Jersey City is the second-most populous city in New Jersey (after Newark) and the county seat of Hudson County, with a population of 292,449 as of the 2020 census—a striking 18.1% increase from 2010. It is remarkably diverse: over 52% of households speak more than 40 languages, and 42.5% of residents were born outside the U.S., making it the most ethnically diverse city in the country. Situated on the Hudson River and part of the Port of New York and New Jersey, it serves as a major transportation hub with the Holland Tunnel, PATH trains, and ferries connecting directly to Manhattan. First settled by the Dutch in the 17th century as Pavonia and later Bergen, the city was incorporated in 1838 and expanded into "Greater Jersey City" in 1870 by annexing neighboring towns. Today, its waterfront redevelopment has earned it the nickname "Wall Street West" as a finance and tech hub, while also fostering a thriving arts and culture scene with institutions like the Liberty Science Center and Loew's Jersey Theatre. In fact, Travel + Leisure ranked Jersey City the best place to live in New Jersey in both 2023 and 2025, though its popularity has driven rents to some of the highest in the nation, prompting new affordable-housing mandates.