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ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service (USPS) since 1963. The term ''ZIP'', an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan,〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/zipcodecampaign/ )〕 was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly (zipping along), when senders use the code in the postal address. The basic format consists of five decimal numerical digits. An extended ZIP+4 code, introduced in 1983, includes the five digits of the ZIP code, a hyphen, and four additional digits that determine a more specific location within a given ZIP code. The USPS provides a free (online lookup tool ) for ZIP codes. The term ''ZIP code'' was originally registered as a servicemark (a type of trademark) by the U.S. Postal Service, but its registration has since expired.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Latest Status Info )〕 USPS style for ''ZIP'' is all caps, although style sheets for some publications use sentence case or lowercase. ==History== The early history and context of postal codes began with postal district/zone numbers. The United States Post Office Department (USPOD) implemented postal zones for numerous large cities in 1943. For example: :Mr. John Smith :3256 Epiphenomenal Avenue :Minneapolis ''16'', Minnesota The "16" was the number of the postal zone within the specific city. By the early 1960s a more organized system was needed, and on July 1, 1963, non-mandatory five-digit ZIP codes were introduced nationwide. Simultaneously, along with the introduction of the ZIP code, two-letter state abbreviations were introduced, which are generally written with both letters capitalized. The reason for the two-letter abbreviations is that it was thought that a long city name combined with a multi-letter state abbreviation (e.g.: ''Mass.'' for Massachusetts; ''Ca.'', ''Cal.'', or ''Calif.'' for California; ''Pa.'', ''Penn.'', or ''Penna.'' for Pennsylvania) would be too long for address labels used on magazines when the ZIP code was added. Robert Moon, an employee of the post office, is considered the father of the ZIP code; he submitted his proposal in 1944 while working as a postal inspector.〔Tim Bullamore. (Robert Moon Obituary )〕 The post office gives credit to Moon only for the first three digits of the ZIP code, which describe the sectional center facility (SCF) or "sec center." An SCF is a central mail processing facility with those three digits. The SCF sorts mail to all post offices with those first three digits in their ZIP codes. The mail is sorted according to the final two digits of the ZIP code and sent to the corresponding post offices in the early morning. Sectional centers do not deliver mail and are not open to the public (though the building may include a post office open to the public), and most of the workers are employed to work night shift. Mail picked up at post offices is sent to their own SCF in the afternoon, where the mail is sorted overnight. In the cases of large cities, the last two digits coincided with the older postal zone number, thus: :Mr. John Smith :3256 Epiphenomenal Avenue :Minneapolis, MN 554''16'' In 1967, these were made mandatory for second- and third-class bulk mailers, and the system was soon adopted generally. The United States Post Office used a cartoon character, which it called Mr. ZIP, to promote use of the ZIP code. He was often depicted with a legend such as "USE ZIP CODE" in the selvage of panes of stamps or on labels contained in, or the covers of, booklet panes of stamps. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「ZIP code」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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