE ISLAND After the Greek island of Rhodes
The Ocean State
SOUTH CAROLINA Honors King Charles I of England
The Palmetto State
SOUTH DAKOTA Named for the Dakota Sioux
The Mount Rushmore State Indians of the region
TENNESSEE From Tanasie, the name of a
The Volunteer State Cherokee Indian village
TEXAS From an Indian word that
The Lone Star State means friends
UTAH Named for the Ute Indians
The Beehive State of the region
VERMONT French words vert, meaning green,
The Green Mountain State and mont, meaning mountain
VIRGINIA Honors "the Virgin Queen."
The Old-Dominion England's Elizabeth I
WASHINGTON Named in honor of
The Evergreen State George Washington
WEST VIRGINIA Honors "he Virgin Queen,"
The Mountain State England's Elizabeth I
WISCONSIN From an Indian word meaning
The Badger State grassy place
WYOMING From a Delaware Indian word
The Equality State meaning upon the great plain
STATE NAME ENTERED LAND AREA CAPITAL
NICKNAME UNION (SQ MI)
POPULATION (2)
ALABAMA 1819 51,718 Montgomery
The Heart of Dixie 4,464,356
ALASKA 1959 587,878 Juneau
The Last Frontier (unofficial) 634,892
ARIZONA 1912 114,007 Phoenix
The Grand Canyon State 5,307,331
ARKANSAS 1836 53,183 Little Rock
The Natural State 2,692,090
CALIFORNIA 1850 158,648 Sacramento
The Golden State 34,501,130
COLORADO 1876 104,100 Denver
The Centennial State 4,417,714
CONNECTICUT 1788 5,006 Hartford
The Constitution State 3,425,074
DELAWARE 1787 2,026 Dover
The First State 796,165
FLORIDA 1845 58,681 Tallahassee
The Sunshine State 16,396,515
GEORGIA 1788 58,930 Atlanta
The Empire State of 8,383,915
the South
HAWAII 1959 6,459 Honolulu
The Aloha State 1,224,398
IDAHO 1890 83,574 Boise
The Gem State 1,321,006
ILLINOIS 1818 56,343 Springfield
The Prairie State 12,482,301
INDIANA 1816 36,185 Indianapolis
The Hoosier State 6,114,745
IOWA 1846 56,276 Des Moines
The Hawkeye State 2,923,179
KANSAS 1861 82,282 Topeka
The Sunflower State 2,694,641
KENTUCKY 1792 40,411 Frankfort
The Bluegrass State 4,065,556
LOUISIANA 1812 47,717 Baton Rouge
The Pelican State 4,465,430
MAINE 1820 33,128 Augusta
The Pine Tree State 1,286,670
MARYLAND 1788 10,455 Annapolis
The Old Line State; 5,375,156
The Free State
MASSACHUSETTS 1788 8,262 Boston
The Bay State 6,379,304
MICHIGAN 1837 58,513 Lansing
The Wolverine State 9,990,817
MINNESOTA 1858 84,397 St. Paul
The North Star State 4,972,294
MISSISSIPPI 1817 47,695 Jackson
The Magnolia State 2,858,029
MISSOURI 1821 69,709 Jefferson City
The Show Me State 5,629,707
MONTANA 1889 147,047 Helena
The Treasure State 904,433
NEBRASKA 1867 77,359 Lincoln
The Cornhusker State 1,713,235
NEVAOA 1864 110,567 Carson City
The Silver State 2,106,074
NEW HAMPSHIRE 1788 9,283 Concord
The Granite State 1,259,181
NEW JERSEY 1787 7,790 Trenton
The Garden State 8,484,431
NEW MEXICO 1912 121,599 Santa Fe
The Land of Enchantment 1,829,146
NEW YORK 1788 49,112 Albany
The Empire State 19,011,318
NORTH CAROLINA 1789 52,672 Raleigh
The Tar Heel State; 8,186,268
The Old North State
NORTH DAKOTA 1889 70,704 Bismarck
The Peace Garden State 634,448
OHIO 1803 41,328 Columbus
The Buckeye State 11,373,541
OKLAHOMA 1907 69,903 Oklahoma City
The Sooner State 3,460,097
OREGON 1859 97,052 Salem
The Beaver State 3,472,867
PENNSYLVANIA 1787 45,310 Harrisburg
The Keystone State 12,287,150
RHODE ISLAND 1790 1,213 Providence
The Ocean State 1,058,920
SOUTH CAROLINA 1788 31,117 Columbia
The Palmetto State 4,063,011
SOUTH DAKOTA 1889 77,122 Pierre
The Mount Rushmore State 756,600
TENNESSEE 1796 42,146 Nashville
The Volunteer State 5,740,021
TEXAS 1845 266,874 Austin
The Lone Star State 21,325,018
UTAH 1896 84,905 Salt Lake City
The Beehive State 2,269,789
VERMONT 1791 9,615 Montpelier
The Green Mountain State 613,090
VIRGINIA 1788 40,598 Richmond
The Old-Dominion 7,187,734
WASHINGTON 1889 68,126 Olympia
The Evergreen State 5,987,973
WEST VIRGINIA 1863 24,231 Charleston
The Mountain State 1,801,916
WISCONSIN 1848 56,145 Madison
The Badger State 5,401,906
WYOMING 1890 97,818 Cheyenne
The Equality State 494,423
STATE NAME GOVERNOR U.S.
