# 52 States in America **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 28, 2003, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950 "2003-10-28T01:58:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/21 "2003-10-28T04:33:04Z")
Yeah, but ask a bunch of teachers or nurses at what temperature water boils. You’ll be amazed by the exciting incorrect answers. ---
**Author:** ![remisser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b3f665/32.png) [@remisser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/remisser)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/22 "2003-10-28T04:38:16Z")
[http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1776&dept\_id=6368&newsid=10386812&PAG=461&rfi=9](http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1776&dept_id=6368&newsid=10386812&PAG=461&rfi=9) Quick quote from that newspaper: New York State has more debt than 46 out of the 52 states. Sheesh… Look at how many results this search pulls up: [http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q="52+states"&sa=N&tab=nw](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%2252+states%22&sa=N&tab=nw) So… I don’t know… I really want to know what these people are thinking… where they get these extra two states from. Guam? Puerto Rico? District of Columbia? Why did a publisher endorse a book called “What’s Great About Our 52 States”? The title of the book will just perpetuate the belief that there are 52 states. It irks me. ---
**Author:** ![remisser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b3f665/32.png) [@remisser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/remisser)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/23 "2003-10-28T04:47:25Z")
apologies, it’s not a book: it’s a geography contest. ---
**Author:** ![DarrenS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@DarrenS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarrenS)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/24 "2003-10-28T07:19:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by remisser \* > \*\*I sure hope this question hasn’t been asked tenfold already… > \*\* Welll…maybe not tenfold, but [once](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=126915) at least. ---
**Author:** ![DarrenS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@DarrenS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarrenS)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/25 "2003-10-28T07:29:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by remisser \* > \*\*I sure hope this question hasn’t been asked tenfold already… > \*\* Welll…maybe not tenfold, but [once](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=126915) at least. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/26 "2003-10-28T09:19:19Z")
> [@](#): > > I’ll be deep in the cold, cold ground before I recognise Missoura! AMEN. I had to move out of St. Louis to learn that anyone ever said anything but “Mizouree”. ---
**Author:** ![Odinoneeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/97f17d/32.png) [@Odinoneeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odinoneeye)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/27 "2003-10-28T10:25:02Z")
The show to watch on this subject is Street Smarts. In case you don’t know, on this show people are interviewed on video tape answering various questions. The in studio contestants have to decide who will get which question right or wrong. Q: How many states are in the United States? A: There’s 50 states, no wait, they added Alaska and Hawaii, so there’s 52 And… “How many stars are on the United States flag?” “38” “And there are 38 stars why?” “One for each state.” “So there’s 38 states?” “Yes” ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/28 "2003-10-28T11:40:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Shoshana \* > \*\*Yeah, but ask a bunch of teachers or nurses at what temperature water boils. You’ll be amazed by the exciting incorrect answers. \*\* And there’s a good chance they’d all be right. Water can boil over a wide temperature range… ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/29 "2003-10-28T14:57:17Z")
**Odinoneneye** : Of course, they know that to get on TV, they have to act like morons. I think that’s the main mover there. As for the rest, I have to ask: Just how many kinds of stupid is there? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/30 "2003-10-28T16:02:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Max Torque \* > \*\*Is this really what you said? If so, I’m afraid you made a mistake as well. “Continental United States” [refers to the 48 contiguous states](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continental_United_States), meaning that you too were off by two. \*\* And rather interestingly, and somewhat to my surprise, although Alaska is on the North American continent, it is not legally considered part of the “continental United States.” When people refer to “52 states in the U.S.” they are certainly not referring to the 50 actual states, plus D.C., plus whatever. They are merely ignorant or confused. This is probably partly due to confusion with two other common ‘significant’ 52s, the number of weeks in a year and the number of cards in a deck, and partly to confusion over whether there were 48 or 50 states before the admission of Alaska and Hawaii. I had someone once tell me they had been to “all 52 states of the Union.” I was tempted to ask them if that included East Dakota and New Idaho. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/31 "2003-10-28T16:15:05Z")
> [@](#): > > And rather interestingly, and somewhat to my surprise, although Alaska is on the North American continent, it is not legally considered part of the “continental United States.” [Contiguous](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=contiguous) means “Sharing an edge or boundary; touching”, “Neighboring; adjacent”, “Connecting without a break: _the 48 contiguous states_”. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/32 "2003-10-28T16:20:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > \*\*[Contiguous](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=contiguous) means “Sharing an edge or boundary; touching”, “Neighboring; adjacent”, “Connecting without a break: _the 48 contiguous states_”. \*\* I know what contiguous means. I had assumed there was a distinction between the “contiguous” United States (the “Lower 48”) and the “continental” United States (the “Lower 48” + Alaska), but apparently legally there is not. Alaska and Hawaii are certainly non-contiguous, but although Alaska is geographically continental it is not legally continental. So that legally the contiguous U.S. is the same as the continental U.S. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/33 "2003-10-28T16:49:50Z")
