African Americans, also known as Black Americans or Afro-Americans, are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. African Americans constitute the third largest racial or ethnic group in the U.S. after White Americans and Hispanic and Latino Americans. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of Africans enslaved in the United States.
Slaves processing tobacco in 17th-century Virginia, illustration from 1670
The first slave auction at New Amsterdam in 1655; illustration from 1895 by Howard Pyle
Reproduction of a handbill advertising a slave auction in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1769
Crispus Attucks, the first "martyr" of the American Revolution. He was of Native American and African American descent.
Americans are the citizens and nationals of the United States. The United States is home to people of many racial and ethnic origins; consequently, American law does not equate nationality with race or ethnicity, but with citizenship and an oath of permanent allegiance.
European ancestry in the United States by county (self-reported) in 2020
The First Baptist Church in America in Providence, Rhode Island
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. is the most significant Catholic church in the United States.
Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago's Ukrainian Village
