Editing Northern Virginia

{{redirect|NoVA|other uses of "Nova"|Nova (disambiguation)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2019}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Northern Virginia
| image_skyline      = {{multiple image
 |perrow      = 2/2/1
 |border      = infobox
 |total_width = 280
 |image1      = Tysons Corner Sunset .jpg
 |alt1        = Tysons in Fairfax County
 |image2      = The Pentagon US Department of Defense building.jpg
 |alt2        = The Pentagon
 |image3      = WestFrontMansionMountVernon.jpg
 |alt3        = West Front of George Washington's Mount Vernon
 |image4      = Reston Station West View.jpg
 |alt4        = Reston, Virginia
 |image5      = Old Town Alexandria from George Washington Masonic National Memorial.jpg
 |alt5        = Old Town Alexandria 
 }}
| image_caption      = Clockwise from the top left: [[Tysons station]] entrance on the Metro [[Silver Line (Washington Metro)|Silver Line]], [[The Pentagon]], [[Reston, Virginia|Reston]] and the [[Dulles Toll Road]], [[Old Town Alexandria]], [[Mount Vernon]]
| image_map          = New Nova 2023 Boundaries.png
| mapsize            = 275px
| map_caption        = The counties of Virginia that form part of the [[Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area]]
| population_as_of   = 2023
| seat_type          = Largest city
| seat               = [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]]
| population         = 3,257,133
| area_footnotes     = <ref>13 counties and seven independent cities within the Washington MSA or Washington-Baltimore CSA</ref>
| official_name      = 
| settlement_type    = Region
| area_land_sq_mi    = 4411.45
| area_note          = 13 counties and 7 independent cities in Virginia within the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area or Washington-Baltimore Combined Statistical Area
| subdivision_name   = {{flag|United States}}
| subdivision_name1  = {{flag|Virginia}}
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_type1  = State
| subdivision_type2  = [[List of cities and counties in Virginia|Counties and independent cities]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]], [[Clarke County, Virginia|Clarke County]], [[Culpeper County, Virginia|Culpeper County]], [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]], [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]], [[Fauquier County, Virginia|Fauquier County]], [[Frederick County, Virginia|Frederick County]], [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]], [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]], [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]], [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]], [[Orange County, Virginia|Orange County]], [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]], [[Rappahannock County, Virginia|Rappahannock County]], [[Spotsylvania County, Virginia|Spotsylvania County]], [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]], [[Warren County, Virginia|Warren County]], [[Winchester, Virginia|Winchester]]
| population_density_sq_mi = 738.34
| nickname           = NOVA, NoVA, Nova, the New Dominion
| population_demonym = Northern Virginian
}}
'''Northern Virginia''', locally referred to as '''NOVA''' or '''NoVA''', comprises several [[County (United States)|counties]] and [[independent city (United States)|independent cities]] in the [[Commonwealth (U.S. state)|Commonwealth]] of [[Virginia]] in the United States. The region radiates westward and southward from [[Washington, D.C.]], the nation's capital, and has a population of 3,257,133 people as of 2023 [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]] estimates, representing over a third of the state's total population. It is the most populous region in both Virginia and the regional [[Washington metropolitan area]].<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk%2F |title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2017, U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division |access-date=March 29, 2020 |publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]] |location=Washington}}{{dead link|date=June 2022|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://demographics.coopercenter.org/ |title=Demographics |website=Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service |publisher=[[University of Virginia]] |location=[[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]] |access-date=March 16, 2019 |archive-date=April 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403010146/https://demographics.coopercenter.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="wwwcensusgov">{{Cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff/main.html?_lang=en |title=American FactFinder |access-date=March 26, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090625230912/http://www.factfinder.census.gov/home/saff/main.html?_lang=en |archive-date=June 25, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Communities in the region form the Virginia portion of the Washington metropolitan area and the larger [[Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area|Washington–Baltimore metropolitan area]]. Northern Virginia has a significantly larger job base than either Washington, D.C. or the [[Maryland]] portion of its suburbs,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/dcs-suburbs-are-becoming-one-of-americas-fastest-growing-employment-hubs/2016/08/19/c14f4cc4-6626-11e6-8b27-bb8ba39497a2_story.html |date=Aug 19, 2016 |title=D.C. suburbs becoming one of the country's fastest-growing employment hubs |first=Aaron |last=Gregg |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |location=Washington |access-date=August 28, 2016 |archive-date=August 26, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826062834/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/dcs-suburbs-are-becoming-one-of-americas-fastest-growing-employment-hubs/2016/08/19/c14f4cc4-6626-11e6-8b27-bb8ba39497a2_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and is the highest-income region of Virginia, with several of the [[List of highest-income counties in the United States|highest-income counties]] in the nation, including three of the ten highest counties for median household income, according to the 2019 [[American Community Survey]].<ref>{{cite web |url-status=live |url=https://www.forbes.com/2008/01/22/counties-rich-income-forbeslife-cx_mw_0122realestate.html |title=America's Richest Counties |website=Forbes.com |date=Jan 22, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090513081046/https://www.forbes.com/2008/01/22/counties-rich-income-forbeslife-cx_mw_0122realestate.html |archive-date=May 13, 2009 |access-date=2008-02-08}}</ref>