NICKNAME SENATORS
ALABAMA Bob Riley, R 2R
The Heart of Dixie
ALASKA Frank Murkowski, R 2R
The Last Frontier (unofficial)
ARIZONA Janet Napolitano, D 2R
The Grand Canyon State
ARKANSAS Mike Huckabee, R 2D
The Natural State
CALIFORNIA Gray Davis, D 2D
The Golden State
COLORADO Bill Owens, R 2R
The Centennial State
CONNECTICUT John G. Rowland, R 2D
The Constitution State
DELAWARE Ruth Ann Minner, D 2D
The First State
FLORIDA Jeb Bush, R 2D
The Sunshine State
GEORGIA Sonny Perdue, R 1D
The Empire State of 1R
the South
HAWAII Linda Lingle, R 2D
The Aloha State
IDAHO Dirk Kempthorne, R 2R
The Gem State
ILLINOIS Rod Blagojevich, D 1D
The Prairie State 1R
INDIANA Frank O'Bannon, D 1D
The Hoosier State 1R
IOWA Thomas J. Vilsack, D 1D
The Hawkeye State 1R
KANSAS Kathleen Sebelius, D 2R
The Sunflower State
KENTUCKY Paul E. Patton, D 2R
The Bluegrass State
LOUISIANA M.J. "Mike" Foster Jr., R 2D
The Pelican State
MAINE John Baldacci, D 2R
The Pine Tree State
MARYLAND Robert Ehrlich, R 2D
The Old Line State;
The Free State
MASSACHUSETTS Mitt Romney, R 2D
The Bay State
MICHIGAN Jennifer Granholm, D 2D
The Wolverine State
MINNESOTA Tim Pawlenty, R 1D
The North Star State 1R
MISSISSIPPI Ronnie Musgrove, D 2R
The Magnolia State
MISSOURI Bob Holden, D 2R
The Show Me State
MONTANA Judy Martz, R 1D
The Treasure State 1R
NEBRASKA Mike Johanns, R 1D
The Cornhusker State 1R
NEVAOA Kenny C. Guinn, R 1D
The Silver State 1R
NEW HAMPSHIRE Craig Benson, R 2R
The Granite State
NEW JERSEY James E. McGreevey, D 2D
The Garden State
NEW MEXICO Bill Richardson, D 1D
The Land of Enchantment 1R
NEW YORK George E. Pataki, R 2D
The Empire State
NORTH CAROLINA Michael F. Easley, D 1D
The Tar Heel State; 1R
The Old North State
NORTH DAKOTA John Hoeven R 2D
The Peace Garden State
OHIO Bob Taft, R 2R
The Buckeye State
OKLAHOMA Bred Henry, D 2R
The Sooner State
4R
OREGON Ted Kulongoski, D 1D
The Beaver State 1R
PENNSYLVANIA Ed Rendell D 2R
The Keystone State
RHODE ISLAND Don Carcieri, R 1D
The Ocean State 1R
SOUTH CAROLINA Mark Sanford, R 1D
The Palmetto State 1R
SOUTH DAKOTA Mike Rounds, R 2D
The Mount Rushmore State
TENNESSEE Phil Bredesen, D 2R
The Volunteer State
TEXAS Rick Perry, R 2R
The Lone Star State
UTAH Michael O. Leavitt,R 2R
The Beehive State
VERMONT James Douglas, R 1D
The Green Mountain State 1 Ind. (1)
VIRGINIA Mark R. Warner, D 2R
The Old-Dominion
WASHINGTON Gary Locke, D 2D
The Evergreen State
WEST VIRGINIA Bob Wise, D 2D
The Mountain State
WISCONSIN Jim Doyle, D 2D
The Badger State
WYOMING Dave Freudenthal, D 2R
The Equality State
STATE NAME U.S.
NICKNAME REPS.
