UNITED STATES NAME ADOPTED

United States name adopted

On this date, the Continental Congress resolved that the “United Colonies” would henceforth be known as the “United States of America.” It was a decision made in the middle of a war whose outcome was far from certain, but it gave the rebellion a clearer political identity and a name that soldiers, sailors, and militiamen could carry into battle. The term soon appeared on military commissions, in official correspondence, and on flags that flew over encampments and warships. For officers like George Washington and the men under his command, fighting for the United States rather than a loose set of colonies reinforced the idea of a shared cause, not just thirteen separate struggles. Over time, that name would frame everything from enlistment oaths to the markings on aircraft and armored vehicles. The choice made in the heat of 1776 still underpins how Americans talk about their armed forces and the country they defend.