Sentence:  The theory of international law , which in the nineteenth century became common to virtually all writers in Europe and <WSD>America</WSD> , broke this unity and this universality . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776