administrative division
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
s overseen by the
federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...
. The various American territories differ from the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
s and tribal reservations as they are not sovereign entities. In contrast, each state has a sovereignty separate from that of the federal government and each federally recognized Native American tribe possesses limited
tribal sovereignty
Tribal sovereignty in the United States is the concept of the inherent authority of indigenous tribes to govern themselves within the borders of the United States.
Originally, the U.S. federal government recognized American Indian trib ...
as a "dependent sovereign nation". Territories are classified by incorporation and whether they have an "organized" government through an
organic act
In United States law, an organic act is an act of the United States Congress that establishes a territory of the United States and specifies how it is to be governed, or an agency to manage certain federal lands. In the absence of an organ ...
passed by the
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
. American territories are under American sovereignty and, consequently, may be treated as part of the United States ''proper'' in some ways and not others (i.e., territories belong to, but are not considered to be a part of, the United States). Unincorporated territories in particular are not considered to be integral parts of the United States, and the
Constitution of the United States
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the natio ...
applies only partially in those territories. Harvard Law Review—U.S. Territories: Introduction. April 10, 2017. Retrieved July 2019.
The United States currently administers three territories in the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
and eleven in the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
. Five territories (
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
,
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
, the
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
,
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) are permanently inhabited, unincorporated territories; the other nine are small islands, atolls, and reefs with no native (or permanent) population. Of the nine, only one is classified as an incorporated territory (
Palmyra Atoll
Palmyra Atoll (), also referred to as Palmyra Island, is one of the Line Islands, Northern Line Islands (southeast of Kingman Reef and north of Kiribati). It is located almost due south of the Hawaiian Islands, roughly one-third of the way bet ...
). Two additional territories (
Bajo Nuevo Bank
Bajo Nuevo Bank, also known as the Petrel Islands ( es, Bajo Nuevo, Islas Petrel), is a small, uninhabited reef with some small grass-covered islets, located in the western Caribbean Sea at , with a lighthouse on Low Cay at . The closest neighbo ...
and
Serranilla Bank
Serranilla Bank ( es, Isla Serranilla, Banco Serranilla and ''Placer de la Serranilla'') is a partially submerged reef, with small uninhabited islets, in the western Caribbean Sea. It is situated about northeast of Punta Gorda, Nicaragua, and ...
) are claimed by the United States but administered by
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
. Historically, territories were created to administer newly acquired land, and most eventually attained statehood. Others, such as the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, the
Federated States of Micronesia
The Federated States of Micronesia (; abbreviated FSM) is an island country in Oceania. It consists of four states from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosraethat are spread across the western Pacific. Together, the states comprise a ...
, the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
, and
Palau
Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...
, later became independent.
Many organized, incorporated territories existed from 1789 to 1959. The first were the
Northwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...
and
Southwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
territories and the last were the
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
and
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
territories. Thirty-one territories (or parts of territories) became states. In the process, some less-populous areas of a territory were orphaned from it after a statehood referendum. When a portion of the
Missouri Territory
The Territory of Missouri was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 4, 1812, until August 10, 1821. In 1819, the Territory of Arkansas was created from a portion of its southern area. In 1821, a southeas ...
became the state of
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
, the remainder of the territory (the present-day states of Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota; most of Kansas, Wyoming, and Montana; and parts of Colorado and Minnesota) became an
unorganized territory Unorganized territory may refer to:
* An unincorporated area in any number of countries
* One of the current or former territories of the United States that has not had a government "organized" with an "organic act" by the U.S. Congress
* Unorganize ...
.
Politically and economically, the territories are underdeveloped. Residents of United States territories cannot vote in
United States Presidential elections
The election of the president and the vice president of the United States is an indirect election in which citizens of the United States who are registered to vote in one of the fifty U.S. states or in Washington, D.C., cast ballots not dire ...
, and they have only non-voting representation in the United States Congress. According to 2012 data, territorial telecommunications and other infrastructure are generally inferior to that of the
continental United States
The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...
and Hawaii. Poverty rates are higher in the territories than in the states.
Organized vs. unorganized territories
Definition
Organized territories are lands under federal sovereignty (but not part of any state) which were given a measure of
self-governance
__NOTOC__
Self-governance, self-government, or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any form of ...
by Congress through an
organic act
In United States law, an organic act is an act of the United States Congress that establishes a territory of the United States and specifies how it is to be governed, or an agency to manage certain federal lands. In the absence of an organ ...
subject to the Congress's plenary powers under the
territorial clause
Article Four of the United States Constitution outlines the relationship between the various states, as well as the relationship between each state and the United States federal government. It also empowers Congress to admit new states and admin ...
of the Constitution's Article Four, section 3.
Former
The term ''unorganized'' was historically applied either to a newly acquired region not yet constituted as an
organized incorporated territory
The territory of the United States and its overseas possessions has evolved over time, from the colonial era to the present day. It includes formally organized territories, proposed and failed states, unrecognized breakaway states, internationa ...
(e.g. the
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
prior to the establishment of
Orleans Territory
The Territory of Orleans or Orleans Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from October 1, 1804, until April 30, 1812, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Louisiana.
History
In 1804, ...
and the
District of Louisiana
The District of Louisiana, or Louisiana District, was an official and temporary United States government designation for the portion of the Louisiana Purchase that had not been organized into the Territory of Orleans or "Orleans Territory" (the p ...
), or to a region previously part of an organized incorporated territory left "unorganized" after part of it had been organized and achieved the requirements for statehood (e.g. a large portion of
Missouri Territory
The Territory of Missouri was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 4, 1812, until August 10, 1821. In 1819, the Territory of Arkansas was created from a portion of its southern area. In 1821, a southeas ...
became unorganized territory for several years after its southeastern section became the state of
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
).
Regions that have been admitted as states by the
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
in addition to the original thirteen were (most often), prior to admission, territories or parts of territories of this kind. As the United States grew, the most populous parts of the organized territory would achieve statehood. Some territories existed only a short time before becoming states, while others remained territories for decades. The shortest-lived was
Alabama Territory
The Territory of Alabama (sometimes Alabama Territory) was an organized incorporated territory of the United States. The Alabama Territory was carved from the Mississippi Territory on August 15, 1817 and lasted until December 14, 1819, when it w ...
at two years, while
New Mexico Territory
The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of ''Santa Fe de Nuevo México ...
and
Hawaii Territory
The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territories of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from Ap ...
both lasted more than 50 years.
Of the current 50 states, 31 were at one time or another part of an organized, incorporated U.S. territory. In addition to the original 13, six subsequent states never were: Kentucky, Maine, and West Virginia were each set off from an already existing state; Texas and Vermont were both
sovereign state
A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...
s (only ''de facto'' sovereignty in Vermont's case, as the region was claimed by New York) at the time when they entered the Union; and California was set off from unorganized land
ceded
The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdictio ...
to the United States by Mexico in 1848 at the end of the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
.
Current status
All of the five major U.S. territories are permanently inhabited and have locally elected territorial legislatures and executives and some degree of political
autonomy
In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...
. Four of the five are "organized", but American Samoa is technically "unorganized". All of the U.S. territories without permanent non-military populations are unorganized.
Federal administration
The
Office of Insular Affairs
The Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) is a unit of the United States Department of the Interior that oversees federal administration of several United States insular areas. It is the successor to the Bureau of Insular Affairs of the War Department ...
coordinates federal administration of the U.S. territories and freely associated states, except for Puerto Rico.
On March 3, 1849, the last day of the 30th Congress, a bill was passed to create the
U.S. Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...
to take charge of the internal affairs of ''United States territory''. The Interior Department has a wide range of responsibilities (which include the regulation of territorial governments, the basic responsibilities for public lands, and other various duties).
