Do you enjoy helping people, love pizza, and possibly have some British heritage? Then you just might be American! Perhaps it’s not that simple, but these five facts about the USA and Americans (as originally published by “Reader’s Digest”) are quite interesting. Read on and discover some things you may or may not have known about Americans and their country. Do you see these traits in your American friends or, after spending some time in the U.S., in yourself?

Five Things You Never Knew About Americans and the USA

Fact #1: Americans are super helpful.

As Reader’s Digest says, “According to the World Giving Index, Americans are the most likely people in the world to help a stranger.” In fact, it continues, “more than 69 percent of firefighters in the United States are volunteers.” That’s crazy! If you’d like to join in with the American tradition of giving back, read our article about How to Volunteer While Studying at CISL. It’s full of excellent suggestions on clubs and organizations to join in order to improve your English while helping your new community!

Fact #2: July 4th isn’t technically the nation’s birthday.

July 4th is the date known as the birthday of the United States. The holiday celebrates the day that American Congressman signed the Declaration of Independence, which stated that the United States had become its own nation and independent of British rule. However, the day that Congress actually voted to declare independence was July 2, 1776. Another fun fact? Fireworks aren’t just reserved for the 4th: click here to learn about where to view some of the best fireworks shows in SD and SF.

Fact #3: Americans are pizza lovers!

Every day, Americans buy enough pizza to cover 100 acres of land. This doesn’t surprise us at all: between San Diego’s historic Little Italy and San Francisco’s Italian District, there are plenty of restaurants serving up delicious slices of both authentic and unique pizzas.  

Fact #4: A young country . . . with ancient natural history.

Three of the five oldest rivers in the world (called the New, the Susquehanna, and the French Broad Rivers) flow through the U.S. Each river is over hundreds of millions of years old. Insane! The Russian River, located near SF, isn’t one of the oldest rivers in the world . . . but it’s still a great place to go canoeing. Click here to learn about canoeing the Russian River.

Fact #5: A history of immigration.

According to “Reader’s Digest,” “an estimated one in ten” Americans “could be a blood relative to one of the original 102 pilgrims who arrived aboard the Mayflower in 1620.” Many Americans might have British blood, but their language is certainly different after all these years. Click here to learn about the differences between American and British English, and click here to learn about the British style Princess Pub in San Diego.

All facts are adapted from an original article published by “Reader’s Digest.” Read the full article here. Photos from Shutterstock.