Brooklyn (/ˈbrʊklɪn/) is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with approximately 2.5 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, after New York County (Manhattan). It is also the westernmost county on Long Island. Today, if it were an independent city, Brooklyn would rank as the fourth most populous city in the U.S., behind only the other boroughs of New York City combined, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
Brooklyn was an independent city until it was annexed by New York City in 1898. It continues to maintain a distinct culture. Many Brooklyn neighborhoods are ethnic enclaves where particular ethnic groups and cultures predominate. Brooklyn's official motto is Eendraght Maeckt Maght. Written in the (early modern spelling of the) Dutch language, it is inspired by the motto of the United Dutch Provinces and translated "Unity makes strength". The motto is displayed on the borough seal and flag, which also feature a young robed woman bearing fasces, a traditional emblem of Republicanism. Brooklyn's official colors are blue and gold.
| New York's five boroughs overview | ||||
| Jurisdiction | Population | Land area | ||
| Borough of | County of | 1 July 2011 Estimates |
square miles |
square km |
| Manhattan | New York | 1,601,948 | 23 | 59 |
| The Bronx | Bronx | 1,392,002 | 42 | 109 |
| Brooklyn | Kings | 2,532,645 | 71 | 183 |
| Queens | Queens | 2,247,848 | 109 | 283 |
| Staten Island | Richmond | 470,467 | 58 | 151 |
| City of New York | 8,244,910 | 303 | 786 | |
| State of New York | 19,465,197 | 47,214 | 122,284 | |
| Source: United States Census Bureau | ||||
Read more about Brooklyn: History, Government and Politics, Economy, Neighborhoods, Culture, Parks and Other Attractions, Transportation, Education, Weather, Brooklyn Public Library, Partnerships With Districts of Foreign Cities
Famous quotes containing the word brooklyn:
“I know that I will always be expected to have extra insight into black texts—especially texts by black women. A working-class Jewish woman from Brooklyn could become an expert on Shakespeare or Baudelaire, my students seemed to believe, if she mastered the language, the texts, and the critical literature. But they would not grant that a middle-class white man could ever be a trusted authority on Toni Morrison.”
—Claire Oberon Garcia, African American scholar and educator. Chronicle of Higher Education, p. B2 (July 27, 1994)
“If the British prose style is Churchillian, America is the tobacco auctioneer, the barker; Runyon, Lardner, W.W., the traveling salesman who can sell the world the Brooklyn Bridge every day, can put anything over on you and convince you that tomatoes grow at the South Pole.”
—Ishmael Reed (b. 1938)