It's public knowledge that the United States is made up of 50 states, plus the District of Columbia – or Washington D.C.
Alaska (the 49th state) is located in the far northwestern part of North America and Hawaii (the 50th state) is situated in the mid-Pacific. Hawaii became the 50th state on August 21, 1959, and it is one of the smallest states made up entirely of islands.
There are 48 contiguous, aka. conterminous, aka. adjoining states. The terms “contiguous United States” refer to the lower 48 states in North America (including the District of Columbia).
The continental United States is used to refer to 49 states, including the District of Columbia and Alaska.
The United States has several regions and subregions. It is challenging to find a uniform way to divide the United States. According to the US Census Bureau, the U.S. comprises 4 regions:
- the Northeast
- the Midwest
- the South
- and the West.
The Northeast includes Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
The Midwest consists of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas.
The South claims more states than any other region: Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, as well as Washington, D.C.
The West comprises Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii.
How can you memorize those states?!
Check them out on the interactive map available at https://www.amcharts.com/visited_states
Point the cursor to a state, select it, set a colour and download the chart.