Northern Virginia's transportation infrastructure includes two major airports, [[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport|Ronald Reagan Washington National]] and [[Dulles International Airport]], several lines of the [[Washington Metro]] subway system, the [[Virginia Railway Express]] suburban commuter rail system, [[transit bus]] services, bicycle sharing and bicycle lanes and trails, and an extensive network of [[Interstate highway]]s and expressways.

[[The Pentagon]], the headquarters of the [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Department of Defense]] and the world's [[List of largest office buildings|second-largest office]], is located in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] in Northern Virginia. Northern Virginia also houses the [[George Bush Center for Intelligence]], the headquarters for the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] in [[Langley, Virginia|Langley]], the [[United States Patent and Trademark Office]] in [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], and several large companies, including several major [[Aerospace manufacturer|aerospace manufacturing]], [[Consulting firm|consulting firms]], and [[Arms industry|defense industry]], which serve it and other components of the [[Federal government of the United States|U.S. federal government]]. 

Tourist attractions in Northern Virginia include various memorials, museums, and [[Thirteen Colonies|Colonial]] and [[American Civil War|Civil War]]–era sites, including [[Arlington National Cemetery]], [[Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park]], [[Manassas National Battlefield Park]], [[Mount Vernon]], the [[National Museum of the Marine Corps]], the [[National Museum of the United States Army]], the [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center|Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum]], and the [[Marine Corps War Memorial|United States Marine Corps War Memorial]]. Other attractions include portions of the [[Appalachian Trail]], [[Great Falls Park]], [[Old Town Alexandria]], [[Prince William Forest Park]], and portions of [[Shenandoah National Park]].

==Etymology==
[[File:Northern Virginia Nova map.png|thumb|Map of Northern Virginia, NOVA Map, Northern Virginia]]
The region is sometimes spelled "northern Virginia", but the [[United States Geological Survey|U.S. Geological Survey]]'s ''Correspondence Handbook'' states that the 'n' in Northern Virginia should be capitalized since it is a place name rather than a direction or general area.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.usgs.gov/usgs-manual/handbook/hb/431-2-h/chap5.html |title=USGS Correspondence Handbook |access-date=January 14, 2012 |archive-date=February 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120206115215/http://www.usgs.gov/usgs-manual/handbook/hb/431-2-h/chap5.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The name "Northern Virginia" does not seem to have been used in the early history of the area.<ref name="johnston">{{Cite journal |last=Johnston |first=Wilbur S. |title=The Northern Neck in Colonial Context |publisher=Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society, Winchester Printers, Inc. |year=2006}}</ref> According to Johnston, some early documents and land grants refer to the "Northern Neck of Virginia", a reference to the [[Northern Neck]] and describing an area that began at the western shore of the [[Chesapeake Bay]] and includes a territory that extended west, including all the land between the [[Potomac River|Potomac]] and [[Rappahannock River|Rappahannock]] rivers, with a western boundary called the Fairfax line.<ref name="johnston"/> The Fairfax line, surveyed in 1746, ran from the first spring of the [[Potomac River]], which remains marked today by the [[Fairfax Stone]], to the first spring of the [[Rappahannock River]], at the head of the [[Conway River (Virginia)|Conway River]].<ref name="johnston" /> The Northern Neck was composed of {{cvt|5282000|acre|km2}}, and was larger in area than five of the modern U.S. states:<ref name="johnston"/>{{Quotation|This monument, at the headspring of the Potomac River, marks one of the historic spots of America. Its name is derived from Thomas Lord Fairfax who owned all the land lying between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. The first Fairfax Stone, marked "FX", was set in 1746 by Thomas Lewis, a surveyor employed by [[Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron|Lord Fairfax]]. This is the base point for the western dividing line between [[Maryland]] and [[West Virginia]].|Fairfax Stone inscription<ref name="johnston"/>}}

