American people or Americans are a nation and denizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds. As a result, some Americans don't take their nationality as an ethnicity, but identify themselves with both their nationality and their ancestral origins. Aside from the indigenous Native American population, nearly all Americans or their ancestors immigrated within the past five centuries.
Due to the multi-ethnic composition, the United States is a multicultural nation, home to a wide variety of traditions and values. The culture held in common by most Americans is referred to as mainstream American culture, a Western culture largely derived from the traditions of Western European migrants, beginning with the early English and Dutch settlers. German and Irish cultures have also been very influential. Certain cultural attributes of Igbo, Mandé, Kongo and Wolof slaves from West Africa were adopted by the American mainstream; based more on the traditions of Central African Bantu slaves, a distinct African American culture developed that would also deeply affect the mainstream. Westward expansion integrated the Creoles and Cajuns of Louisiana and the Hispanos of the Southwest and brought close contact with the culture of Mexico. Large-scale immigration in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries from Southern and Eastern Europe introduced many new cultural elements. More recent immigration from Asia, Africa, and especially Latin America has had broad impact. The resulting cultural mix may be described as a homogeneous melting pot, or as a pluralistic salad bowl in which immigrants and their descendants retain distinctive cultural characteristics.
In addition to the United States, Americans and people of American descent can be found internationally such as in Mexico,Canada,Australia,Brazil, throughout Europe,South America, and lastly the Caribbean. As many as 4 million Americans are estimated to be living abroad.
English is the de facto national language. Although there is no official language at the federal level, some laws—such as U.S. naturalization requirements—standardize English. In 2007, about 226 million, or 80% of the population aged five years and older, spoke only English at home. Spanish, spoken by 12% of the population at home, is the second most common language and the most widely taught second language. Some Americans advocate making English the country's official language, as it is in at least twenty-eight states. Both Hawaiian and English are official languages in Hawaii by state law.
While neither has an official language, New Mexico has laws providing for the use of both English and Spanish, as Louisiana does for English and French. Other states, such as California, mandate the publication of Spanish versions of certain government documents including court forms. Several insular territories grant official recognition to their native languages, along with English: Samoan and Chamorro are recognized by American Samoa and Guam, respectively; Carolinian and Chamorro are recognized by the Northern Mariana Islands; Spanish is an official language of Puerto Rico.
Religion in the United States has a high adherence level, compared to other developed countries, and diversity in beliefs. The First Amendment to the country's Constitution prevents the Federal government from making any "law respecting an establishment of religion", and guarantees the free exercise of religion. The Supreme Court has interpreted this as preventing the government from having any authority in religion. A majority of Americans report that religion plays a "very important" role in their lives, a proportion unusual among developed nations, although similar to the other nations of the Americas. Many faiths have flourished in the United States, including both later imports spanning the country's multicultural immigrant heritage, as well as those founded within the country; these have led the United States to become the most religiously diverse country in the world.
The majority of Americans (76%) identify themselves as Christians, mostly within Protestant and Catholic denominations, accounting for 51% and 25% of the population respectively. Non-Christian religions (including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism), collectively make up about 4% to 5% of the adult population. Another 15% of the adult population identifies as having no religious belief or no religious affiliation. According to the American Religious Identification Survey, religious belief varies considerably across the country: 59% of Americans living in Western states (the "Unchurched Belt") report a belief in God, yet in the South (the "Bible Belt") the figure is as high as 86%.
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6:08
Russell Peters: American Cultureby mikizzlefoshizzle676,008 views
"America was found by people of the world".. no shit sherlock lol... no aliens found "America" -_-
boriquadominicana 1 day ago
I love how they always say "found" America and not "take over". lol
HotSweetPotato1 3 weeks ago
Blacksmith!
celso87 1 month ago
i laughed at 1:11.
PsychoNL96 1 month ago
@globehunter2 racism is found all over... virtually every culture throughout human history. the majority of cultures where there is little or no racism are ethnically homogenous.
jdis 2 months ago
Racism is American as apple pie. Racists love thier prejudise and will
never fully let go of it.Blacks at the bottom and whites at the top. A blue
eye,d Jesus to pray to is the best treat for klu klux klanners and thier babies.
globehunter2 2 months ago
Although this was made in 1953, I think its still very much up to date and should be shown in schools (beeping out the "negro" bits however) as many people are still not completely aware of the full history of their country.
ENSTLQ 3 months ago
My ancestors came over on the Mayflower!! I go that far back (on my mother's side)
Amillionmes 3 months ago
People's Republic of America, PRA !
JaneSanFrancisco 3 months ago
I sorta frown when I keep hearing Negro's but I have to remind myself....it's 1953.
Neindus 3 months ago