Why is most of the world's license plates a more narrow rectangle, while North America (Canada and the US) have a more square-like design?
North American plates were standardized in 1956 at a size of 6 × 12 inches. Other countries chose number plate dimensions at different times, and may have been influenced by colonisation or the primary source of imported automobiles.
Not historical, but a general related question. Do import/export cars have a way to make the license plates fit? If I took my US car to Japan, would I have an issue getting a plate on? Or would it just to aesthetically fit in the groove?
This leads to question why are NA plate numbers less visible on distances than EU ones?