In contrast to similarly named Departments in other countries, the United States Department of the Interior is not responsible for local government or for civil administration except in the cases of Indian reservations, through the
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...
(BIA), and island dependencies administered by the Office of Insular Affairs.
Permanently inhabited territories
The U.S. has five permanently inhabited territories:
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
,
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
and the
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
in the
North Pacific Ocean
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.
Etymology
The word ''north'' is ...
, and
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
in the South Pacific Ocean. American Samoa is in the Southern Hemisphere, while the other four are in the
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's Nort ...
. In 2020, their combined population was about 3.62 million, over 90% of which is accounted for by Puerto Rico alone.
People born in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands acquire U.S. citizenship by birth, and foreign nationals residing there may apply for U.S. citizenship by naturalization. People born in American Samoa acquire U.S. nationality but not U.S. citizenship by birth if they do not have a U.S. citizen parent. U.S. nationals without U.S. citizenship may hold U.S. passports and reside in any part of the United States without restriction. However, to become U.S. citizens they must apply for naturalization, like foreigners, and may only do so while residing in parts of the United States other than American Samoa. Foreign nationals residing in American Samoa cannot apply for U.S. citizenship or U.S. nationality at all.
Each territory is self-governing with three branches of government, including a locally elected governor and a territorial legislature. Each territory elects a non-voting member (a non-voting
resident commissioner
Resident commissioner was or is an official title of several different types of commissioners, who were or are representatives of any level of government. Historically, they were appointed by the British Crown in overseas protectorates (such ...
in the case of Puerto Rico) to the
U.S. House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
. Although they cannot vote on the passage of legislation, they can be members of and vote in committees, are assigned offices and staff funding, and may nominate constituents from their territories to the
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
,
Naval
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
,
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...
117th Congress
The 117th United States Congress is the current meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened in Washington, D.C., on ...
(January 3, 2021January 3, 2023) the territories are represented by
Aumua Amata Radewagen
Amata Catherine Coleman Radewagen (born December 29, 1947), commonly called Aumua Amata , is an American Samoan politician who is the current delegate for the United States House of Representatives from American Samoa. Radewagen, a Republican, w ...
(R) of American Samoa,
Michael San Nicholas
Michael Franklin Quitugua San Nicolas (born January 30, 1981) is a Guamanian Democratic Party politician, who served as the delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives for from 2019 to 2023. San Nicolas was elected by his colleagues in the ...
(D) of Guam,
Gregorio Sablan
Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (born January 19, 1955) is a Northern Mariana Islander politician and former election commissioner. Elected in 2008, Sablan became the first delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the Commonwe ...
(D) of Northern Mariana Islands,
Jenniffer González
Jenniffer Aydin González Colón (born August 5, 1976) is a Puerto Rican politician who serves as the 20th Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. González has served in leadership positions in the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (PNP) and in ...
-Colón (R-PNP) of Puerto Rico and
Stacey Plaskett
Stacey Elizabeth Plaskett (; born May 13, 1966) is an American politician, attorney, and commentator. She is the delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the United States Virgin Islands' (USVI) at-large congressional district ...
(D) of U.S. Virgin Islands. The
District of Columbia
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
's delegate is
Eleanor Holmes Norton
Eleanor Holmes Norton (born June 13, 1937) is an American lawyer and politician serving as a delegate to the United States House of Representatives, representing the District of Columbia since 1991. She is a member of the Democratic Party.
Earl ...
(D); like the district, the territories have no vote in Congress and no representation in the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. Additionally, the
Cherokee Nation
The Cherokee Nation (Cherokee: ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ ''Tsalagihi Ayeli'' or ᏣᎳᎩᏰᎵ ''Tsalagiyehli''), also known as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, is the largest of three Cherokee federally recognized tribes in the United States. It ...
has delegate-elect
Kimberly Teehee
Kimberly Teehee (born October 13, 1968) is a Native American ( Cherokee Nation) attorney, politician, and activist on Native American issues. She is a Delegate-designate to the U.S. House of Representatives from the Cherokee Nation. She served ...
, who has not been seated by Congress.
Every four years, U.S. political parties nominate presidential candidates at conventions which include delegates from the territories. U.S. citizens living in the territories can vote for presidential candidates in these primary elections but not in the general election.
The territorial capitals are
Pago Pago
Pago Pago ( ; Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the territorial capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, which is American Samoa's main island. ...
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
(Northern Mariana Islands), San Juan (Puerto Rico) and Charlotte Amalie (U.S. Virgin Islands). Their governors are
Lemanu Peleti Mauga
Lemanu Palepoi Sialegā Mauga (born January 1, 1949) is an American Samoan politician and the 8th governor of American Samoa since January 3, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Mauga served as a senator in the American Samoa Senate, where he ...
(
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
),
Lou Leon Guerrero
Lourdes Aflague "Lou" Leon Guerrero (born November 8, 1950) is an American politician who has served as the 9th governor of Guam since 2019. She was president and CEO of the Bank of Guam from 2007 to 2017, having previously served as a senator o ...
(
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
),
Ralph Torres
Ralph Deleon Guerrero Torres (born August 6, 1979) is a Northern Marianan politician currently serving as the ninth governor of the Northern Mariana Islands since December 29, 2015. He is a Republican from Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mari ...
(
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
),
Pedro Pierluisi
Pedro Rafael Pierluisi Urrutia (born April 26, 1959) is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer currently serving as governor of Puerto Rico. He has previously served as Secretary of Justice, Resident Commissioner, acting
Secretary of State, i ...
(
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
Supplemental Security Income
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a means-tested program that provides cash payments to disabled children, disabled adults, and individuals aged 65 or older who are citizens or nationals of the United States. SSI was created by the Social Se ...
(SSI) is available only in the Northern Mariana Islands; however in 2019 a U.S. judge ruled that the federal government's denial of SSI benefits to residents of Puerto Rico is unconstitutional. This ruling was later overturned by the
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
, allowing for the exclusion of territories from such programs. In the decision, the court explained that the exemption of island residents from most federal income taxes provides a "rational basis" for their exclusion from eligibility for SSI payments.
American Samoa is the only U.S. territory with its own immigration system (a system separate from the United States immigration system). American Samoa also has a communal land system in which ninety percent of the land is communally owned; ownership is based on Samoan ancestry.
History
* American Samoa: territory since 1900; after the end of the
Second Samoan Civil War
The Second Samoan Civil War was a conflict that reached a head in 1898 when Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States were locked in dispute over who should have control over the Samoan island chain, located in the South Pacific Ocea ...
, the
Samoan Islands
The Samoan Islands ( sm, Motu o Sāmoa) are an archipelago covering in the central South Pacific, forming part of Polynesia and of the wider region of Oceania. Administratively, the archipelago comprises all of the Independent State of Samoa a ...
were divided into two regions. The U.S. took control of the eastern half of the islands. In 1900, the
Treaty of Cession of Tutuila
The Treaty of Cession of Tutuila, also known as the Deed of Cession of Tutuila, was a treaty between several chiefs of the island of Tutuila and the United States signed on April 17, 1900, whereby the chiefs swore allegiance to, and ceded the isla ...
took effect. The Manuʻa islands became part of American Samoa in 1904, and
Swains Island
Swains Island (; Tokelauan: ''Olohega'' ; Samoan: ''Olosega'' ) is a remote coral atoll in the Tokelau Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. The island is the subject of an ongoing territorial dispute between Tokelau and the United States, whi ...
became part of American Samoa in 1925. Congress
ratified
Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inte ...
