A uniquely American music form, and the root of most if not all modern music—especially rock 'n' roll. It is pain, joy, and poetry wrapped inside repeating progression chords and a soundtrack to the history of America.

22.) Shopping malls

Nobody else builds temples to retail like Americans do. (Though the competition with parts of Asia is fierce.) Malls arguably peaked in the 1980s, but now the retrograde architecture is part of their charm.

23.) Steven Spielberg

America’s foremost maestro of blockbuster movies has never gone out of style—but he’s having a moment as rereleases of some of his classic films, Jaws and Jurassic Park, duke it out for the top spot of the box office at drive-ins. (See No. 20.)

24.) Summer vacation

American children take it for granted, but other countries—such as Germany—make their kids go to school in the summer.

25.) Silicon Valley

The area in California, not the satirical television show. (We'll be sure to save that for another year.) Yes, the Valley has come under fire lately for unethical data-collection practices and a general cavalier attitude toward business, but it remains responsible for some of the biggest technology breakthroughs in history. There's a reason other countries say their tech hubs are the "Silicon Valley of [insert location here]."

26.) The Simpsons

The Americans didn't invent satire, but Matt Groening and company took it to another animated level. Turn on the TV in more than 70 countries and you'll find Homer, Bart, Marge, and Lisa. The Simpsons is American soft power at its best, poking fun at enduring institutions and modern life.

27.) HBCUs

Historically black colleges and universities have been pillars of the Black community and have given Black Americans the opportunity for higher education when no one else would. From Morehouse and Spelman to Cheyney and Hampton, HBCUs have been, and remain, massive contributors to American culture at large.

28.) New York City

Okay we're a bit biased—Fortune is headquartered here. Because even when the city that (usually) never sleeps took a bit of a nap during the pandemic, it remained unquestionably the best, most alive city in the world. In lieu of Broadway, people gathered outside of hospitals to conduct standing ovations for health workers. Instead of taxis, bicycles cruised down the middle of Times Square. Even as the city became the early epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S., its leaders still read the room—and New Yorkers’ don’t-tell-me-what-to-do-attitude—and stopped short of ordering “shelter in place” (but still convinced enough people to stay home by terming it “NYC on pause”) to shrink COVID-19 case numbers to among the lowest in the country. New York proved that, even besieged, it remains undiminished as the city where anything is possible.

29.) Lobster rolls

Who would ever think that a food once intended for prisoners would be so damn delicious?

30.) Nike sneakers

Nikes are the new jeans.

31.) Venus & Serena Williams

The Williams sisters changed tennis—and sports!—forever, putting a distinctly American stamp on a game that's long been associated with upper-crust Europeans.

32.) Marvel Cinematic Universe

It's as if producers are saying, "We will continue to make these films whether you want to watch them or not." (But who are we kidding—we will.)

33.) Public libraries

Even in a time of pandemic, local libraries around the country are meeting the reading and community-gathering needs of patrons, whether through ebook lending, online book groups, or even the distribution of portable Internet hotspots.

34.) Rihanna

An immigrant from Barbados, Rihanna relocated to the U.S. in 2005 and hasn’t stopped putting out bangers since. As of 2019, she is the world's wealthiest female musician, according to estimates. Before her 30th birthday, she launched cosmetics brand Fenty (her surname), and the world found love with the now gold standard for superior quality across a broad range of skin tones. Objectively too good for Drake, she’s put in the work, work, work, work, work for humanitarian causes important to her, including Black Lives Matter. So rain or shine, we stand under RiRi’s umbrella.

35.) Corn on the cob

This quintessential summertime treat was here before most Americans' ancestors—and today, the U.S. leads the world in corn production. It's also a key ingredient in bourbon. Any questions?

36.) NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration will turn 62 this month, and it’s still learning new tricks decades after it first put people on the moon. Witness the launch on May 30 of a private rocket at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida carrying two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station—a historic collaboration with SpaceX.

37.) Cocktails

Were they created in the U.S. by the pioneering bartender Jerry Thomas in the mid-1800s, or much earlier in Europe? Whatever the case, Americans put the modern mixed drink on the map.

38.) Jazz music