Culture
American culture is well known around the world. Fashion, music, food, movies, and TV shows from America can be easily found in almost every market on the planet. Let's take a closer look.
Customs and Practices
America is a very large country. Customs and practices vary from place to place. For example, in smaller, rural communities in the US like the small state of Nebraska, people consider it rude to not wave or say "Hi" to strangers they meet on the street or in the store. This even goes for driving. When two drivers approach on the small dirt road, they should wave. However, in larger cities like Los Angeles, people may consider this behavior strange and possibly threatening.
Some things all Americans share is a very strong sense of patriotism. Americans hang national flags everywhere and have the ritual of singing the national song before all major sporting events. Americans enjoy celebrating with give giving, too. Consumerism and individualism are big parts of American culture. Birthdays are heavily emphasized, especially for children, and it is customary to give lots of presents to children on these days.
Common practices found throughout the US are the wave and the handshake for greeting friends and strangers alike. Tipping, or leaving a small payment for service personnel in restaurants and hotels is also customary.
Food
Americans like foods that are very savory or very sweet. Many of America's most famous dishes are actually not American at all. Hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza, and french fries were all important from other countries, but American ingenuity made them fast, cheap, and global.
American food traditionally features meat, potatoes, and bread with vegetables eaten mostly raw in salads. Of course, America is a very diverse country. Americans from different ethnic backgrounds have different staple foods. Some uniquely American dishes include nachos, corn dogs, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and chocolate chip cookies.
Yum, nachos and corn dogs.
Religion
Because it the country was founded on the idea of religious freedom, technically the US is a secular nation, but a vast majority of Americans (70%) are devout Christian. Christian churches of all denominations can be found across the land and in every community big and small.
Other important religions in the US include Judaism and Islam which are the next most practiced faiths. A significant percentage of Americans do not practice religion.
Watch the videos below to get an idea what an American Christian church service looks like
Cultural Landmarks
Hollywood makes more movies each year than any other country in the world. Its movies are shown in theaters in almost every country.
Broadway in New York City is where the world's best theater productions are performed. Plays like The Phantom of the Opera got their start here.
Washington, D.C. is hold many monuments to great Americans. The Washington monument here is modeled after Egyptian obelisks.
The largest active stadium in the world is MIchigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It holds over 113,000 people and is a testament to America's vibrant sports culture.
