Geography:
- situated in northern part of the North America between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean
- area-about 9,3 million square kilometers
- borders -with Canada on the north, the border is formed by the line of 49th parallel and the Great Lakes Region
- Mexico on the south
- Russia in Alaska
- the Pacific Ocean on the west
- the Atlantic Ocean on the east
- highest mountain-Mount McKinley in Alaska (6 194m)
- mountains-the Rocky Mountains and the Coastal Mountains on the west
- the Appalachian Mountains on the east
- plains- Central Plains
- water-rivers- Mississippi and Missouri (6212km) 3rd longest river system in the world
- lakes- the Great Lakes Region- Lake Superior,Huron,Erie and Ontario. they are shared with Canada
- Lake Superior-2nd largest in the world (after the Caspian Sea)
- national parks- Yellowstone NP, Yosemite NP, Rocky Mountains NP, Grand Canyon NP, Glacier NP, Mount McKinley NP
- climate-from arctic in Alaska to subtropical in Hawaii
People:
- population- about 260 million inhabitants
- nationalities- the majority of inhabitants is of European origin, but there are also large groups of Afro-American, Indian,American indian,Chinese, Japanese and other origin
- today there are more than hundread major ethnic groups.That´s why America is called ´MELTING POT´-people who live in USA are of different origins and races. They mix together in ´a pot´ and altogether they form American nation.
- official language-American English.It differs from British English in vocabulary,spelling and pronunciation
- also minority languages are spoken
Division of the country:
USA is a federation of 50 states including Alaska and the island of Hawaii.
NORTH-EASTERN REGION- New York, Pensylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan- these states are most densely populated.
- this region includes some of the largest cities e.g. New York, washington D.C., Philadelphia and industrial centers like Chicago and Detroit.
- is rich in raw materials and is the centre of industry
NORTHERN REGION (NEW ENGLAND)- Connecticut, Maine, Massachusssets, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
- first collonists settled there
- old traditions are preserved there in architecture and culture
- Harward and Yale Universities-private, the most famous
MIDWEST it is central part of USA with many plains
SOUTHERN REGION Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tenesse, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, Arcansas, Florida
- these states are mainly agricultural growing cotton and tobacco
- formerly slavery was developed there Florida-is a tourist center with many beaches
SOUTH-WEST Texas, New Mexico, Arizona
Texas-the largest state of the federation-rich in oil, cattle ranches, prairies
New Mexico, Arizona- indians in their reservations
Grand Canyon-the Colorado river
- many deserts, lack of rain, extreme temperatures in summer
WESTERN REGION (ROCKY MOUNTAINS STATES) Washington, Oregon,Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, California
- In general it is very thinly populated (except cities)
- famous for the Rocky Mountains and California beaches
California-famous cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco
Attractive places:
Los Angeles-2nd largest
- Hollywood-center of film industry, Beverly Hills
- Oscars are awarded there by the American Film Academy
- the biggest ZOO in the world
- center of crime
San Francisco- the Alcatraz prison
- hilly relief and cable cars
- city of homosexuals
- Chinatown-largest settlement outside Asia
- Berkeley University
Philadelphia- one of the oldest cities
- used to be the first US capital
- Declaration of Independence was signed there
New Orleans- jazz was born here
Houston--NASA centre and Johnson Space Centre
Florida-tourist area with attractive beaches on Miami
- Cape Canaveral-spaceships are launched off there
Chicago-on the lake Michigan
- First skyscraper was built there
- Sears Tower-used to be the highest skyscraper in the USA
- centre of steel and and iron industries
Detroit-centre of car industry (Pontiac,Chevrolet,Ford, Chrysler,Cadillac)
Basic facts from American history:
- the American continent was discovered first around year 1000 by Vikings (from Iceland). No permanent settlement was founded
- 1492-Christopher Columbus landed there in search for new journey to India.America became known to the Europeans
- 1607-First permanent English settlement was founded in Jamestown, Virginia
- 1620-beginning of extensive collonization- the ship named Mayflower brought 102 English people to northeast and they founded the colony Plymouth.. They called themselves the Pylgrim Fathers- they were puritans, wanted a reform in the Church of England. The first winter was hard, many of them died.In spring they planted corn and other plants with the help of Indians and in October 1621 they celebrated their first harvest.They called it Thanksgiving.
The first 13 collonies were formed and were under the British control.They wanted their independence from Britain.Britain raised taxes on imported goods, sugar,cofee etc. It led to the Boston Tea Party- in 1773 a group of patriots dressed as Indians threw bags of tea into the Boston Harbour in protest of unfair taxes.It was the first event leading to
the War of Independence (1775-1783)
It began in 1775.
Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4th, 1776 by all 13 collonies. It was mainly written by Thomas Jefferson.
In 1783 Britain signed peace treaty and officially recognized the independence of USA
In 1787-the Constitution of the USA was adopted.George Washington became the first American president.
the Civil War (1861-1865)
Conflicts and sharp differences between industrial north and agricultural, slaves using south led to the civil war.South protested against A.Lincoln being the president of the USA
South-Confederation under President Jefferson Davis
North-Union under President Abraham Lincoln-victory
Emancipation Proclamation-1863-it abolished slavery.
-was written by A. Lincoln
the World War I,II-thought against Germany with France and England
WWI-pres. Woodrow Wilson
WWII-pres. Harry Truman-ordered to drop atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan
the Cold War- era of mistrust between the US and Soviet Union and constant threat of nuclear weapons usage on both sides
1960- social unrest and the civil rights movements
-American blacks demanded an end to racial discrimination with their civil rights leader Martin Luther King, who was assassinated in 1968
the Vietnam War- against Northern Vietnam brought internal unrest and moral crisis
