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AIBU?

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Original poster

to ask you how many states you think there are in the USA?

141 replies

MuttonWasAGoose · 05/12/2015 12:40

I was just in a grocery store and this (loud) employee was talking to another employee about how stupid he thought the USA was. Whatever. Not my business. But then he said "Well, there are 52 different states and then the Federal government..." Since I was standing one foot away from him I said, "Actually, there are 50 states."

(Yes, I know that I was butting into a conversation and for that I WBVU.)

He looked at me with disdain (probably because I butted in, so understandable). Then he said very snarkily, "No, there are FIFTY TWO states!" He said it in a tone that implied that I was very stupid. Perhaps he assumed that someone with an American accent should know better.

I said, "Well, Alaskans talk about 'the lower 48' and then you add Hawaii that's fifty." and he just snapped, "You are mistaken!"

I figured arguing with strangers in a supermarket would only compound my idiocy for having butted in. What was I going to do, whip out my phone and Google it or something?

But I got home and Googled "how many states are there" because I wondered how commonly people thought this... and it turns out there are a LOT. Hundreds of people insisting they were taught that there were 52, and dozens more saying they thought it was 51. Mostly from people outside the US, but some from within. This may be down to confusion over Puerto Rico and Washington DC.

I have lived here ten years and I honestly have no idea how many MPs there are. I also don't know how many states are in Mexico or provinces in Canada. I wouldn't expect foreigners to know, but I'm curious - if you have ever been told how many states there are, what number was it?

OP posts:
Preciousxbane · 06/12/2015 10:06

The The were unlikely geography teachers to a generation. I first heard them at a friends flat who had their new vinyl album, I liked them but thought the name of the band was The The Infected, how everyone laughed at me.

Permanentlyexhausted · 06/12/2015 10:19

There are 50. I can name them all. I learnet them for my Politics A level.

Everyone should play this quiz until they have nailed it: www.sporcle.com/games/g/states

Permanentlyexhausted · 06/12/2015 10:20

Learnt/learned/learnet! Who cares?!

Holstein · 06/12/2015 10:28

Ha! Now I know where all the NMA and The The fand are on MN!
I know both songs well.
And I can name all 50 states (but not in alphabetical order, because that would be weird. In geographical order, mostly!)

Orda1 · 06/12/2015 10:35

50, what's your point though, how many Americans know how many ceremonial counties we have?

Orda1 · 06/12/2015 10:37

I can name them too.

munkisocks · 06/12/2015 10:41

There are 50 then washington dc which isn't a state.

Original poster
MuttonWasAGoose · 06/12/2015 11:13

The point is that there are a fair number of people who were specifically taught 52. Ask me (or probably any other foreigner) how many ceremonial counties there are in England and they'll say they don't know. They probably won't give an incorrect number and insist that it's correct.

OP posts:
BellsaRinging · 06/12/2015 11:14

I thought 52 as well!

exLtEveDallas · 06/12/2015 11:15

I love this! I was awful, only got 21 of the US states, but it got me thinking, what about English counties?

m.sporcle.com/games/g/englandgeocounties

I did better in this, 37 out of 48, but missed a couple of 'obvious' ones.

Dowser · 06/12/2015 11:18

We did the sporcle quiz last night. I would have got them all right except I was waiting for my grandson to answer and we ran out of time :-(

NinjaLeprechaun · 07/12/2015 00:27

I would have had 47 on that sporcle states quiz if I'd remembered how to spell Connecticut. Blush Considering that I went to school in the US I probably should have known all of them.

"but not in alphabetical order, because that would be weird." '
A lot of us know them in alphabetical order because that's how we learned them, because of that stupid song. That's not weird, it makes sense.

ChinaSorrows · 07/12/2015 00:36

50 physical states
Gun control is in "a state"
Health care is "a state"

I make that the 52 we were all confused over Grin

SummerNights1986 · 07/12/2015 01:16

Off the top of my head, I would have said 51.

The reason I think this - I saw an episode of the Simpsons once, years ago. A quote from Grandpa Simpson was 'Hell will freeze over before I acknowledge the 51st state'.

I have no idea why, but that quote has stuck in my mind and is my only point of reference for 'how many states are there' Blush

CallMeExhausted · 07/12/2015 01:22

Fifty states, DC, and the protectorates American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, and several uninhabited outlying islands. Protectorates do not have electoral rights, but trade in US dollars and have limited rights as US citizens.

Senpai · 07/12/2015 02:14

I bet the confusion comes from District of Columbia. It is listed as a separate state on mailing address.

Joskar · 07/12/2015 03:35

A county and a state are not the same thing though. A foreigner (and probably 99% of natives!) maybe wouldn't know how many counties there are in the UK but they would (hopefully) know that there are four countries.

Timri · 07/12/2015 03:40

Joskar
Lots of people argue about whether the UK has four countries or not. Some people say that the 4 countries are essentially 'states' of the one country of the U.K. (Or is it the 1 country of GB? With NI being a province?) because we only have a British passport, not English, Scottish or Welsh.
Something to do with the differences of countries and sovereign states?

carrie74 · 07/12/2015 08:40

I knew 50 as I lived in the US until I was 10, and like others, had to learn each state and its capital at school (except I only got up to the Ms before leaving for the UK, and have forgotten most of the capitals for that first half).

No idea how many counties there are in the UK, nor would I be able to name them all (despite having now lived here for 30 years!).

Joskar · 07/12/2015 08:50

That's my point Timri. The four countries in the UK are more akin to states than the counties are.

ClancyMoped · 07/12/2015 09:17

What an interesting thread. I'm afraid I thought it was 52 and I used to live in the US. Blush
I could, probably, name them all but I'd need a lot of time to think.

One of our road trip games was naming state capitals, state flowers or state birds.

I haven't a clue how many uk counties there are.

SoupDragon · 07/12/2015 09:31

I thought there were 52 but only because I thought that was the number i'd been told, no confusion about Puerto Rico or Washington DC.

BikeRunSki · 07/12/2015 09:44

50! I went to school in Houston for about 3 months when I was 9 and had to lean them all, their capitals and state flower.

redstrawberry10 · 07/12/2015 10:58

That's my point Timri. The four countries in the UK are more akin to states than the counties are.

that's a hard comparison to make. Both Canada and US have constitutions, where the powers of the state/province and federal governments are clearly spelled out. That's just not true here with counties.

Rhythmisadancer · 07/12/2015 12:07

yes 50, because the New Model Army song says this is the 51st state of America. And about 647 MPs I think. It goes up and down a bit when there's a bye-election pending.