The United States of America covers a large part of North America. Its neighbors are Canada to the north，and Mexico to the south. Though the USA is a big country, it is not the largest in the world. Washington, D.C. is the countrys capital. Its population is over three million. Several other cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and so on have an even larger population. Washington, D.C. is only the eighth largest city in the country, but it is one of the most beautiful cities. When the land first became a nation after winning its independence (独立) from England, there were only 13 states. All those states were in the eastern part of the continent (大陆). As the nation grew toward the west, new states were added. For a long time, there were 48 states. In 1959, Alaska joined the union and four years later Hawaii became the 50th state. Among the 50 states, Alaska is the biggest. Texas is smaller than Alaska but it is much bigger than the other 48 states. Most Americans who went in the early days and in greatest numbers to make their homes on the eastern coast (海岸) of North America were from England, so the language of the USA is English and its culture and customs (风俗习惯) are more like those of England than of any other country in the world.1