Early development of the northern portion of Virginia was in the easternmost area of that early land grant, which encompasses the modern counties of [[Lancaster County, Virginia|Lancaster]], [[Northumberland County, Virginia|Northumberland]], [[Richmond County, Virginia|Richmond]], and [[Westmoreland County, Virginia|Westmoreland]]. At some point, these eastern counties came to be called separately simply "the Northern Neck", and, for the remaining area west of them, the term was no longer used. By some definitions, [[King George County, Virginia|King George County]] is also included in the Northern Neck, which is now considered a separate region from Northern Virginia.<ref name=autogenerated1>The Official Guide of Virginia's Northern Neck (2007), Northern Neck Tourism Council</ref>

One of the most prominent early mentions of "Northern Virginia" as a title was the naming of the [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] [[Army of Northern Virginia]] during the American Civil War (1861–1865).

===Definition===
[[File:Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia CSA, 2005.png|thumb|A map of the former [[Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area|DC-MD-VA-WV]] [[combined statistical area]]]]
The most common definition of Northern Virginia includes the independent cities and counties on the Virginia side of the [[Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area|Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA Combined Statistical Area]] as defined by the [[Office of Management and Budget|U.S. Office of Management and Budget]]<ref name=":0" /> within the [[Executive Office of the President of the United States]].

Northern Virginia includes six counties, [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]], [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun]], [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William]], [[Spotsylvania County, Virginia|Spotsylvania]] and [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford]] counties, and six independent cities, [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]], [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]], [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]], and [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]].

==History==
===Colonial period===
{{Further|Colony of Virginia}}
[[File:Northern Neck Proprietary map.jpg|thumb|A map of the [[Northern Neck Proprietary]] land grant, {{Circa|1737}}]]
[[File:Tomb of Lord Fairfax 2019a.jpg|thumb|The gravesite of [[Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron]] in [[Winchester, Virginia|Winchester]]]]
The [[Colony of Virginia]] was settled at [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]] in 1607. The area now generally regarded as "Northern Virginia" was within a larger area defined by a land grant from King [[Charles II of England]] on September 18, 1649, while the monarch was in exile in France during the [[English Civil War]]. Eight of his loyal supporters were named, among them Thomas Culpeper.<ref name="fortedwards.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.fortedwards.org/fairfax.htm |title=Thomas, Lord Fairfax |publisher=The Fort Edwards WebPage |access-date=April 18, 2010 |archive-date=January 21, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110121061730/http://www.fortedwards.org/fairfax.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

On February 25, 1673, a new charter was given to [[Thomas Colepeper, 2nd Baron Colepeper|Thomas Lord Culpeper]] and [[Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington|Henry Earl of Arlington]]. Lord Culpeper was named the Royal Governor of Virginia from 1677 to 1683. [[Culpeper County, Virginia|Culpeper County]] was later named for him when it was formed in 1749; however, history does not seem to record him as one of the better of Virginia's colonial governors. Although he became [[governor of Virginia]] in July 1677,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=_dEJAAAAIAAJ&dq=colepepper+spencer+governors+virginia&pg=PA107 Grant of the Office of Lieutenant and Governor-General] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220032648/https://books.google.com/books?id=_dEJAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA107&lpg=PA107&dq=colepepper+spencer+governors+virginia&source=web&ots=GJiCfGZPrc&sig=oA0YfZA_6kTyeP5lVmGMrCX5u50&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result |date=February 20, 2023 }}, June 21, 1675, Calendar of State Papers, Colonial Series, Great Britain Public Record Office, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1896</ref> he did not come to Virginia until 1679, and even then seemed more interested in maintaining his land in the "Northern Neck of Virginia" than governing. He soon returned to England.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=_dEJAAAAIAAJ&dq=%22nicholas+spencer%22+governor+colepepper&pg=PA107 Letter from Nicholas Spencer to Secretary Thomas Coventry] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220032648/https://books.google.com/books?id=_dEJAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA107&lpg=PA107&dq=%22nicholas+spencer%22+governor+colepepper&source=web&ots=GJiCfGQRt9&sig=nDyujqI3ZZKiFciaHHg5BoEtaNs&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result#PRA2-PA689,M1 |date=February 20, 2023 }}, August 20, 1680, reporting news of Culpeper's departure from Virginia, Calendar of State Papers, Colonial Series, Great Britain Public Record Office, Whitehall, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1890</ref> 