American Samoa's treaties in 1929. For 51 years, the U.S. Navy controlled the territory. American Samoa is locally self-governing under a constitution last revised in 1967. The first elected governor of American Samoa was in 1977, and the first non-voting member of Congress was in 1981. People born in American Samoa are U.S. nationals, but not U.S. citizens. American Samoa is technically unorganized, and its main island is
Tutuila
Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, Au ...
.
* Guam: territory since 1899, acquired at the end of the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
. Guam is the home of
Naval Base Guam
Naval Base Guam is a strategic U.S. naval base located on Apra Harbor and occupying the Orote Peninsula. In 2009, it was combined with Andersen Air Force Base to form Joint Region Marianas, which is a Navy-controlled joint base.
The Ship Repa ...
and
Andersen Air Force Base
Andersen Air Force Base (Andersen AFB, AAFB) is a United States Air Force base located primarily within the village of Yigo in the United States territory of Guam. The host unit at Andersen AFB is the 36th Wing (36 WG), assigned to the Pacific ...
. It was organized under the
Guam Organic Act of 1950
The Guam Organic Act of 1950, ( ''et seq.'', ) is a United States federal law that redesignated the island of Guam as an unincorporated territory of the United States, established executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and transferred fe ...
, which granted U.S. citizenship to Guamanians and gave Guam a local government. In 1968, the act was amended to permit the election of a governor.
* Northern Mariana Islands: A commonwealth since 1986, the Northern Mariana Islands together with Guam were part of the
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
until 1899 when the Northern Marianas were sold to the
German Empire
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
after the Spanish–American War. Beginning in 1919, they were administered by Japan as a
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
mandate until the islands were captured by the United States in the
Battle of Saipan
The Battle of Saipan was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June to 9 July 1944 as part of Operation Forager. It has been referred to as the "Pacific D-Day" with th ...
and
Battle of Tinian
The Battle of Tinian was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Tinian in the Mariana Islands from 24 July until 1 August 1944. The 8,000-man Japanese garrison was eliminated, and the island joined Saipan ...
(June–August 1944) and the surrender of
Aguigan
Aguiguan (also Aguigan and Aguihan, based on the Spanish rendition of the native name, Aguijan, which is still used) is a small bean-shaped coralline island in the Northern Mariana Islands chain in the Pacific Ocean. It is situated south-west of ...
(September 1945) during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. They became part of the
United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands
The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia administered by the United States from 1947 to 1994.
History
Spain initially claimed the islands that later composed the territory of the Tru ...
(TTPI) in 1947, administered by the United States as U.N. trustee. The other constituents of the TTPI were
Palau
Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...
, the
Federated States of Micronesia
The Federated States of Micronesia (; abbreviated FSM) is an island country in Oceania. It consists of four states from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosraethat are spread across the western Pacific. Together, the states comprise a ...
and the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
. Following failed efforts in the 1950s and 1960s to reunify Guam and the Northern Marianas, a covenant to establish the Northern Mariana Islands as a commonwealth in political union with the United States was negotiated by representatives of both political bodies; it was approved by Northern Mariana Islands voters in 1975, and came into force on March 24, 1976. In accordance with the covenant, the Northern Mariana Islands constitution partially took effect on January 9, 1978, and became fully effective on November 4, 1986. In 1986, the Northern Mariana Islands formally left U.N. trusteeship. The abbreviations "CNMI" and "NMI" are both used in the commonwealth. Most residents in the Northern Mariana Islands live on
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
, the main island.
* Puerto Rico: unincorporated territory since 1899; Puerto Rico was acquired at the end of the Spanish–American War, and has been a U.S. commonwealth since 1952. Since 1917, Puerto Ricans have been granted U.S. citizenship. Puerto Rico was organized under the
Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950
The Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950 () was an Act of Congress of the 81st United States Congress. The United States Senate passed it unanimously.statehood movement, whose goal is to make the territory the
51st state
51st state in American political discourse refers to areas considered candidates for U.S. statehood, joining the 50 states that have constituted the United States since 1959. The phrase has been applied to external territories as well as parts o ...
. See also
Political status of Puerto Rico
The political status of Puerto Rico is that of an unincorporated territory of the United States. As such, the island of Puerto Rico is neither a sovereign nation nor a U.S. state. Because of that ambiguity, the territory, as a polity, lacks ce ...
.
* U.S. Virgin Islands: purchased by the U.S. from
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
in 1917 and organized under the
Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands
The Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands is a United States federal law that repealed and replaced the previous Organic Act of the Virgin Islands. It was passed on July 22, 1954 by the U.S. Congress to act as the basis for law in the United ...
in 1954. U.S. citizenship was granted in 1927. The main islands are Saint Thomas, Saint John and
Saint Croix
Saint Croix; nl, Sint-Kruis; french: link=no, Sainte-Croix; Danish and no, Sankt Croix, Taino: ''Ay Ay'' ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincorpo ...
.
Statistics
Except for Guam, the inhabited territories lost population in 2020. Although the territories have higher poverty rates than the mainland U.S., they have high
Human Development Index
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, whi ...
es. Four of the five territories have another official language, in addition to English.
The territories do not have administrative
counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
. The U.S. Census Bureau counts Puerto Rico's 78
municipalities
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
, the U.S. Virgin Islands' three main islands, all of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands' four municipalities, and American Samoa's three districts and two atolls as county equivalents. The Census Bureau also counts each of the
U.S. Minor Outlying Islands
The United States Minor Outlying Islands is a statistical designation defined by the International Organization for Standardization's ISO 3166-1 code. The entry code is ISO 3166-2:UM. The minor outlying islands and groups of islands consist ...
as county equivalents. U.S. Census Bureau. Census Bureau Code Lists. American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Codes for States. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
For statistical purposes, the U.S. Census Bureau has a defined area called the "Island Areas" which consists of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (every major territory except Puerto Rico). The U.S. Census Bureau often treats Puerto Rico as its own entity or groups it with the states and D.C. (for example, Puerto Rico has a QuickFacts page just like the states and D.C.) Puerto Rico data is collected annually in
American Community Survey
The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...
estimates (just like the states), but data for the other territories is collected only once every ten years.
Governments and legislatures
The five major inhabited territories contain the following governments and legislatures:
Political party status
The following is the political party status of the governments of the U.S. territories following completion of the
2020 United States elections
The 2020 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Democratic presidential nominee, former vice president Joe Biden, defeated incumbent Republican president Donald Trump in the presidential election. Despite losing seats ...
. Instances where local and national party affiliation differs, the national affiliation is listed second. Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands have
unicameral
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...
territorial legislatures.
Courts
Each of the five major territories has its own local court system:
*
High Court of American Samoa
The High Court of American Samoa is a Samoan court and the highest court below the United States Supreme Court in American Samoa. The Court is located in the capital of Fagatogo. It consists of one chief justice and one associate justice, appo ...
*
Supreme Court of Guam
The Supreme Court of Guam is the highest judicial body of the United States territory of Guam. The Court hears all appeals from the Superior Court of Guam and exercises original jurisdiction only in cases where a certified question is submitted ...
Supreme Court of Puerto Rico
The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico ( es, Tribunal Supremo de Puerto Rico) is the highest court of Puerto Rico, having judicial authority to interpret and decide questions of Puerto Rican law. The Court is analogous to one of the state supreme cou ...
*
Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands
The Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands is the highest court in the territory of the United States Virgin Islands. The Supreme Court assumed jurisdiction over all appeals from the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands, a trial level court, on ...
