Columbus (/kəˈlʌmbəs/, kə-LUM-bəs) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748,[10] it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest (after only Chicago), and the third-most populous U.S. state capital, after only Phoenix, Arizona and Austin, Texas. Columbus is the seat of government of Franklin County; it also extends into Delaware and Fairfield counties.[11] It is the core city of the Columbus metropolitan area, which encompasses ten counties in central Ohio.[12] It had a population of 2,138,926 in 2020, making it the largest metropolitan area entirely in Ohio[a] and 32nd-largest metro area in the U.S.
Columbus originated as numerous Native American settlements on the banks of the Scioto River. Franklinton, now a city neighborhood, was the first European settlement, laid out in 1797. The city was founded in 1812 at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers, and laid out to become the state capital. The city was named for Italian explorer Christopher Columbus.[14] The city assumed the function of state capital in 1816 and county seat in 1824. Amid steady years of growth and industrialization, the city has experienced numerous floods and recessions. Beginning in the 1950s, Columbus began to experience significant growth; it became the largest city in Ohio in land and population by the early 1990s. Growth has continued in the 21st century, with redevelopment occurring in numerous city neighborhoods, including Downtown.
The city has a diverse economy without reliance on any one sector. The metropolitan area is home to the Battelle Memorial Institute, the world's largest private research and development foundation; Chemical Abstracts Service, the world's largest clearinghouse of chemical information; and the Ohio State University, one of the largest universities in the United States. The Greater Columbus area is further home to the headquarters of six Fortune 500 companies, namely Cardinal Health, American Electric Power, Bath & Body Works, Inc., Nationwide, Bread Financial and Huntington Bancshares.
The city of Columbus was named after 15th-century Italian explorer Christopher Columbus at the city's founding in 1812.[14] It is the largest city in the world named for the explorer, who sailed to and settled parts of the Americas on behalf of Isabella I of Castile and Spain.[15] Although no reliable history exists as to why Columbus, who had no connection to the city or state of Ohio before the city's founding, was chosen as the name for the city, the book Columbus: The Story of a City indicates a state lawmaker and local resident admired the explorer enough to persuade other lawmakers to name the settlement Columbus.[14][16]
Since the late 20th century, historians have criticized Columbus for initiating the European conquest of America and for abuse, enslavement, and subjugation of natives.[17][18] Efforts to remove symbols related to the explorer in the city date to the 1990s.[16] Amid the George Floyd protests in 2020, several petitions pushed for the city to be renamed.[19]
Nicknames for the city have included "the Discovery City",[20] "