| Alaska is the largest state of the United States of America with a total land area of 663,268 square miles. Further, it is 1,479 miles long and 808 miles wide. Situated at the extreme northwest corner of the North American continent, it is flanked by Arctic Ocean to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south and west. However, it is not bordered by any state of the USA and across the Bering Strait towards the west, it touches the Russian coastline. The population density in Alaska is the least across all states of the country with a population of just 683,478 residents. More than half the population of the state resides in Anchorage metropolitan areas. Moreover, Alaska was a part of the Russian Empire until 1867, when it was purchased by the US government and subsequently made the 49th state of the union in 1959. The word 'Alaska' means 'the mainland' in Russian, which was used by the Russian Empire to refer to the peninsula. The highest point of the state is Mount Mckinley, which is as high as 20,320 feet. Administratively, it is divided into boroughs and not in counties or parishes, as is the case with other states of the US. Among the cities of Alaska, Anchorage is the largest while Juneau is the capital city of the state.
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