Of the five major territories, only Puerto Rico has an Article III federal district court (i.e., equivalent to the courts in the fifty states); it became an Article III court in 1966. This means that, unlike other U.S. territories, federal judges in Puerto Rico have life tenure. Federal courts in Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands are
Article IV
Article Four may refer to the 4th article of any regulatory document, such as:
* Article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights
* Article Four (political party), political party in Sicily, Italy
* Article Four of the United States Constitu ...
territorial courts. The following is a list of federal territorial courts, plus Puerto Rico's court:
*
District Court of Guam
The District Court of Guam (in case citations, D. Guam) is a United States territorial court with jurisdiction over the United States territory of Guam. It sits in the capital, Hagåtña. Appeals of the court's decisions are taken to the United S ...
(
Ninth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts:
* District o ...
)
*
District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands
The District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands (in case citations, D. N. Mar. I.) is a federal territorial court whose jurisdiction comprises the United States-affiliated Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). It was establi ...
(
Ninth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts:
* District o ...
First Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* District of Maine
* District of Massachusetts
* ...
Third Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:
* District of Delaware
* District of New Jersey
* Easte ...
)
American Samoa does not have a federal territorial court, and so federal matters in American Samoa are sent to either the District court of Hawaii or the District court of the District of Columbia. GAO (U.S. Government Accountability Office. AMERICAN SAMOA: Issues Associated with Some Federal Court Options. September 18, 2008. Retrieved July 2019. American Samoa is the only permanently inhabited region of the United States with no federal court.
Demographics
While the U.S. mainland is majority non-Hispanic
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, this is not the case for the U.S. territories. In 2010, American Samoa's population was 92.6%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
(including 88.9% Samoan); Guam's population was 49.3% Pacific Islander (including 37.3%
Chamorro Chamorro may refer to:
* Chamorro people, the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific
* Chamorro language, an Austronesian language indigenous to The Marianas
* Chamorro Time Zone, the time zone of Guam and the Northern Mar ...
) and 32.2%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
(including 26.3%
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
); the population of the Northern Mariana Islands was 34.9% Pacific Islander and 49.9% Asian; and the population of the U.S. Virgin Islands was 76.0%
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
. In 2019, Puerto Rico's population was 98.9%
Hispanic or Latino
''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, for example, by the United States ...
, 67.4% white, and 0.8% non-Hispanic white.
Throughout the 2010s, the U.S. territories (overall) lost population. The combined population of the five inhabited territories was 4,100,594 in 2010, and 3,569,284 in 2020.
The U.S. territories have high religiosity rates—American Samoa has the highest religiosity rate in the United States (99.3% religious and 98.3% Christian).
Economies
The economies of the U.S. territories vary from Puerto Rico, which has a GDP of $104.989 billion in 2019, to American Samoa, which has a GDP of $636 million in 2018. In 2018, Puerto Rico exported about $18 billion in goods, with the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
as the largest destination.
Guam's GDP shrank by 0.3% in 2018, the GDP of the Northern Mariana Islands shrank by 19.6% in 2018, Puerto Rico's GDP grew by 1.18% in 2019, and the U.S. Virgin Islands' GDP grew by 1.5% in 2018. In 2017, American Samoa's GDP shrank by 5.8%, but then grew by 2.2% in 2018.
American Samoa has the lowest per capita income in the United States—it has a per capita income comparable to that of
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
. In 2010, American Samoa's per capita income was $6,311. As of 2010, the Manu'a District in American Samoa had a per capita income of $5,441, the lowest of any county or county-equivalent in the United States. Geography set to "Manu'a District, American Samoa" or "American Samoa" In 2018, Puerto Rico had a median household income of $20,166 (lower than the median household income of any state). Also in 2018, Comerío Municipality, Puerto Rico had a median household income of $12,812 (the lowest median household income of any populated county or county-equivalent in the U.S.)
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
has much higher incomes (Guam had a median household income of $48,274 in 2010.)
Minor Outlying Islands
The
United States Minor Outlying Islands
The United States Minor Outlying Islands is a statistical designation defined by the International Organization for Standardization's ISO 3166-1 code. The entry code is ISO 3166-2:UM. The minor outlying islands and groups of islands consist ...
are small uninhabited islands,
atoll
An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...
s, and reefs.
Baker Island
Baker Island, formerly known as New Nantucket, is an uninhabited atoll just north of the Equator in the central Pacific Ocean about southwest of Honolulu. The island lies almost halfway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbor is Ho ...
,
Howland Island
Howland Island () is an uninhabited coral island located just north of the equator in the central Pacific Ocean, about southwest of Honolulu. The island lies almost halfway between Hawaii and Australia and is an unorganized, unincorporated ter ...
,
Jarvis Island
Jarvis Island (; formerly known as Bunker Island or Bunker's Shoal) is an uninhabited coral island located in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and the Cook Islands. It is an unincorporated, unorganized territory of the Uni ...
,
Johnston Atoll
Johnston Atoll is an Unincorporated territories of the United States, unincorporated territory of the United States, currently administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Johnston Atoll is a National Wildlife Refuge and ...
,
Kingman Reef
Kingman Reef is a largely submerged, uninhabited, triangle-shaped reef, geologically an atoll, east-west and north-south, in the North Pacific Ocean, roughly halfway between the Hawaiian Islands and American Samoa. It has an area of 3 hecta ...
,
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
,
Palmyra Atoll
Palmyra Atoll (), also referred to as Palmyra Island, is one of the Line Islands, Northern Line Islands (southeast of Kingman Reef and north of Kiribati). It is located almost due south of the Hawaiian Islands, roughly one-third of the way bet ...
, and
Wake Island
Wake Island ( mh, Ānen Kio, translation=island of the kio flower; also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of To ...
are in the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
while
Navassa Island
Navassa Island (; ht, Lanavaz; french: l'île de la Navasse, sometimes ) is a small uninhabited island in the Caribbean Sea. Located northeast of Jamaica, south of Cuba, and west of Jérémie on the Tiburon Peninsula of Haiti, it is subject to ...
is in the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
. The additional disputed territories of ''
Bajo Nuevo Bank
Bajo Nuevo Bank, also known as the Petrel Islands ( es, Bajo Nuevo, Islas Petrel), is a small, uninhabited reef with some small grass-covered islets, located in the western Caribbean Sea at , with a lighthouse on Low Cay at . The closest neighbo ...
'' and ''
Serranilla Bank
Serranilla Bank ( es, Isla Serranilla, Banco Serranilla and ''Placer de la Serranilla'') is a partially submerged reef, with small uninhabited islets, in the western Caribbean Sea. It is situated about northeast of Punta Gorda, Nicaragua, and ...
'' are also located in the Caribbean Sea. Palmyra Atoll (formally known as the United States Territory of Palmyra Island) is the only incorporated territory, a status it has maintained since Hawaii became a state in 1959. All are uninhabited except for Midway Atoll, whose approximately 40 inhabitants are employees of the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...
and their services provider; Palmyra Atoll, whose population varies from four to 20
Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US.
Founded in 1951, The Natu ...
and Fish and Wildlife staff and researchers; and Wake Island, which has a population of about 100 military personnel and civilian employees.
The two-letter abbreviation for the islands collectively is "UM".
The status of several islands is disputed. Navassa Island is disputed by
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
,The World Factbook CIA World Factbook—Navassa Island. Retrieved July 4, 2019. Wake Island is disputed by the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
,
Swains Island
Swains Island (; Tokelauan: ''Olohega'' ; Samoan: ''Olosega'' ) is a remote coral atoll in the Tokelau Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. The island is the subject of an ongoing territorial dispute between Tokelau and the United States, whi ...
