Louisville, Kentucky

Louisville
Louisville/Jefferson County
Metro Government
Nicknames: 
Derby City, River City,[1] (The) Gateway to the South,[2] Falls City, The 'Ville[3]
Territory in yellow represents the "balance" population of Louisville.
Territory in yellow represents the "balance" population of Louisville.
Louisville is located in Kentucky
Louisville
Louisville
Location within Kentucky
Louisville is located in the United States
Louisville
Louisville
Location within the United States
Louisville is located in North America
Louisville
Louisville
Location within North America
Coordinates: 38°15′22″N 85°45′05″W / 38.25611°N 85.75139°W / 38.25611; -85.75139
CountryUnited States
StateKentucky
CountyJefferson
Founded byGeorge Rogers Clark
Named forLouis XVI
Government
 • TypeMayor–council
 • MayorCraig Greenberg (D)
 • Metro Council26 council members
Area
 • Consolidated city-county341.44 sq mi (884.32 km2)
 • Land324.94 sq mi (841.59 km2)
 • Water16.50 sq mi (42.73 km2)
Elevation
466 ft (142 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Consolidated city-county633,045
 • Estimate 
(2022)[5]
624,444
 • Rank75th in North America
27th in the United States[a]
1st in Kentucky
 • Density1,900/sq mi (720/km2)
 • Urban
1,025,000 (US: 46th)
 • Urban density2,430.8/sq mi (938.5/km2)
 • Metro1,365,557 (US: 43rd)
DemonymLouisvillian[7]
GDP
 • MSA$90.836 billion (2022)
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code prefixes
40201-40225, 40228-40229, 40231-40233, 40241-40243, 40245, 40250-40253, 40255-40259, 40261, 40266, 40268-40270, 40272, 40280-40283, 40285, 40287, 40289-40299
Area code502
FIPS code21-48000
FIPS code21-48006
GNIS feature ID2404963[9]
Websitelouisvilleky.gov

Louisville (varying pronunciations: /ˈlivɪl/ LOO-ee-vil, US: /ˈləvəl/ LOO-ə-vəl, locally /ˈlʊvəl/ LUUV-əl) is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States.[a][11] By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city, although by population density, it is the 265th most dense city.[b][12] Louisville is the historical county seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.

Named after King Louis XVI of France, Louisville was founded in 1778 by George Rogers Clark, making it one of the oldest cities west of the Appalachians.[13] With the nearby Falls of the Ohio as the only major obstruction to river traffic between the upper Ohio River and the Gulf of Mexico, the settlement first grew as a portage site. It was the founding city of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, which grew into a 6,000-mile (9,700 km) system across 13 states.

Today, the city is known as the home of boxer Muhammad Ali, the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Fried Chicken, the University of Louisville and its Cardinals, Louisville Slugger baseball bats, and three of Kentucky's six Fortune 500 companies: Humana, Kindred Healthcare, and Yum! Brands.[14][15] Muhammad Ali International Airport, Louisville's main commercial airport, hosts UPS's worldwide hub.

Since 2003, Louisville's borders have been the same as those of Jefferson County, after a city-county merger.[16] The official name of this consolidated city-county government is the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government,[17] abbreviated to Louisville Metro.[18] Despite the merger and renaming, the term "Jefferson County" continues to be used in some contexts in reference to Louisville Metro, particularly including the incorporated cities outside the "balance" which make up Louisville proper. The city's total consolidated population as of the 2020 census was 782,969.[19] However, the balance total of 633,045[20] excludes other incorporated places and semiautonomous towns within the county and is the population listed in most sources and national rankings.

The Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) includes Louisville-Jefferson County and 12 surrounding counties, seven in Kentucky and five in Southern Indiana. As of 2023, the MSA had a population of 1,365,557,[21] the 43rd largest in the nation.[c]

  1. ^ "Transit Authority of River City (TARC)". ridetarc.org. Archived from the original on June 5, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2016.
  2. ^ Multiple sources:
  3. ^ Multiple sources:
  4. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  5. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places in Kentucky: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on May 20, 2023. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  6. ^ "2020 Population and Housing State Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on August 24, 2021. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
  7. ^ "Definition of Louisvillian". Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Archived from the original on January 23, 2021. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
  8. ^ "Total Gross Domestic Product for Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN (MSA)". fred.stlouisfed.org. Archived from the original on January 4, 2024. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  9. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Louisville, Kentucky
  10. ^ Commonwealth of Kentucky. Office of the Secretary of State. Land Office. "Louisville, Kentucky". Accessed September 19, 2013.
  11. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places of 50,000 or More, Ranked by July 1, 2016 Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2016—United States—Places of 50,000+ Population". 2016 Population Estimates. United States Census Bureau, Population Division. May 2017. Archived from the original on September 12, 2019. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  12. ^ "Gazetteer Files". Census.gov. Archived from the original on August 24, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  13. ^ The Kentucky encyclopedia. John E. Kleber, Scott A. Wymer, Thomas P. Kmetz, University Press of Kentucky, Morehead State University. Camden-Carroll Library, Morehead State University. Institute for Regional Analysis and Public Policy. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. 1992. ISBN 978-0-8131-5901-0. OCLC 900344833.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  14. ^ "Visualize The Fortune 500". Fortune. Archived from the original on March 22, 2019. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
  15. ^ CNN Money. "Fortune 500 2012: States: Kentucky Companies Archived August 6, 2020, at the Wayback Machine". May 21, 2012. Accessed September 19, 2013.
  16. ^ "Louisville-Jefferson County Local Government Consolidation" (PDF). louisvilleky.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 30, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  17. ^ "Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government Code of Ordinances". American Legal Publishing Corporation. Archived from the original on July 1, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  18. ^ "Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government Code of Ordinances § 10.06 DEFINITIONS". American Legal Publishing Corporation. Archived from the original on August 20, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  19. ^ "QuickFacts: Jefferson County, Kentucky". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
  20. ^ "QuickFacts: Louisville city, Kentucky; Louisville/Jefferson County metro government (balance), Kentucky". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
  21. ^ "Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Population Totals: 2020-2023". United States Census Bureau, Population Division. March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 26, 2024.


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).