At the time of European contact, the area was inhabited by Algonquian and Siouan nations, and today it is home to eleven federally recognized tribes. The northern portion of the state is home to the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Wisconsin is third to Ontario and Michigan in the length of its Great Lakes coastline. The Northern Highland and Western Upland along with a part of the Central Plain occupy the western part of the state, with lowlands stretching to the shore of Lake Michigan. Wisconsin's geography is diverse, having been greatly impacted by glaciers during the Ice Age with the exception of the Driftless Area. Wisconsin is divided into 72 counties and as of the 2020 census had a population of nearly 5.9 million. The state capital, Madison, is currently the second-most-populated and fastest-growing city in the state. The largest city, Milwaukee, anchors its largest metropolitan area, followed by Green Bay and Kenosha, the third- and fourth-most-populated Wisconsin cities, respectively. The bulk of Wisconsin's population live in areas situated along the shores of Lake Michigan. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by land area and the 20th-most populous. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin ( / w ɪ ˈ s k ɒ n s ɪ n/ ⓘ) is a state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States.