What do you mean when you say “legally”? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/34 "2003-10-28T17:22:02Z")
For what its worth, the UK version of Trivial Pursuit (Genus II, specifically, I think) said there were 52 states. I never knew it wasn’t true until I moved here… And it wasn’t that we counted Guam and Puerto Rico, just that most Brits think there are 52 states. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/35 "2003-10-28T17:26:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bear\_Nenno \* > \*\*Do all those territories have a National Guard that is part of the US Army? I know Puerto Rico and Guam do. That’s why I figured they were the two included in the Sunny School “52”. Maybe they are ‘closer’ to being a state than the other territories… \*\* DC has a guard command, as well. Some of them are in Iraq right now. ---
**Author:** ![MMI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/53a042/32.png) [@MMI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MMI)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/36 "2003-10-28T18:13:27Z")
Maybe they’re counting Canada twice ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/37 "2003-10-28T18:21:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by acsenray \* > \*\*What do you mean when you say “legally”? \*\* Try reading **Max’s** link: > [@](#): > > Although Alaska is geographically a continental state (sharing North America, but separated from the Lower 48 by Canada), legally it is considered a non-continental state. This rhetorical distinction originated in the Alaska Omnibus Act of 1959 in light of the state’s admission into the Union and had to do with IRS legalities. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/38 "2003-10-28T18:23:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meeko \* > \*\*Slight Hijack: > > I used to HATE being taught by a teacher who obviously didn’t know what they where talking about. > > One subsitute Music teacher tried to sell me on the fact that the Amazon was the longest River. (I knew it to be the nile) > > \*\* Well, actually, this is a matter of definitions- and how you measure. The Missisippi is the longest if you include the Missouri River also- and why not? The Nile & the Amazon are really about the same length, but you can measure either from a different spot and end in a different location and have them each be longer than the other. Thus, the real answer is “it depends on you defintions and how you measure them”. All 3 are very long, and are the top 3. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/39 "2003-10-28T18:47:09Z")
I think that Odinoneeye hit on the answer: the “52 states” comes from people thinking that there are 50 states, plus Alaska and Hawaii. I’ve almost made that mistake myself a few times. ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950/40 "2003-10-28T19:11:56Z")
[Last time this was discussed](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=126915), I tried to nail down most of the sovereign entities which comprise the United States. I’ll take the liberty of quoting myself here to save the hamsters, but you should also take a look at **JRDelerious** ’s posts, and **Libertarian** ’s brilliant mnemonic. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sofa King \* > \*\*Or, if you’d like to look at it another way, by representation and degree of internal autonomy, there are: > [ul] > [li]Fifty sovereign States, each with two Senators and at least one Representative.[/li] > [li]One Federal District (Washington, DC) which has one non-voting Delegate in the House of Representatives and three electors in Presidential elections. Oh yeah, and one [“Shadow Senator”](http://senatordc.wdcnet.net/) who ain’t worth a damn.[/li] > [li]Three Dependencies with non-voting Delegates (AS, GU, VI) in the House of Representatives. Delegates may introduce bills and vote in Committees, but cannot cast a vote on the floor of the House. [/li] > [li]One associated commonwealth, Puerto Rico, with a non-voting [Resident Commissioner](http://www.house.gov/acevedo-vila/xp/eng/resident_commissioner.htm) in Congress. The RC is the only Member of Congress elected to a four-year term.[/li] > [li]Over 550 Federally recognized Indian tribes, which enjoy a government-to-government relationship with the United States–in other words, they deal directly with Congress and the Executive Branch, rather than go through the states in which the tribes are located.[/li] > [li]One Commonwealth (Northern Marianas) which is a dependency of the U.S. but which has limited internal sovereignty and exempt status from some parts of federal law.[/li] > [li]Three [Freely Associated States](http://www.doi.gov/oia/facts2000.html) which have internal sovereignty and limited freedom to deal independently with foreign nations.[/li] > [li]A handful of other dependencies which are administered by the Office of Insular Affairs of the Department of the Interior, generally not populated enough to govern themselves. [/ul][/li] > I think that covers most of them. \*\* [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/52-states-in-america/209950.md?page=3)