(a part of
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
) is disputed by
Tokelau
Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, a ...
, and ''Bajo Nuevo Bank'' and ''Serranilla Bank'' (both administered by Colombia) are disputed by
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
,
Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
(Serranilla Bank only), and
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
.
Disputed
The following two territories are claimed by multiple countries (including the United States), and are not included in ISO 3166-2:UM. However, they are sometimes grouped with the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands. According to the GAO, "the United States conducts maritime law enforcement operations in and around Serranilla Bank and Bajo Nuevo ankconsistent with U.S. sovereignty claims."
Incorporated versus unincorporated territories
Pursuant to a series of Supreme Court rulings, Congress decides whether a territory is incorporated or unincorporated. The
U.S. Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the natio ...
applies to each incorporated territory (including its local government and inhabitants) as it applies to the local governments and residents of a state. Incorporated territories are considered to be integral parts of the U.S., rather than possessions.
In unincorporated territories, "
fundamental rights
Fundamental rights are a group of rights that have been recognized by a high degree of protection from encroachment. These rights are specifically identified in a constitution, or have been found under due process of law. The United Nations' Sustai ...
apply as a matter of law, but other
constitutional right
A constitutional right can be a prerogative or a duty, a power or a restraint of power, recognized and established by a sovereign state or union of states. Constitutional rights may be expressly stipulated in a national constitution, or they may ...
s are not available", raising concerns about how citizens in these territories can influence
politics in the United States
The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bi ...
. Selected constitutional provisions apply, depending on congressional acts and judicial rulings according to U.S. constitutional practice, local tradition, and law. As a result, these territories are often considered colonies of the United States.
All modern inhabited territories under the control of the federal government can be considered as part of the "United States" for purposes of law as defined in specific legislation. However, the judicial term "unincorporated" was coined to legitimize the late-19th-century territorial acquisitions without citizenship and their administration without constitutional protections temporarily until Congress made other provisions. The case law allowed Congress to impose discriminatory tax regimes with the effect of a protective tariff upon territorial regions which were not domestic states. In 2022, the United States Supreme Court in ''
United States v. Vaello Madero
''United States v. Vaello Madero'', 596 U.S. ___ (2022), was a United States Supreme Court case related to the constitutionality of the exclusion of United States citizens residing in Puerto Rico from the Supplemental Security Income program. In ...
'' held that the territorial clause of the constitution allowed wide congressional latitude in mandating "reasonable" tax and benefit schemes in Puerto Rico and the other territories, which are different from the states, but did not address the incorporated/unincorporated distinction. In a concurrence, one of the justices opined that it was time to overrule the incorporation doctrine, as wrongly decided and founded in racism.
Insular Cases
The
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
, in its 1901–1905
Insular Cases
The Insular Cases are a series of opinions by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1901 about the status of U.S. territories acquired in the Spanish–American War. Some scholars also include cases regarding territorial status decided up unti ...
opinions, ruled that the Constitution extended (i.e., of its own force) to the continental territories. The Court also established the doctrine of territorial incorporation, in which the Constitution applies fully to incorporated territories (such as the then-territories of
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
and
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
) and partially in the unincorporated territories of
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
,
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
and, at the time, the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
(which is no longer a U.S. territory).
In the 1901 Supreme Court case ''
Downes v. Bidwell
''Downes v. Bidwell'', 182 U.S. 244 (1901), was a case in which the US Supreme Court decided whether US territories were subject to the provisions and protections of the US Constitution. The issue is sometimes stated as whether the Constitution fo ...
'', the Court said that the U.S. Constitution did not fully apply in unincorporated territories because they were inhabited by "alien races".
The U.S. had no
unincorporated territories
Territories of the United States are sub-national administrative divisions overseen by the federal government of the United States. The various American territories differ from the U.S. states and tribal reservations as they are not sover ...
(also known as overseas possessions or insular areas) until 1856. Congress enacted the Guano Islands Act that year, authorizing the president to take possession of unclaimed islands to mine
guano
Guano (Spanish from qu, wanu) is the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats. As a manure, guano is a highly effective fertilizer due to the high content of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all key nutrients essential for plant growth. G ...
. The U.S. has taken control of (and claimed rights on) many islands and atolls, especially in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, under this law; most have been abandoned. It also has acquired territories since 1856 under other circumstances, such as under the
Treaty of Paris (1898)
The Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, commonly known as the Treaty of Paris of 1898 ( fil, Kasunduan sa Paris ng 1898; es, Tratado de París de 1898), was a treaty signed by Spain and the United Stat ...
which ended the Spanish–American War. The Supreme Court considered the constitutional position of these unincorporated territories in 1922 in '' Balzac v. People of Porto Rico'', and said the following about a U.S. court in Puerto Rico:
In '' Glidden Company v. Zdanok'', the Court cited ''Balzac'' and said about courts in unincorporated territories: "Upon like considerations, Article III has been viewed as inapplicable to courts created in unincorporated territories outside the mainland... and to the consular courts established by concessions from foreign countries". The judiciary determined that incorporation involves express declaration or an implication strong enough to exclude any other view, raising questions about Puerto Rico's status.
In 1966, Congress made the
United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico
The United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico (in case citations, D.P.R.; es, Tribunal del Distrito de Puerto Rico) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The court is b ...
an Article IIIdistrict court. This (the only district court in a U.S. territory) sets Puerto Rico apart judicially from the other unincorporated territories, and U.S. district judge
Gustavo Gelpi
Gustavo is the Latinate form of a Germanic male given name with respective prevalence in Portuguese language, Portuguese, Spanish language, Spanish, and Italian language, Italian. It has been a common name for Swedish monarchs since the reign of Gu ...
express the opinion that Puerto Rico is no longer unincorporated:
In ''Balzac'', the Court defined "implied":
On June 5, 2015, the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in case citations, D.C. Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. It has the smallest geographical jurisdiction of any of the U.S. federal appellate co ...
ruled 3–0 in ''
Tuaua v. United States
''Tuaua v. United States'' is a court case, originally filed in 2012, in which a group of American Samoans sued the State Department and the Obama administration. They sued to force the government to recognize American Samoans' birthright citize ...
'' to deny
birthright citizenship
''Jus soli'' ( , , ; meaning "right of soil"), commonly referred to as birthright citizenship, is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state to nationality or citizenship.
''Jus soli'' was part of the English common law, in contras ...
to American Samoans, ruling that the guarantee of such citizenship to citizens in the Fourteenth Amendment does not apply to unincorporated U.S. territories. In 2016 the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the appellate court's decision.
In 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit upheld the District Court decision in ''Segovia v. United States'', which ruled that former Illinois residents living in Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands did not qualify to cast overseas ballots according to their last registered address on the U.S. mainland. (Residents of the
Northern Marianas
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonwe ...
and
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
, however, were still allowed to cast such ballots.) In October 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the 7th Circuit's decision.
On June 15, 2021, the
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (in case citations, 10th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* District of Colorado
* District of Kansas
* Dist ...
ruled 2–1 in ''
Fitisemanu v. United States
''Fitisemanu v. United States'' (Docket 21-1394) was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States was asked to consider if the Insular Cases should be overturned and whether people living in American territories such as American Samoa ar ...
'' to deny birthright citizenship to American Samoans and not to overrule the Insular Cases. The court cited Downes and ruled that "neither constitutional text nor Supreme Court precedent" demands that American Samoans should be given automatic birthright citizenship. The case is now pending certiorari before the U.S. Supreme Court. On April 21, 2022, in the case ''United States v. Vaello Madero'',
Justice Gorsuch
Neil McGill Gorsuch ( ; born August 29, 1967) is an American lawyer and judge who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President Donald Trump on January 31, 2017, and has served since ...
urged the Supreme Court to overrule the Insular Cases when possible as it "rests on rotten foundation" and called the cases "shameful".
