New York is a state in the northeastern United States, bordering Canada, New England, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes.
The fourth-most populous state, with over 20 million residents, New York covers 54,556 square miles (141,300 km²) and encompasses dramatic geographical variety. The southeastern Downstate region includes New York City and Long Island, home to roughly two-thirds of the state’s population. Upstate New York extends from the Great Lakes to Lake Champlain, taking in the Adirondack and Catskill mountains, the Mohawk and Hudson river valleys, the Finger Lakes and the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and the capital, Albany. The Southern Tier, along the Pennsylvania border, marks the northern edge of Appalachia. Originally inhabited by Algonquian and Iroquois peoples, the region became the Dutch colony of New Netherland in 1621 before England seized it in 1664. The state’s mountains, waterways and forests have long served as corridors for exploration, trade and conflict, from the French and Indian War to the American Revolution.