ALABAMA 2D
The Heart of Dixie 5R
ALASKA 1R
The Last Frontier (unofficial)
ARIZONA 2D
The Grand Canyon State 6R
ARKANSAS 3D
The Natural State 1R
CALIFORNIA 33D
The Golden State 20R
COLORADO 2D
The Centennial State 5R
CONNECTICUT 2D
The Constitution State 3R
DELAWARE 1R
The First State
FLORIDA 7D
The Sunshine State 18R
GEORGIA 5D
The Empire State of 8R
the South
HAWAII 2D
The Aloha State
IDAHO 2R
The Gem State
ILLINOIS 9D
The Prairie State 10R
INDIANA 3D
The Hoosier State 6R
IOWA 1D
The Hawkeye State 4R
KANSAS 1D
The Sunflower State 3R
KENTUCKY 1D
The Bluegrass State 5R
LOUISIANA 3D
The Pelican State 4R
MAINE 2D
The Pine Tree State
MARYLAND 6D
The Old Line State; 2R
The Free State
MASSACHUSETTS 10D
The Bay State
MICHIGAN 6D
The Wolverine State 9R
MINNESOTA 4D
The North Star State 4R
MISSISSIPPI 2D
The Magnolia State 2R
MISSOURI 4D
The Show Me State 5R
MONTANA 1R
The Treasure State
NEBRASKA 3R
The Cornhusker State
NEVAOA 1D
The Silver State 2R
NEW HAMPSHIRE 2R
The Granite State
NEW JERSEY 7D
The Garden State 6R
NEW MEXICO 1D
The Land of Enchantment 2R
NEW YORK 19D
The Empire State 10R
NORTH CAROLINA 6D
The Tar Heel State; 7R
The Old North State
NORTH DAKOTA 1D
The Peace Garden State
OHIO 6D
The Buckeye State 12R
OKLAHOMA 1D
The Sooner State 4R
OREGON 4D
The Beaver State 1R
PENNSYLVANIA 7D
The Keystone State 12R
RHODE ISLAND 2D
The Ocean State
SOUTH CAROLINA 2D
The Palmetto State 4R
SOUTH DAKOTA 1R
The Mount Rushmore State
TENNESSEE 5D
The Volunteer State 4R
TEXAS 17D
The Lone Star State 15R
UTAH 1D
The Beehive State 2R
VERMONT 1 Ind. (1)
The Green Mountain State
VIRGINIA 3D
The Old-Dominion 8R
WASHINGTON 6D
The Evergreen State 3R
WEST VIRGINIA 2D
The Mountain State 1R
WISCONSIN 4D
The Badger State 4R
WYOMING 1R
The Equality State
Capital District, Territories, and Commonwealths
NAME ORIGIN OF NAME STATUS
DATE ACQUIRED
DISTRICT OF Honors Christopher Federal district (3)
COLUMBIA (D.C.) columbus 1800 (4)
AMERICAN SANMOA Ancient Pacific deity U.s. territory
1900 (5)
GUAM Guahan word that means U.S. territory
we have 1898 (6)
NORTHERN Honors Maria Ana of Austria, Self-governing
MARIANA the mother of Spain's King commonwealth
ISLANDS Carlos II 1947 (7)
PUERTO RICO Spanish for rich port Self-governing
commonwealth
1898 (8)
U.S. VIRGIN Named for the Virgins of St. U.s. territory
ISLANDS Ursula, an early religious 1917 (10)
order
NAME LAND AREA (SQ MI) CAPITAL
POPULATION (2)
DISTRICT OF 68 Washington
COLUMBIA (D.C.) 571,822
AMERICAN SANMOA 77 Pago Pago
57,291
GUAM 209 Hagatna
154,805
NORTHERN 184 Saipan
MARIANA 69,221
ISLANDS
PUERTO RICO 3,515 San Juan
3,839,810
U.S. VIRGIN 132 Charlotte Amalie,
ISLANDS 108,612 St. Thomas
NAME HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
DISTRICT OF Mayor
COLUMBIA (D.C.) Anthony A. Williams, D
AMERICAN SANMOA Governor
Tauese P. F. Sunia, D
GUAM Governer
Felix P. Camacho, R
NORTHERN Governor
MARIANA Juan N. Babauta, R
ISLANDS
PUERTO RICO Governor
Sila M. Calderon, PDP (9)
U.S. VIRGIN Governor
ISLANDS Charles W. Turnbull, D
FOOTNOTES
(1) An Independent belongs to no political party.
(2) Population figures: States and Puerto Rico, U.S. Census July 2001
estimates; Territories, 2000 Census.
(3) Seat of U.S. government.
(4) Date when federal government moved from Philadelphia to Washington.
(5) Date gained by treaty with the U.K. and Germany.
(6) Date ceded to U.S. by Spain after the Spanish-American War; became a
U.S. territory in 1950.
(7) Date administration by U.S. began (in a trusteeship for the United
Nations); became a self- governing commonwealth in 1978.
(8) Date ceded to U.S. by Spain after the Spanish-American War; became a
self-governing commonwealth in 1952.
(9) PDP stands for Popular Democratic Party.
(10) Date purchased from Denmark.
SOURCES
Nickname, Date entered union/acquired, Capital: The Book of the
States, 2002. Origin of name, Land area: World Book Encyclopedia.
Population: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Governor/head of government:
National Governors Association. U.S. Senators and Representatives:
U.S. Congress, U.S. House and Seante Web Sites, The New York Times.
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