In analyzing the Insular Cases, Christina Duffy Ponsa of the New York Times said the following: "To be an unincorporated territory is to be caught in limbo: although unquestionably subject to American sovereignty, they are not considered part of the United States for certain purposes but not others. Whether they are part of the United States for purposes of the Citizenship Clause remains unresolved."
Supreme Court decisions about current territories
The 2016 Supreme Court case ''
Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle
''Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle'', 579 U.S. ___ (2016), is a criminal case that came before the Supreme Court of the United States, which considered whether Puerto Rico and the federal government of the United States are separate sovereigns for pur ...
'' ruled that territories do not have their own sovereignty. That year, the Supreme Court declined to rule on a lower-court ruling in ''
Tuaua v. United States
''Tuaua v. United States'' is a court case, originally filed in 2012, in which a group of American Samoans sued the State Department and the Obama administration. They sued to force the government to recognize American Samoans' birthright citize ...
'' that American Samoans are not U.S. citizens at birth.
The Supreme Court ruled in 2022 in ''
United States v. Vaello-Madero
''United States v. Vaello Madero'', 596 U.S. ___ (2022), was a United States Supreme Court case related to the constitutionality of the exclusion of United States citizens residing in Puerto Rico from the Supplemental Security Income program. In ...
'' that Congress is not required to extend all benefits to Puerto Ricans, and that the exclusion of Puerto Ricans from the Supplemental Security Income program was permitted under the constitution.
Supreme Court decisions about former territories
In ''Rassmussen v. U.S.'', the Supreme Court quoted from Article III of the 1867 treaty for the
purchase of Alaska
The Alaska Purchase (russian: Продажа Аляски, Prodazha Alyaski, Sale of Alaska) was the United States' acquisition of Alaska from the Russian Empire. Alaska was formally transferred to the United States on October 18, 1867, through a ...
:
The act of incorporation affects the people of the territory more than the territory itself by extending the
Privileges and Immunities Clause
The Privileges and Immunities Clause (U.S. Constitution, Article IV, Section 2, Clause 1, also known as the Comity Clause) prevents a state from treating citizens of other states in a discriminatory manner. Additionally, a right of interstate t ...
of the Constitution to them, such as its extension to Puerto Rico in 1947; however, Puerto Rico remains unincorporated.
Alaska Territory
''Rassmussen'' arose from a criminal conviction by a six-person jury in Alaska under federal law. The court held that Alaska had been incorporated into the U.S. in the treaty of cession with Russia, and the congressional implication was strong enough to exclude any other view:
Concurring justice Henry Brown agreed:
Florida Territory
In ''Dorr v. U.S.'', the court quoted Chief Justice
John Marshall
John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the fourth Chief Justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longes ...
from an earlier case:
In ''Downes v. Bidwell'', the court said: "The same construction was adhered to in the treaty with Spain for the purchase of Florida... the 6th article of which provided that the inhabitants should 'be incorporated into the Union of the United States, as soon as may be consistent with the principles of the Federal Constitution'."
Southwest Territory
Justice Brown first mentioned incorporation in ''Downes'':
Louisiana Territory
In ''Downes'', the court said:
Modern Puerto Rico
Scholars agreed as of 2009 in the ''Boston College Law Review'', "Regardless of how Puerto Rico looked in 1901 when the Insular Cases were decided, or in 1922, today, Puerto Rico seems to be the paradigm of an incorporated territory as modern jurisprudence understands that legal term of art". In November 2008 a district court judge ruled that a sequence of prior Congressional actions had the cumulative effect of changing Puerto Rico's status to incorporated. The United States Supreme Court, in 2021, held that the territorial clause of the constitution allowed wide congressional latitude in mandating "reasonable" tax and benefit schemes in Puerto Rico and the other territories that are different from the states, but did not address the incorporated/unincorporated distinction. In a concurrence, one of the justices opined that it was time to overrule the Insular Cases and the incorporation doctrine, as wrongly decided.
Former territories and administered areas
Formerly unorganized territories
At various times during the 19th century, large parts of the
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
were unorganized territory. After the
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
from France in 1803, the entire region was part of the
Louisiana Territory
The Territory of Louisiana or Louisiana Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, 1805, until June 4, 1812, when it was renamed the Missouri Territory. The territory was formed out of the ...
until 1812 and the
Missouri Territory
The Territory of Missouri was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 4, 1812, until August 10, 1821. In 1819, the Territory of Arkansas was created from a portion of its southern area. In 1821, a southeas ...
until 1821. In 1821 the
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a federal legislation of the United States that balanced desires of northern states to prevent expansion of slavery in the country with those of southern states to expand it. It admitted Missouri as a Slave states an ...
created the
State of Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
from the territory, and the rest of the region was left unorganized. The
Kansas–Nebraska Act
The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 () was a territorial organic act that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It was drafted by Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas, passed by the 33rd United States Congress, and signed into law by ...
of 1854 created the
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
and
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...
Territories, bringing organized government to the region once again. The creation of Kansas and Nebraska left the
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...
as the only unorganized territory in the Great Plains.
In 1858, the western part of the
Minnesota Territory
The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota and wester ...
became unorganized when it was not included in the new state of
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
; this area was organized in 1861 as part of the
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of No ...
. On May 2, 1890, the western half of the Indian Territory was organized as
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
. The remainder was incorporated into the
State of Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...
upon its admission to the union in 1907.
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
was an unorganized territory between its acquisition from
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
in 1867 and the creation of Alaska Territory in 1912. Hawaii was as well from the time of its annexation by the U.S. in 1898 until organized as Hawaii Territory in 1900.
Former organized incorporated territories
:(All areas that have become U.S. states outside of the Thirteen Colonies)
Former unincorporated territories
* Corn Islands (1914–1971): leased for 99 years under the Bryan–Chamorro Treaty, but returned to Nicaragua after the treaty was annulled in 1970
* Line Islands: disputed claim with the United Kingdom. U.S. claim to most of the islands was ceded to Kiribati upon its independence in 1979, but the U.S. retained
Kingman Reef
Kingman Reef is a largely submerged, uninhabited, triangle-shaped reef, geologically an atoll, east-west and north-south, in the North Pacific Ocean, roughly halfway between the Hawaiian Islands and American Samoa. It has an area of 3 hecta ...
,
Palmyra Atoll
Palmyra Atoll (), also referred to as Palmyra Island, is one of the Line Islands, Northern Line Islands (southeast of Kingman Reef and north of Kiribati). It is located almost due south of the Hawaiian Islands, roughly one-third of the way bet ...
and
Jarvis Island
Jarvis Island (; formerly known as Bunker Island or Bunker's Shoal) is an uninhabited coral island located in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and the Cook Islands. It is an unincorporated, unorganized territory of the Uni ...
* Panama Canal Zone (1903–1979): sovereignty returned to Panama under the Torrijos–Carter Treaties of 1978. The U.S. retained a military base and control of the canal until December 31, 1999.
* Commonwealth of the Philippines: History of the Philippines (1898–1946), Philippines (1898–1946): United States Military Government of the Philippine Islands, military government, 1898–1902; Insular Government of the Philippine Islands, insular government, 1901–1935; Commonwealth of the Philippines, commonwealth government, 1935–1942 and 1945–1946 (islands under Japanese occupation of the Philippines, Japanese occupation, 1942–1945 and Second Philippine Republic, puppet state, 1943–1945); granted independence on July 4, 1946
* Phoenix Islands: disputed claim with the United Kingdom; U.S. claim ceded to Kiribati upon its independence in 1979 (Baker and Howland Islands, sometimes considered part of this group, are retained by the U.S.)
