New York (state)

This article is about the U.S. state, but you may be searching for New York City. For other meanings, see New York (disambiguation).

The State of New York, often called just New York, or New York State to distinguish it from the city of New York, is a state of the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies, which were the first thirteen states to make up the US. New York is in the northeastern United States, bordered by Lake Ontario and Canada on the north, Lake Erie and Canada on the west, Pennsylvania on the west and south, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut on the east, and New Jersey on the south.

New York
State
State of New York
Flag Seal
Nickname:  The Empire State
Motto(s):  Excelsior (in Latin)[1] Ever upward
Anthem: "I Love New York"
Map of the United States with New York highlighted
Country	United States
Before statehood	Province of New York
Admitted to the Union	July 26, 1788 (11th)
Capital	Albany
Largest city	New York
Largest metro and urban areas	Greater New York
Government
• Governor	Kathy Hochul (D)
• Lieutenant Governor	Antonio Delgado (D)
Legislature	State Legislature
• Upper house	State Senate
• Lower house	State Assembly
Judiciary	New York Court of Appeals
U.S. senators	Chuck Schumer (D) Kirsten Gillibrand (D)
U.S. House delegation	19 Democrats 8 Republicans (list)
Area
• Total	54,556 sq mi (141,300 km2)
• Rank	27th
Dimensions
• Length	330 mi (530 km)
• Width	285 mi (455 km)
Elevation	1,000 ft (300 m)
Highest elevation (Mount Marcy[2][3][4])	5,344 ft (1,629 m)
Lowest elevation (Atlantic Ocean[3][4])	0 ft (0 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	20,215,751[5]
• Rank	4th
• Density	416.42/sq mi (159/km2)
• Rank	7th
• Median household income	$64,894[6]
• Income rank	15th
Demonym	New Yorker
Language
• Official language	None
• Spoken language	English 69.6% Spanish 15.2% Chinese 3.1% French 1.6% Russian 1.2% Italian 0.9% Yiddish 0.7% Hindi/Urdu 0.6% Arabic 0.5% Korean 0.5%[7]
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (EDT)
USPS abbreviation	NY
ISO 3166 code	US-NY
Traditional abbreviation	N.Y.
Latitude	40° 30′ N to 45° 1′ N
Longitude	71° 51′ W to 79° 46′ W
Website	www.ny.gov

New York state symbols
Flag of New York
Living insignia
Bird	Eastern bluebird
Fish	Brook trout (fresh water), Striped bass (salt water)
Flower	Rose
Insect	Nine-spotted ladybug
Mammal	North American beaver
Reptile	Common snapping turtle
Tree	Sugar maple
Inanimate insignia
Beverage	Milk
Food	Fruit: Apple
Fossil	Eurypterus remipes
Gemstone	Garnet
Shell	Bay scallop
Slogan	I Love New York
Other	Bush: Lilac bush
State route marker
State quarter
Released in 2001
Lists of United States state symbols

New York was originally New Netherland, started by the Dutch Empire in the early 17th century. Late in the century, it surrendered to an English fleet during the Anglo-Dutch Wars and became part of the British Empire. About half the Dutch colony was given to neighboring English colonies. The Battle of Long Island, Battle of Saratoga, and other important battles of the American Revolution were fought in New York and it joined the new United States. The slave trade brought many black people into the state, where they were forced to work for white colonists.

The United States Census Bureau says that, as of 2020, New York had the 4th largest state population in the United States, after California,Texas, and Florida. New York's estimated population is 20,000,000.^[8]

Midtown Manhattan skyline at twilight hour

Cities

The largest city in New York is also called New York, located in the southeastern part of the state and built on the Hudson River; it is by far the most populous city in the United States. Part of New York City is on Long Island, a large island in the Atlantic Ocean, and another part of it is on Staten Island, which is to the southwest of Manhattan, the central business district. Most people living in New York state live in the New York metropolitan area, one of the world's largest metropolitan areas, which also includes part of northern New Jersey.

The larger part of New York, north and northwest of the metropolitan area, is called Upstate New York. Cities in this part of New York include Buffalo, the state's second largest city, Rochester, Syracuse, and the state capital of Albany. These places became cities because of the Erie Canal. Between 1788 and 1797, the Legislature moved the state capital around between Albany, Kingston, Poughkeepsie, and New York City. Albany became the permanent capital in 1797.^[9]

Related pages

• List of counties in New York
• List of places in New York

References

1. "New York State Motto". New York State Library. January 29, 2001. Archived from the original on May 24, 2009. Retrieved November 16, 2007.
2. "Marcy". NGS data sheet. U.S. National Geodetic Survey.
3. "Elevations and Distances in the United States". United States Geological Survey. 2001. Archived from the original on February 1, 2009. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
4. Elevation adjusted to North American Vertical Datum of 1988.
5. "2020 Census Apportionment Results". census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
6. "Median Annual Household Income—2017". Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
7. "Language spoken at home by ability to speak English for the population 5 years and over—2014 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates". Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
8. .United States Census
9. Stevens, John Austin (1886). The Magazine of American History with Notes and Queries. Historical Publication Co. p. 24.