In 1682, rioting in the colony forced Culpeper to return. By the time he arrived, however, the riots were already quelled. After apparently misappropriating £9,500 from the treasury of the colony, he returned to England and the King was forced to dismiss him. During this tumultuous time, Culpeper's erratic behavior meant that he had to rely increasingly on his cousin and Virginia agent, Col. [[Nicholas Spencer]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/historycolonyan00campgoog |title=History of the Colony and Ancient Dominion of Virginia ... |date=October 5, 1860 |publisher=J. B. Lippincott & co. |via=Internet Archive}}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=ftZGKjweBUgC&dq=colpepper+nicholas+spencer+virginia&pg=RA1-PA370 Letters of William Fitzhugh] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220032648/https://books.google.com/books?id=ftZGKjweBUgC&pg=RA1-PA370&lpg=RA1-PA370&dq=colpepper+nicholas+spencer+virginia&source=web&ots=S3e4BIU0nU&sig=xVgGDnvHcb-G-NwG56MlhoHczqc&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result |date=February 20, 2023 }}, ''The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography'', Vol. II, The Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, 1895</ref> Spencer succeeded Culpeper as acting Governor following Culpeper's departure. Culpeper's descendants allowed [[Robert Carter I|Robert "King" Carter]] and other Virginians to manage the properties.<ref name="virginiaplaces.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.virginiaplaces.org/settleland/fairfaxgrant.html |title=The Fairfax Grant |publisher=Virginia Places |access-date=April 18, 2010 |archive-date=October 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161012195450/http://www.virginiaplaces.org/settleland/fairfaxgrant.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1736, legal claim to the land was finally established by Culpeper's grandson, [[Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron]], who became known in the colony as "Lord Fairfax", following a survey authorized by Governor [[Sir William Gooch, 1st Baronet|William Gooch]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2008}} The lands of Lord Fairfax and Northern Virginia were geographically defined as the land between the [[Rappahannock River|Rappahannock]] and [[Potomac River|Potomac]] rivers, and were officially called the "Northern Neck".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.virginiaplaces.org/settleland/fairfaxgrant.html |title=The Fairfax Grant |last=Grymes |first=Charles A. |access-date=2008-09-07 |archive-date=October 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161012195450/http://www.virginiaplaces.org/settleland/fairfaxgrant.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1746, a back line was surveyed and established between the headwaters of the Potomac and Rappahannock rivers, defining the west end of the grants. According to documents held by the Handley Regional Library of the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society, the grant of {{cvt|5282000|acre|km2}} included 22 modern counties, including Northumberland, Lancaster, Westmoreland, Stafford, King George, Prince William, Fairfax, Loudoun, Fauquier, Rappahannock, Culpeper, Madison, Clarke, Warren, Page, Shenandoah, and Frederick counties in Virginia, and Hardy, Hampshire, Morgan, Berkeley, and Jefferson counties in [[West Virginia]].<ref name="records">{{cite web |url=http://www.hrl.lib.state.va.us/handley/archives/Fairfax%20Land%20Records%20pathfinder.htm |title=Lord Fairfax Land Records |publisher=Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society |access-date=April 18, 2010 |location=Handley Regional Library |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061001054056/http://www.hrl.lib.state.va.us/handley/archives/Fairfax%20Land%20Records%20pathfinder.htm |archive-date=October 1, 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Lord Fairfax was a lifelong bachelor, and became one of the more well-known persons of the late colonial era. In 1742, the new county formed from [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]] was named [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]] in his honor, one of several locations in Northern Virginia and West Virginia's [[Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia|Eastern Panhandle]] named after him.<ref name="jdr library">{{cite web |url=http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaead/published/cw/viwc00324.document |title=A Guide to the Lord Thomas Fairfax land grant to Robert Carter |year=2008 |publisher=Colonial Williamsburg Foundation's John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library |access-date=April 18, 2010 |archive-date=November 10, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110035538/http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaead/published/cw/viwc00324.document |url-status=live }}</ref> Lord Fairfax established his residence at his brother's home at "Belvoir" on the grounds of present-day [[Fort Belvoir]] in Fairfax County.<ref name="virginiaplaces.org"/> He later built a hunting lodge named "Greenway Court",<ref name="fortedwards.org"/> which was located near [[White Post, Virginia|White Post]] in [[Clarke County, Virginia|Clarke County]] near the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]], and moved there. Around 1748, he [[George Washington]], who was then 16-years-old. Impressed with Washington's energy and talents, he employed him to survey his lands west of the Blue Ridge Mountains.<ref name="fortedwards.org"/>

