New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of metropolitan New York, which is among the areas urban areas by population. Considered an alpha world city, New York has a powerful influence on world trade, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment. The city hosts the United Nations and is also an important center for international business. The city is often referred to as New York City, to differentiate it from the state of New York, which is a part.

Located in a large natural harbor on the Atlantic coast of the Northeastern United States, the city comprises five boroughs: Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island. With a population estimated in 2009 at over 8.3 million people [2] and with a land area of 54,556 square miles, [3] [4] New York is the most densely populated major city in the United States. [5] population of metropolitan New York is also the largest in the country's estimated 18.8 million people in 17,400 square miles. [6] In addition, the Combined Statistical Area with a Greater New York has 22.155 million inhabitants in 2008, according Census estimates and is also the largest in the United States.

New York was founded as a trading post by the Dutch in 1624. The place was called New Amsterdam until 1664, when the colony came under English control. [7] New York was the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790 [8] and is the largest city in the country since 1790 [9].

Many districts and landmarks of the city became known worldwide. The Statue of Liberty has received millions of immigrants who came to the country in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Wall Street in Manhattan, is a dominant global financial center since World War II and is home of the Stock Exchange of New York. The city is also home to some of the highest skyscraper in the world, including the Empire State Building and the extinct twin towers of the World Trade Center.

The city is the birthplace of many cultural movements, including the Harlem Renaissance in literature and visual art, abstract expressionism (also known as the New York School) in painting, hip hop, [10] punk, [11 ] salsa, disco and Tin Pan Alley in music, and is home to the Broadway Theatre.