* Quita Sueño Bank (1869–1981): claimed under the Guano Islands Act; claim abandoned in a treaty ratified September 7, 1981
* Roncador Bank (1856–1981): claimed under the Guano Islands Act; ceded to Colombia in treaty ratified September 7, 1981
* Serrana Bank: claimed under the Guano Islands Act; ceded to Colombia in treaty ratified September 7, 1981
* Swan Islands, Honduras, Swan Islands (1863–1972): claimed under the Guano Islands Act; ceded to Honduras in a 1972 treaty
Former U.S.-administered areas
* Cuba (United States Military Government in Cuba, 1899–1902, Second Occupation of Cuba, 1906–1909, and Sugar Intervention, 1917–1922)
* Dominican Republic (United States occupation of the Dominican Republic (1916–1924), 1916–1924 and Dominican Civil War, 1965–66)
*
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
(United States occupation of Haiti, 1915–1934, Operation Uphold Democracy, 1994–1995)
* Nanpō Islands and Minami-Tori-shima, Marcus Island (1945–1968): Occupied after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and returned to Japan by mutual agreement
* Nicaragua (United States occupation of Nicaragua, 1912–1933)
* United States invasion of Panama, Panama, 1989–1990
* Ryukyu Islands, including Okinawa (United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands, 1952–1972): returned to Japan in an agreement including the Daitō Islands
* Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (1947–1986): United Nations trust territories, U.N. trust territory administered by the U.S.; included the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
, the
Federated States of Micronesia
The Federated States of Micronesia (; abbreviated FSM) is an island country in Oceania. It consists of four states from west to east, Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosraethat are spread across the western Pacific. Together, the states comprise a ...
, and
Palau
Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...
, which are
sovereign state
A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...
s (that have entered into a Compact of Free Association with the U.S.), along with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
* Veracruz (United States occupation of Veracruz, 1914): after the Tampico Affair during the Mexican Revolution
* American Concession (Shanghai), American Shanghai (1848–1863): A former enclave in modern day Shanghai China.
Former U.S. military occupations
* Participation in the Occupation of the Rhineland (1918–1921)
* Participation in the Occupation of Constantinople (1918–1923)
* Participation in the 332nd Infantry Regiment (United States), Occupation of Austria-Hungary (1918–1919)
* Occupation of Greenland in World War II (1941–1945)
* Occupation of Iceland in World War II (1941–1946); military base retained until 2006.
* Allied Military Government for Occupied Territories, in Allied-controlled sections of Italy from the July 1943 invasion of Sicily until the September armistice with Italy. AMGOT continued in newly liberated areas of Italy until the end of the war, and also existed in France.
* Clipperton Island (1944–1945): occupied territory, returned to France on October 23, 1945.
* United States Army Military Government in Korea: Occupation south of the 38th parallel north, 38th parallel from 1945 to 1948.
* American zones of Allied-occupied Germany (1945–1949)
* Occupation of Japan (1945–1952) after World War II
* American occupation zones in Allied-occupied Austria and Vienna (1945–1955)
* American occupation zone in West Berlin (1945–1990)
* Free Territory of Trieste (1947–1954): The U.S. co-administered a portion of the territory (between the Kingdom of Italy and the former Kingdom of Yugoslavia) with the United Kingdom.
* United States invasion of Grenada, Grenada invasion and occupation (1983)
* Coalition Provisional Authority (Iraq, 2003–2004)
* Green Zone, Iraq (March 20, 2003December 31, 2008)
Flora and fauna
The territories of the United States have many plant and animal species found nowhere else in the United States. All U.S. territories have tropical climates and ecosystems.
Forests
The USDA says the following about the U.S. territories (plus Hawaii):
Forests in the U.S. territories are vulnerable to invasive species and new housing developments. El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico is the only tropical rain forest in the United States National Forest system.
American Samoa has 80.84% forest cover and the
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
has 80.37% forest cover—these are among the Forest cover by state and territory in the United States, highest forest cover percentages in the United States (only Maine and New Hampshire are higher).
Birds
U.S. territories have many bird species that are endemic (not found in any other location).
Introduction of the invasive brown tree snake has harmed Guam's native bird population—nine of twelve endemic species have become extinct, and the territorial bird (the Guam rail) is extinct in the wild.
Puerto Rico has several endemic bird species, such as the critically endangered Puerto Rican parrot, the Puerto Rican flycatcher, and the Puerto Rican spindalis. The Northern Mariana Islands has the Mariana swiftlet, Mariana crow, Tinian monarch and golden white-eye (all endemic). Birds found in
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
include the many-colored fruit dove, the blue-crowned lorikeet, and the Samoan starling.
The Wake Island rail (now extinct) was endemic to
Wake Island
Wake Island ( mh, Ānen Kio, translation=island of the kio flower; also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of To ...
, and the Laysan duck is endemic to
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
and the Northwest Hawaiian Islands.
Palmyra Atoll
Palmyra Atoll (), also referred to as Palmyra Island, is one of the Line Islands, Northern Line Islands (southeast of Kingman Reef and north of Kiribati). It is located almost due south of the Hawaiian Islands, roughly one-third of the way bet ...
has the second-largest red-footed booby colony in the world, and
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
has the largest breeding colony of Laysan albatross in the world.
The American Birding Association currently excludes the U.S. territories from their "ABA Area" checklist.
Other animals
American Samoa has several reptile species, such as the Pacific boa (on the island of Ta‘ū) and Pacific slender-toed gecko. American Samoa has only a few mammal species, such as the Pacific sheath-tailed bat, Pacific (Polynesian) sheath-tailed bat, as well as oceanic mammals such as the Humpback whale.
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
and the
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
also have a small number of mammals, such as the Mariana fruit bat; oceanic mammals include Fraser's dolphin and the Sperm whale. The fauna of Puerto Rico includes the common coquí (frog), while the fauna of the U.S. Virgin Islands includes species found in Virgin Islands National Park (including 302 species of fish).
American Samoa has a location called Turtle and Shark which is important in Samoan culture and mythology.
Protected areas
There are two List of national parks of the United States, National Parks in the U.S. territories: the National Park of American Samoa, and Virgin Islands National Park. The National Park Service also manages War in the Pacific National Historical Park on Guam. There are also National Natural Landmarks, National Wildlife Refuges (such as Guam National Wildlife Refuge), El Yunque National Forest in
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
, and the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument (which includes the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands).
Public image
In ''The Not-Quite States of America'', his book about the U.S. territories, essayist Doug Mack said:
Representative Stephanie Murphy of Florida said about a 2018 bill to make Puerto Rico the 51st state, "The hard truth is that Puerto Rico's lack of political power allows Washington to treat Puerto Rico like an afterthought." According to Governor of Puerto Rico Ricardo Rosselló, "Because we don't have political power, because we don't have representatives, [no] senators, no vote for president, we are treated as an afterthought." Rosselló called Puerto Rico the "oldest, most populous colony in the world".
