The people of Italy are called Italians. Japan is home to the Japanese. Australians come from Australia. So why do we use the term “Americans” instead of “United Statesians” to refer to those who live in the United States? Surely this is something out of the ordinary, isn’t it?

The name America comes from the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci. Did the people of the country we now call the USA always call it the United States of America? Were any other names considered?