The entire population of the United States consists of native-born residents and immigrants who have come to America permanently from various countries. These two large groups make up the U.S. population.
Through the intermingling of different ethnic groups who came to the mainland for different reasons, a new multi-ethnic entity called the American nation emerged. Each ethnic group has enriched American culture and given it its own flavor.
The Peoples and Nationalities of the United States
The native population of the country is a small group of peoples, which includes various tribes of Indians, Eskimos, Hawaiians, and Aleuts. Since the discovery of America by Columbus, there has been a continuous decline in the indigenous population. According to the last census, Indians and their descendants make up 1.2 percent of the population. The number of Native American tribes has decreased significantly as a result of the demographic catastrophe.
Most Native American Indians now live on reservations, mostly in the west, with a few living in the north and central regions and very few in the eastern region of the United States. Despite the spartan conditions, Native American tribes continue to live on reservations. Indians preserve their cultural identity and work hard to cleanse and preserve their natural surroundings.
The second part that makes up the U.S. population is diverse and heterogeneous. Today, you can find a representative of almost every ethnicity on the planet in the United States. Throughout the history of the United States, immigration has provided and continues to provide a steady increase in the country’s population. People come to the United States from all over the world.
In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, immigrants from Northern, Southern, and Eastern Europe were a major source of immigration to the United States. Today people from Mexico, the Philippines, Cuba, and India come here because they have no higher education and often speak little English. This, unfortunately, has reduced the overall level of education among U.S. residents. Emigrants include Africans, Oceanians, South Americans, Asians, and others.
According to statistics, the racial makeup of the population is as follows: whites represent the majority, about 78%; blacks are just over 13%, Asians are 5%, while natives (1.2%) and other nationalities (2%) comprise the smallest portion.
Right now the United States has one of the best demographics in the world. A quarter of the population is under 20 years of age, and life expectancy and birth rates are high.
America is one of the most urbanized countries in the world, with 82% of Americans living in cities and urban agglomerations (suburbs). Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Houston, San Diego, Dallas, and San Jose have populations of over one million.
It is no exaggeration to say that each city in America has its own special features due to the heterogeneity of its ethnic composition and the uniqueness of its geographic location.
All climatic zones are represented throughout the United States, from the tropical in Hawaii, to the arctic in northern Alaska. Few countries can boast such diversity and richness of flora and fauna as America has.
The country is home to dense coniferous forests (Cordilleras), tundra vegetation (Alaska), prairies (Illinois), swampy lowlands, desert steppes, and lowland plains (Colorado).
Despite the diversity of nature and the originality of cities, in any part of America you can find a standard set of services, services and entertainment. Thanks to this American feels confident in any part of the United States and easily gets used to a new place of residence.
Traditional American skyscrapers are usually located in downtown business districts. Americans generally live in smaller homes, and once they have families, they often move out of the big, bustling cities and into the suburbs.
There is usually no territorial separation between the big cities and the suburbs. Sometimes there is only a road sign or small bridge between them. Cities called “bedroom communities” are farther away from the “city. That’s where Americans live and commute to work.
Small towns have everything to live in: schools, kindergartens, stores, hospitals, fast food, etc. The richer the city’s residents, the more comfortable life is. They choose where to live according to their income.
The division of social classes in the U.S. is nominal. However, there are “rich” and “poor” people in the country, and there are typical members of these classes.
For example, politicians and top managers are very rich people, specialists in some field and middle management are the “upper middle class,” and skilled workers are the so-called “lower middle class. The lower class is made up of the unemployed, partially employed, and subsidized citizens.
In America, having a high level of education can lead to a high level of income.
Traditions and Customs in the United States
Easter, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve are traditional holidays that Americans celebrate in their own way and at the same time in a way similar to other nations.
Thanksgiving is one of the most popular holidays in the country. It is celebrated with family around a table with a traditional treat: turkey. Sometimes to celebrate the day, Americans travel across the country to the home of the head of the family.
The official US holidays are Independence Day, Memorial Day, Martin Luther King Day, Labor Day, President’s Day, and others.
Unofficial holidays and all kinds of music festivals are also celebrated. In preparation for U.S. elections, campaigning is also like a holiday and entire shows taking place as Republicans and Democrats oppose each other. The traditional holiday Groundhog Day, celebrated annually on February 2, St. Patrick’s Day on March 17, Halloween on October 31, and various holidays of different nations as well as ethnic minorities.
Americans love jokes and funny numbers, consider going to court not as serious a procedure as in other countries, love animals, and regard the subject of “losing weight” as a value of lasting importance.