New York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. New York is the third most populous state of the United States of America, and is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania. It also shares an international border with the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario. The state's five largest cities are New York City (also the largest city in the United States), Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, and Syracuse. The state has 62 counties.
New York City is known for its history as a gateway for immigration to the United States and its status as a transportation and manufacturing center.
New York was inhabited by Lenape, Algonquian and Iroquois indigenous people at the time Dutch and French settlers arrived in the 16th century. New York was forted by the Dutch at Albany in 1614 and colonized in 1624, at both Albany and Manhattan, before falling under English rule in 1664. About one third of all the military engagements of the American Revolutionary War took place in New York, after which it became the 11th state to ratify the United States Constitution in 1788.