New Jersey is a state located in both the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic center of the heavily urbanized Northeast megalopolis, it is bordered to the northwest, north, and northeast by New York State; on its east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Sea; on its west by the Delaware River and Pennsylvania; and on its southwest by Delaware Bay and Delaware. At 7,354 square miles (19,050 km2), New Jacket is the fifth-smallest state in acreage. According to a 2024 U. S. Demographics Bureau quote, it is the 11th-most populated state, with over 9. 5 million citizens, its greatest approximated matter ever. The state capital is Trenton, and the state's most heavily populated city is Newark. New Jacket is the only U. S. state in which every region is considered metropolitan by the U. S. Census Bureau. It is one of the most densely inhabited U. S. state. New Jacket was first lived in by Paleo-Indians as early as 13,000 BC. The Lenape were the leading Aboriginal team when Europeans arrived in the very early 17th century, and they were partitioned into dialectal teams such as the Munsee, in the north, and the Unami and the Unalachtigo, somewhere else. Dutch and Swedish homesteaders started the initial European settlements in the state, with the British later seizing control of the region and developing the Province of New Jersey, called after the Network Island of Jacket. The colony's productive lands and loved one religious resistance attracted a big and diverse population. New Jersey was amongst the Thirteen Colonies that sustained the American Change, holding several crucial battles and armed forces commands in the American Revolutionary War gaining the title, "Crossroads of the American Change." New Jersey remained in the Union during the American Civil War and provided soldiers, resources, and military leaders in support of the Union Military. After the war, the state became a major manufacturing facility and a leading location for immigrants, aiding drive the Industrial Revolution in the U. S. New Jacket was the site of numerous commercial, technical, and commercial technologies. Lots of popular Americans related to New Jacket have actually proven influential across the country and internationally, including in academia, campaigning for, service, entertainment, federal government, army, charitable leadership, and various other areas. New Jacket's main location in the Northeast megalopolis aided fuel its fast growth and suburbanization in the second half of the 20th century. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the state's economic climate has actually ended up being highly branched out, with significant sectors, including New Jacket's role as the globe's largest pharmaceutical market center—-- as well as biotechnology, information technology, money, electronic media, filmmaking, and tourism, and it has actually become an Atlantic coast epicenter for logistics and circulation. New Jersey is a major location for immigrants and is home to among the globe's most multicultural populations. Resembling historic patterns, the state has increasingly re-urbanized, with growth in cities surpassing suburbs because 2008. New Jersey is one of one of the most wealthy, educated, diverse, healthy and balanced, and very created states in the U. S., ranking high amongst states in a number of quality of life metrics. New Jacket had a typical house revenue of $99,781 as of 2023, the second-highest of any U. S. state behind Massachusetts.Virtually one-tenth of all houses in the state, or over 323,000, are millionaires, the highest depiction of millionaires amongst all states. New Jacket's public institution system regularly places at or among the top of all U. S. states. Since 2024, a quarter of the state populace is international birthed, the second most after The golden state. In 2025, New Jacket was rated as having the healthiest state populace on the whole. The state places near the top on both the American Human Being Growth Index and the typical Human Development Index. Subsequently, New Jersey is commonly placed as one of the very best U. S. states, in addition to among one of the most pricey states for homeowners to reside in. According to climatology research study by the U. S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Management, New Jacket has actually been the fastest-warming state by ordinary air temperature level over a 100-year duration start in the early 20th century, which has actually been credited to warming of the North Atlantic Ocean.