Lord Fairfax maintained neutrality as the [[American Revolutionary War]] began in 1775. Just a few weeks after the surrender of [[British Army during the American Revolutionary War|British Army]] troops under [[General Cornwallis]] at [[Yorktown, Virginia|Yorktown]], Fairfax died at his home at Greenway Court on December 9, 1781, at the age of 90. He was entombed on the east side of Christ Church in [[Winchester, Virginia|Winchester]].<ref name="virginiaplaces.org"/> While his plans for a large house at Greenway Court never materialized, and his stone lodge is now gone, a small limestone structure he built remains on the site in his honor.<ref name="fortedwards.org"/>

===Statehood and Civil War===
[[File:MountVernonOctober2006.JPG|thumb|[[Mount Vernon]], the plantation home of [[George Washington]] in [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]]]]
[[File:Arlington House front view.JPG|thumb|[[Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial|Arlington House]], a mansion commissioned by a step-grandson of [[George Washington]] and last used as a residence by [[Robert E. Lee]] is now part of the grounds of [[Arlington National Cemetery]]]]
Following the American Revolutionary War, the [[Thirteen Colonies]] formed the United States of America, and [[Continental Army]] commander and Virginian [[George Washington]] became the new nation's first president. Prior to the Revolutionary War, Washington was a surveyor and developer of [[canal]]s that were used for transportation. He was also a proponent of the bustling port city of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], located on the [[Potomac River]] below the [[Atlantic Seaboard fall line|fall line]], not far from his plantation at [[Mount Vernon]] in [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]].

During much of the colonial era and from 1790 to 1800, the nation's capital was in [[Philadelphia]]. In 1800, however, with Washington's guidance and support, the new federal city of present-day [[Washington, D.C.]] was laid out and established for the purpose of serving as the national capital. The region straddled the Potomac River and was located on a square of territory ceded to the federal government by Maryland and Virginia. Alexandria, a port city at the time, was on the eastern edge south of the river. On the outskirts on the northern side of the river, was [[Georgetown (Washington, D.C.)|Georgetown]], another port city.

As the federal city grew, land in the portion contributed by Maryland proved best suited and adequate for early development. Not really part of the functioning federal city, citizens in Alexandria, who lacked voting input, were frustrated by the laws of the District's government. [[Slavery]] also arose as a contentious issue. In 1846, to mitigate these issues and as part of abolishing slave trading in the District, the [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] passed a bill [[District of Columbia retrocession|retroceding to Virginia]] the area south of the Potomac River, which was then [[Alexandria County, D.C.|Alexandria County]]. That area now forms all of present-day [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]], which was renamed from Alexandria County in 1922, and a portion of the [[independent city (United States)|independent city]] of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]].

Slavery, [[states' rights]], and economic issues increasingly divided the northern and southern states during the first half of the 19th century, eventually leading to the [[American Civil War]], which lasted from 1861 to 1865. Although Maryland was a [[slave state]], it remained with the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]], while Virginia seceded and joined the newly formed [[Confederate States of America]], whose capital was established at [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]].

The [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]] has never issued a firm opinion on whether the retrocession of the Virginia portion of the District of Columbia was constitutional. In the 1875 case of ''[[Phillips v. Payne]]'', the Supreme Court held that Virginia had ''de facto'' jurisdiction over the area returned by Congress in 1847, and dismissed the tax case brought by the plaintiff. The court, however, did not rule on the core constitutional matter of the retrocession. Writing the majority opinion, [[Noah Haynes Swayne|Justice Noah Swayne]] stated only that:
<blockquote>The plaintiff in error is estopped from raising the point which he seeks to have decided. He cannot, under the circumstances, vicariously raise a question, nor force upon the parties to the compact an issue which neither of them desires to make.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/92/130.html |title=Phillips v. Payne, 92 U.S. 130 |year=1875 |work=FindLaw |access-date=March 7, 2017 |archive-date=March 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170308051235/http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/92/130.html |url-status=live }}</ref></blockquote>

With barely {{cvt|100|mi|km}} separating the two capital cities, Northern Virginia found itself in the center of much of the conflict, which inflicted destruction and bloodshed. The [[Army of Northern Virginia]] was the primary army for the [[Confederate States of America]] in the east. Owing to the region's proximity to Washington, D.C., and the Potomac River, the armies of both sides frequently occupied and traversed Northern Virginia. As a result, [[List of American Civil War battles in Northern Virginia|several battles were fought in the area]].

