POPULATION 280,562,489
PROTESTANT 52 percent
ROMAN CATHOLIC 24 percent
JEWISH 3 percent
OTHER (OTHER CHRISTIAN, NATIVE AMERICAN RELIGIONS, BUDDHIST, HINDU, MUSLIM, NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS, SHAKER, MORMON, SEVENTHDAY ADVENTIST, JEHOVAH'S WITNESS, NONRELIGIOUS) 21 percent

Country Overview

Introduction

The United States of America occupies roughly the middle third of the North American continent and is bordered by Canada to the north, Mexico to the south, and the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans on the east and west, respectively. The states of Alaska (attached to northwestern Canada) and Hawaii (in the middle of the Pacific Ocean) do not abut any of the contiguous 48 states. Its lengthy coastlines, broad expanses of fertile land, and extensive deposits of natural resources, including coal, oil, and timber, have made the United States economically prosperous and thus a magnet for immigrants from around world, who have also been attracted to the country's political and religious freedom...