How does the Amazon States Language define the structure and logic of a Step Functions state machine?

The Amazon States Language is a JSON based structured language used to define a Step Functions state machine, specifying individual states such as Task states for performing work, Choice states for conditional branching based on input data, Parallel states for running multiple branches simultaneously, and Wait states for pausing execution, all connected together to define exactly how the workflow should flow from one step to the next based on the results of each state.

{
  "StartAt": "CheckOrderValue",
  "States": {
    "CheckOrderValue": {
      "Type": "Choice",
      "Choices": [{"Variable": "$.orderTotal", "NumericGreaterThan": 1000, "Next": "ManualReview"}],
      "Default": "AutoApprove"
    }
  }
}