A surprising number of New Yorkers get tripped up by the geography behind the name Long Island City.
Here’s the context: New York City spans dozens of islands (around 40), including Manhattan and Long Island. But the city only occupies part of Long Island. The rest of the island — Nassau and Suffolk counties— is not part of NYC and belongs to the state.
Because of that, when people say “Long Island,” they usually mean the suburban areas outside New York City — not the parts of the island that are actually within NYC.
There’s also the term “the City,” which refers specifically to Manhattan. Historically, Manhattan was the original New York, and the other boroughs — Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Staten Island—were consolidated into the city in 1898.
And this is where things get confusing:
Long Island City is not a city at all — it’s a neighborhood in Queens. Queens is a borough of New York City. And the entire borough of Queens is located on Long Island.
So technically:
- Long Island City is in Queens
- Queens is in New York City
- And New York City (partly) is on Long Island
But in everyday language:
- “the City” means Manhattan only
- “Long Island” usually means the suburbs — not NYC
Put that together, and you get the confusion:
You can live in Long Island City — which is part of New York City — and still have people ask how often you go to “New York.”
