United States
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May 26, 2025
The United States wasn't named in a moment—it was named through a founding document. The Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) refers to ‘the thirteen united States of America.’ The word ‘States’ was plural because the founding idea was a federation of separate sovereignties, not a centralized nation. The phrase ‘United States’ emphasized the unity while preserving the idea that states retained independent power.
Thomas Jefferson wrote most of the Declaration over two weeks in June and early July 1776, in isolation in Philadelphia. He included that phrase as a description of the political structure they were inventing. The words ‘United Colonies’ appear in earlier documents, but ‘United States’ was the term that stuck because it better described what they were actually building: a federation, not an empire. The name embedded the political theory. See more at nyhistory.
Thomas Jefferson wrote most of the Declaration over two weeks in June and early July 1776, in isolation in Philadelphia. He included that phrase as a description of the political structure they were inventing. The words ‘United Colonies’ appear in earlier documents, but ‘United States’ was the term that stuck because it better described what they were actually building: a federation, not an empire. The name embedded the political theory. See more at nyhistory.
Rate of Appearance in English Language Print
Google's Ngram project shows how often a pair of words has appeared in print every year since the 1800's.
Data from Google Books Ngram Viewer. Licensed under CC BY 3.0.
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