Long Island

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Island east of Manhattan and southeast of Connecticut, USA, separated from the mainland by Long Island Sound and the East River; 193 km/120 mi long by about 48 km/30 mi wide; area 3,627 sq km/1,400 sq mi; population (2000 est) 7,448,600. It is mainly a residential district with farming in the east. Henry Hudson discovered the island in 1609, and it was settled by the Dutch from New Amsterdam (in the west) and the English from New England (in the east) from the 1640s.

The two New York City boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn form the western eighth of the island; combined population (2000 est) 4,694,700. East of them are the counties of Nassau and Suffolk. Along the northern shore, facing the sound, are the wealthy Gold Coast communities, such as Great Neck and Oyster Bay. On the southern shore, facing the Atlantic, are the popular summer-resort communities of the sandy barrier beaches, Coney Island (actually a peninsula in the southwest, with a boardwalk (promenade) 3 km/2 mi long), the Rockaways, Long Beach, Fire Island, and the Hamptons.

The Union Jack marks New Zealand's historical links with Britain. The stars represent the Southern Cross. Effective date: 12 June 1902. >>