Connecticut Coat of Arms Coffee Mug

Connecticut is the southernmost state in the northeastern region of the United States known asNew England. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capital city is Hartford. The state is named after the Connecticut River, a major U.S. river that approximately bisects the state. The word is a French corruption of the Algonquian word quinetucket, which means "long tidal river". Connecticut is the 3rd least extensive, 29th most populous and 4th most densely populated of the 50 United States. Called the Constitution State, Nutmeg State, and "The Land of Steady Habits", it was influential in the development of the federal government of the United States. Much of southern and western Connecticut (along with the majority of the state's population) is part of the New York metropolitan area: three of Connecticut's eight counties are statistically included in the New York City combined statistical area, which is widely referred to as the Tri-State area. Connecticut's center of population is in Cheshire, New Haven County, which is also located within the Tri-State area.