Half of Connecticut was initially claimed by the Dutch colony New Netherland, which included much of the land between the Connecticut and Delaware Rivers, although the first major settlements were established in the 1630s by the English. Ĭonnecticut's first European settlers were Dutchmen who established a small, short-lived settlement called House of Hope in Hartford at the confluence of the Park and Connecticut Rivers. The word Connecticut is derived from various anglicized spellings of Quinnetuket, a Mohegan-Pequot word for 'long tidal river'. The state is named for the Connecticut River which approximately bisects the state. Historically, the state is part of New England as well as the tri-state area with New York and New Jersey. Its capital is Hartford, and its most populous city is Bridgeport. The state is bordered by Rhode Island to its east, Massachusetts to its north, New York to its west, and Long Island Sound to its south. As of the 2020 United States census, Connecticut was home to over 3.6 million residents, its highest decennial count ever, growing every decade since 1790. Connecticut ( / k ə ˈ n ɛ t ɪ k ə t/ ⓘ kə- NET-ik-ət) is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States.