Rosselló and others have referred to the U.S. territories as American "colonies". David Vine of ''The Washington Post'' said the following: "The people of [the U.S. territories] are all too accustomed to being forgotten except in times of crisis. But being forgotten is not the worst of their problems. They are trapped in a state of third-class citizenship, unable to access full democratic rights because politicians have long favored the military's freedom of operation over protecting the freedoms of certain U.S. citizens." In his article "How the U.S. Has Hidden Its Empire", Daniel Immerwahr of ''The Guardian'' writes, "The confusion and shoulder-shrugging indifference that mainlanders displayed [toward territories] at the time of Pearl Harbor hasn't changed much at all. [...] [Maps of the contiguous U.S.] give [mainlanders] a truncated view of their own history, one that excludes part of their country." The 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census excludes non-citizen U.S. nationals in American Samoa—in response to this, Mark Stern of Slate.com said, "The Census Bureau's total exclusion of American Samoans provides a pertinent reminder that, until the courts step in, the federal government will continue to treat these Americans with startling indifference."
Galleries
Members of the House of Representatives (non-voting)
File:Aumua Amata Radewagen congressional photo.jpg, alt=Official photo, with American flag, Amata Coleman Radewagen (R), (American Samoa)
File:Michael_San_Nicolas_official_portrait,_116th_Congress.jpg, alt=Official photo, Michael San Nicolas (D), (Guam)
File:Gregorio_Kilili_Camacho_Sablan.jpg, alt=Official photo,
Gregorio Sablan
Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (born January 19, 1955) is a Northern Mariana Islander politician and former election commissioner. Elected in 2008, Sablan became the first delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the Commonwe ...
Jenniffer González
Jenniffer Aydin González Colón (born August 5, 1976) is a Puerto Rican politician who serves as the 20th Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. González has served in leadership positions in the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (PNP) and in ...
Stacey Plaskett
Stacey Elizabeth Plaskett (; born May 13, 1966) is an American politician, attorney, and commentator. She is the delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the United States Virgin Islands' (USVI) at-large congressional district ...
Lemanu Peleti Mauga
Lemanu Palepoi Sialegā Mauga (born January 1, 1949) is an American Samoan politician and the 8th governor of American Samoa since January 3, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Mauga served as a senator in the American Samoa Senate, where he ...
(NP-D), (
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
)
File:Lou Leon Guerrero in 2018.jpeg, alt=Lou Leon Guerrero,
Lou Leon Guerrero
Lourdes Aflague "Lou" Leon Guerrero (born November 8, 1950) is an American politician who has served as the 9th governor of Guam since 2019. She was president and CEO of the Bank of Guam from 2007 to 2017, having previously served as a senator o ...
(D), (List of governors of Guam, Guam)
File:NMI-Ralph-Torres.jpg, alt=A smiling Ralph Torres,
Ralph Torres
Ralph Deleon Guerrero Torres (born August 6, 1979) is a Northern Marianan politician currently serving as the ninth governor of the Northern Mariana Islands since December 29, 2015. He is a Republican from Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mari ...
(R), (List of governors of the Northern Mariana Islands, Northern Mariana Islands)
File:Pedro-Pierluisi-cropped.jpg, alt=Pedro Pierluisi,
Pedro Pierluisi
Pedro Rafael Pierluisi Urrutia (born April 26, 1959) is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer currently serving as governor of Puerto Rico. He has previously served as Secretary of Justice, Resident Commissioner, acting
Secretary of State, i ...
(New Progressive Party (Puerto Rico), PNP-D), (List of governors of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico)
File:Governor_Albert_Bryan_Jr..jpg, alt=Albert Bryan, Albert Bryan (D), (List of governors of the United States Virgin Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands)
Satellite images
Inhabited territories
File:TutuilaFromSpace.jpg,
Tutuila
Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, Au ...
and Aunuʻu, Aunu'u (
American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
)
File:Guam ali 2011364 lrg.jpg,
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
File:Saipan from ISS 2.png,
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
(
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...
)
File:STS034-76-88.jpg,
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
File:BakerIsland_ISS010.jpg, alt=Satellite photo, Baker Island
File:Howland_island_nasa.jpg, alt=Satellite photo, Howland Island
File:JarvisISS008-E-14052.PNG, alt=Satellite photo, Jarvis Island
File:Johnston_Atoll.png, alt=Satellite photo, Johnston Atoll
File:Kingman_Reef_-_2014-02-18_-_Landsat_8_-_15m.png, alt=Satellite photo, Kingman Reef
File:Midway_Atoll_aerial_photo_2008.JPG, alt=Satellite photo, Midway Atoll
File:Navassa_ISS014.jpg, alt=Satellite photo, Navassa Island
File:Palmyra_Atoll_2010-03-18,_EO-1_ALI_bands_5-4-3-1,_15m_resolution.png, alt=Satellite photo, Palmyra Atoll
File:Wake_Island.png, alt=Satellite photo, Wake Island
Maps
File:Aq-map.png, American Samoa
File:Guam - Location Map (2013) - GUM - UNOCHA.svg, Guam
File:Northern Mariana Islands map.gif, Northern Mariana Islands
File:Rico (1).png, Puerto Rico
File:Virgin Islands-CIA WFB Map.png, U.S. Virgin Islands
File:NOAA Map of the US EEZ.svg, Exclusive economic zone of the United States, U.S. exclusive economic zone
See also
More detail on all current territories
* Article indexes: Index of American Samoa-related articles, AS, Index of Guam-related articles, GU, Index of Northern Mariana Islands-related articles, MP, Index of Puerto Rico-related articles, PR, Index of United States Virgin Islands-related articles, VI
* Congressional districts: American Samoa's at-large congressional district, AS, Guam's at-large congressional district, GU, Northern Mariana Islands's at-large congressional district, MP, Puerto Rico's at-large congressional district, PR, United States Virgin Islands's at-large congressional district, VI
* Geography: Geography of American Samoa, AS, Geography of Guam, GU, Geography of the Northern Mariana Islands, MP, Geography of Puerto Rico, PR, Geography of the United States Virgin Islands, VI
* Geology: Geology of American Samoa, AS, Geology of Guam, GU, Geology of the Northern Mariana Islands, MP, Geology of Puerto Rico, PR, Geology of the United States Virgin Islands, VI
* List of museums in the unincorporated territories of the United States
* List of United States National Historic Landmarks in United States commonwealths and territories, associated states, and foreign states, List of U.S. National Historic Landmarks in the U.S. territories
* Outlines: Outline of American Samoa, AS, Outline of Guam, GU, Outline of the Northern Mariana Islands, MP, Outline of Puerto Rico, PR, Outline of the United States Virgin Islands, VI
* Per capita income: List of American Samoa locations by per capita income, AS, List of Guam locations by per capita income, GU, List of Northern Mariana Islands locations by per capita income, MP, List of Puerto Rico locations by per capita income, PR, List of U.S. Virgin Islands locations by per capita income, VI
* Territories of the United States on stamps
* United States National Register of Historic Places listings, U.S. National Historic Places: National Register of Historic Places listings in American Samoa, AS, National Register of Historic Places listings in Guam, GU, National Register of Historic Places listings in the Northern Mariana Islands, MP, National Register of Historic Places listings in Puerto Rico, PR, National Register of Historic Places listings in the United States Virgin Islands, VI, National Register of Historic Places listings in the United States Minor Outlying Islands, UM
Related topics
* Colony of Liberia, established by Americans but never under administration of the United States
* Enabling act#United States, Enabling act (United States)
*Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, a military base of the United States Navy in Cuba under a perpetual lease
* Historic regions of the United States
* Insular area
* List of extreme points of the United States
* List of states and territories of the United States
* Organic act
* Historic regions of the United States#Former organized territories, Organized incorporated territories of the United States
* Territorial evolution of the United States
* U.S. territorial sovereignty
LGBT issues in the U.S. territories (includes background information about the U.S. territories)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Territories Of The United States
Territories of the United States,
Political divisions of the United States
United States federal territory and statehood legislation,
Insular areas of the United States,
Colonization history of the United States