The Brooklyn County Mystery: What County is Brooklyn In?

It seems like a simple enough question: What county is Brooklyn in? Yet for non-New Yorkers and those new to the area, it’s a confusing question with no clear answer. After all, when you look at a map of New York City, Brooklyn is much more than just a county. It’s a borough, the largest of the five boroughs that make up the city of New York. So do you refer to Brooklyn as a county or a borough?

The History of Brooklyn: From County to Borough

To answer the question, “What county is Brooklyn in?” it’s important to understand the history of Brooklyn. For much of its history, Brooklyn was indeed its own county. All the way back in 1683, Brooklyn, then called Kings County, was a county and one of the original 12 counties of New York. It remained a county for almost two hundred years until it consolidated with the city of New York in 1898. After consolidation, the former Kings County became what is now known as the borough of Brooklyn.

Is Brooklyn a County or a Borough?

Today, Brooklyn is a part of a county, but is not its own county. It is one of the five boroughs that make up New York City. Just like each of the other four boroughs, Brooklyn is part of New York County, which is the most populous county in the US with over 1.6 million residents.

The Takeaway

To answer the question of “what county is Brooklyn in?” the answer is clear. Brooklyn is not a county – it is one of five boroughs that make up New York City. For much of its history, Brooklyn was its own county called Kings County. It became a borough after New York City consolidated with Kings County in 1898. Today, Brooklyn is part of New York County, the most populous county in the United States.