USA is not America

Indeed, U.S.A. is not America!

America is the name of a whole continent. United States of America means that the United States belongs to America and NOT that America belongs to the United States. So, next time you want to refer to The United States of America, you can do it as U.S. or the States or whatever you want but not as only America. Gotcha?

America

How should I use the term America then?

Here we will show you some wrong and correct uses of the term America:

  • This is how we do it in America.
  • This is how we do it in the States.
  • America is my country and I love it.
  • The United States is my country and I love it.
  • America lost the Vietnam war.
  • U.S.A. lost the Vietnam war.
  • Here in America we love Mc Donald's.
  • Here in the U.S. we love Mc Donald's.

Please, note that this page in not about demonyms (gentilics) but about the way to call a country.


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Comments (1251)

Liosays...

Then, technically, Hawaii is one of the states that form the union (is part of the United States), but is not one of the states that are united in the american continent (United States of America)...

Davidsays...

I think the International Olympic Committee knows what the USA’s official name is.

https://www.olympic.org/united-states-of-america

I really think the United Nations knows.

https://www.un.org/en/member-states/#gotoU

I really, really think the U.S. Department of State knows.

https://www.state.gov/s/inr/rls/4250.htm

Anonymous(United States)says...

The short form name being the United States and the long form name derived from making use of a post positioned adjective referencing the geographical location in which it the United States was founded.

United States

of

America: https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3290.ar305500/

https://www.loc.gov/item/2015588081/

No longer officially used by the United States but nonetheless correct and more precise:

United States

of

North America: https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3700.ar073301/

https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3290.ct007308/

God Bless America and All Americans:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D5w92bSWsAEyzTQ?format=jpg

Liosays...

Yes, that is perfectly clear, it is US or USA (even the WH and the Department of State have different approaches to the name), but it is not "America" alone.

Davidsays...

Of course we all know that “America” is not the USA’s official name. Of course we all know that “America” is a common or colloquial name used by billions of people, who speak many different languages, to refer to the United States of America.

Anonymous(United States)says...

Your over exaggerated Argumentum ad Populum is a logical fallacy

America is the name of the geographical location in which the United States was founded. It is not its name PERIOD. The entire galaxy may well be misinformed but that's inconsequential to the truth. The United States is not America "officially" or otherwise. A misconception is a fallacy no matter how many are misled.

The United States is of America not itself America. One is a country the other is the whole continent of the New World. The United States and America are not one and the same.

Anonymous(United States)says...

Despite US popularized misconceptions, the United States is of America not itself America. The United States is no more America than Saudi Arabia is Arabia. American is no more a nationality than Arabian is a nationality.

The New World is what's genuinely America and all that is American. It was named America in 1507 in honor of Amerigo Vespucci.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DfSOk2DVQAAsOAi.jpg

https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3290

It's the only reason the

Anonymous(United States)says...

It's the only reason the

Kouji(United States)says...

This message us for the administrator of this page. I need your help I am having a discussion in Wikipedia, the subject is called Native Americans in the Western hemisphere.

Liosays...

Imagine you come to an apartment building called Yabadiba, and everybody introduces him or herself saying: “Martha”, “Steve”, “John” and so, until one guy introduces himself as “The Guy of Yabadiba”, and you “Eh? Sorry?”, “That’s me, The Guy of Yabadiba”, “Well, that’s what you are, but who are you? Your name…”, “Well, just that, I’m The Guy of Yabadiba”, “So, no name at all?”, “That’s my name! since I came here I have been known just like that”, “Aaah, oook… nice to meet you, but… I’m a little confused because, well, you know, John is also a guy of Yabadiba, no?”, “No, he is John, but you can call me “The Guy” or “Yabadiba” only, if it is easier for you”, “Eeeh, yeah, ok…”

Tamara(United States)says...

I am America freedom of liberty justice

Al(Panama)says...

See... The thing is that there are two conventions of the continents. In the U.S. and other countries, people are taught that North and South America are two different continents. While in many other countries, America (what people in the U.S. call "The Americas") represents a continent as whole. The reason why America is the one single continent (as this page points out) is because after Christopher Columbus discovered America (accidentally), there was a Italian cartographer named "Americus Vespucci" who was the first to draw a map of the what was then considered "The New World." It was after him that the the "New World" was named America. Articles at the time referred to it as America too. I suspect this is why the U.S. was named the United States of America and not the United States of North America.

Nico(Belgium)says...

God bless all the United Statians, whether ignorant, arrogant or smart. We are all human beings. :)

Liosays...

The constitution of the United States begins with: "We the people of the United States, in Order to form... and a little bit after says "this Constitution for the United States of America..." (and as far as I know, there is no "America" written alone in the constitution).

The lectern of the U.S. president reads: seal of the president of the United States (there is no "America" written there).

There are also the U.S. Army, U.S.A.F. and U.S. Navy, not the America Army, America Air Force or America Navy, and the same for every other institutional and government area, why don’t they include America as part of their name? Even the U.S.’s anthem makes no mention to “America” at all.

Rimbosays...

Haha, I get where you're coming from but it's just called that because it's really badly named. Some folks back a long time ago decided to name their country after the entire continent and there's really nothing anyone can do about that any more. America is the only part of the United States of America's name that is an actual name, so it's really all it can be called. I do like Estadounidenses, but that doesn't translate well to english, so calling them "Americans" is probably here to stay.

Destroyer(Canada)says...

The United States is NOT America. It is part of America. That is why when you look at a world map and look at North America you will see Canada, Mexico, United States or United States of America or Us or USA but never America and that is because it's Not the name of the country.

JED(United States)says...

If our government actually still operated as intended and as our Constitution says this wouldn't even be a discussion, because we'd be called Georgians, Virginians, New Yorkers, Californians, etc. The whole point of our Constitution is that it's an agreement among sovereign states to simply agree to a handful of specific things that made more sense if they were uniform in every state (currency, post office, etc.) and to provide a means to prevent and/or mediate trade disputes between states. The term United States itself was intended to be more a description than a name and that's why we don't have some snazzy name for our country.



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Let the world know that USA should not be called America! America is one whole continent.