The terms asphalt and bitumen are often used interchangeably to mean both natural and manufactured forms of the substance. In American English, asphalt (or asphalt cement) is the carefully refined residue from the distillation process of selected crude oils. Outside the United States, the product is often called bitumen. Geologists often prefer the term bitumen. Common usage often refers to various forms of asphalt/bitumen as "tar", such as at the La Brea Tar Pits. Another archaic term for asphalt/bitumen is "pitch".
Is there an answer to this question (If it cannot be answered, say "unanswerable"): What is the substance usually called outside of the La Brea Tar Pits?
unanswerable