The East Coast of the United States, also known as the "Eastern Seaboard" or "Atlantic Seaboard", refers to the easternmost coastal states in the central and northern United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. In a geographical sense, the term Eastern Seaboard is widely used; in popular usage, the term "East Coast" is most often used to specifically refer to the northern half of this region, which is also known as the Northeastern U.S. The southern half of this region is frequently considered to belong more strongly to the South or Southeast. Major cities include Washington, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Boston, Baltimore, Richmond, Norfolk, Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro, Atlanta, Jacksonville, and Miami. The population of this region, extending from Florida to Maine, is approximately 111,508,688 (about 36% of the country's total population).
Inclusion of states
The term East Coast is often associated with the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States, particularly for cultural concepts such as an "Eastern college" or "East-coast liberal" or the "I-95 Corridor" (referring to Interstate 95). The states usually included are Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York, the states of New England, and the District of Columbia. The Southeastern portion of the coast from southern Virginia to Georgia is more typically associated culturally with the larger American South. Florida is not typically referred to as "The South" due to its large demographic of residents from the Northeastern states, most commonly New York and New Jersey, as well as its large Hispanic populations from surrounding islands, as well as Central and South America. "East Coast" also refers even more to the highly urbanized strip along the coast from Boston, to Washington, D.C., which is also known as the "Northeast Corridor", a definition which excludes the less densely populated areas of Upstate New York, Western Pennsylvania and northern New England.
See also
- Atlantic Coast
- Fresh Coast
- Geology of the Appalachians
- Gulf Coast of the United States
- New York Islands
- Outer barrier
- Third Coast
- West Coast of the United States
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