Queens is the largest of the five boroughs. Covering 283.3 sq km (109.4 sq mi) at the western end of Long Island, Queens is separated from Brooklyn by Newtown Creek and from the rest of the city by the East River and Long Island Sound. It stretches to the Atlantic Ocean on the south and borders Nassau County on the east. It is overwhelmingly residential and probably the most ethnically diverse community in the world. In 1990 Queens had 1,951,598 residents and was second in population only to Brooklyn among the five boroughs.
The neighborhoods of Queens have a strong sense of individual identity. Some are heavily industrial, like Long Island City, Maspeth, and College Point; others-like Douglaston, Forest Hill Gardens, and Kew Gardens-are suburban-style enclaves of the well-to-do. Major ethnic concentrations include the Greeks in Astoria; the Irish in Woodside; the Italians in Maspeth and Ridgewood; African-Americans in Hollis, Cambria Heights, St. Albans, and South Jamaica; and Jews in Forest Hills. Large numbers of Chinese and Koreans live in Queens, with particularly heavy concentrations in Flushing, Jackson Heights, Corona, and Elmhurst.