Northern Virginia was the operating area of [[John S. Mosby|John Singleton Mosby]], a Confederate partisan, and several small skirmishes were fought throughout the region between his Rangers and Federal forces occupying Northern Virginia.

Following the end of the Civil War, the conflict remained popular among the region's residents, and many area schools, roads, and parks were named for Confederate generals and statesmen, including [[Jefferson Davis Highway]], [[Washington-Lee High School]], and others.

Virginia split during the American Civil War, as was foreshadowed by the April 17, 1861, [[Virginia Secession Convention of 1861|Virginia Secession Convention]]. Fifty counties in the western, mountainous portion of the state were largely opposed to secession in 1861. This region broke away from the Confederacy in 1863 and entered the Union as a new state, [[West Virginia]]. Unlike the eastern part of the state, West Virginia did not have fertile lands tilled by slaves and was geographically separated from the state government in Richmond by the [[Appalachian Mountains]]. During this process, a provisional government of Virginia was headquartered in Alexandria, which was under [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] control during the war.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}} Arlington, Clarke, Fairfax, Frederick, Loudoun, Shenandoah, and Warren Counties voted in favor of Virginia remaining in the Union in 1861, but eventually broke away from the state.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://collections.richmond.edu/secession/visualizations/vote-maps.html |title=Virginia Convention of 1861 - Civil War Collections - University of Richmond |access-date=November 5, 2013 |archive-date=November 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111104144602/http://collections.richmond.edu/secession/visualizations/vote-maps.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

As a result of West Virginia's formation, part of Lord Fairfax's colonial land grant, which defined Northern Virginia, was ceded in the establishment of that state in 1863. Now known as the [[Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia]], the area includes [[Berkeley County, West Virginia|Berkeley County]] and [[Jefferson County, West Virginia|Jefferson County]] in West Virginia.

===20th century===
[[File:The Pentagon January 2008.jpg|thumb|[[The Pentagon]], headquarters of the [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]] in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]]]]
The [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]]'s increasing reliance on information technology companies during the [[Cold War]] was influential in launching the modern Northern Virginia economy and spurred urban development throughout the region.<ref name="boon">{{Cite web |url=http://washingtonindependent.com/view/economy-crumbles |title=War on Terror a Boon For Virginia |access-date=April 9, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406003913/http://www.washingtonindependent.com/view/economy-crumbles |archive-date=April 6, 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> After end of the Cold War in 1991, prosperity continued in the region as it positioned itself as the "[[Silicon Valley]]" of the [[East Coast of the United States|Eastern United States]]. The Internet was first commercialized in Northern Virginia, which served as the headquarters of many of the first [[Internet service provider]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.forbescustom.com/EconomicDevelopmentPgs/NorthernVirginiaP1.html |title=Northern Virginia |access-date=February 17, 2010 |archive-date=February 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100228063309/http://www.forbescustom.com/EconomicDevelopmentPgs/NorthernVirginiaP1.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The first major interconnection point of the Internet, [[MAE-East]], was established in the 1990s in [[Ashburn, Virginia|Ashburn]] after Virginia-area network provider operators decided to connect their networks.<ref name="bamford">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8zJmxWNTxrwC&pg=PA187 |title=The Shadow Factory: The Ultra-secret NSA from 9/11 to the Eavesdropping on America |publisher=Random House |first=James |last=Bamford |year=2009 |page=187 |access-date=February 27, 2014 |isbn=9780307279392}}</ref> This infrastructure legacy is ongoing, as data center operators continue to expand near these facilities.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Miller |first1=Rich |title=The Internet's Busiest Intersection |url=https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2009/06/09/the-internets-busiest-intersection |access-date=20 February 2023 |work=Data Center Knowledge |date=9 June 2009 |language=en |archive-date=December 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221208205815/https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2009/06/09/the-internets-busiest-intersection/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=louddata1/>

===21st century===
In early 2001, local Internet company [[AOL]] bought [[Time Warner]], the world's largest traditional media company, near the end of the [[dot-com bubble]] era. After the Internet bubble burs, however, Northern Virginia office vacancy rates increased from two percent in 2000 to 20 percent in 2002.<ref name="boon" /> After 2002, vacancy rates improved, falling below 10 percent as defense spending increased following the [[September 11 attacks]]. The subsequent [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq War|Iraq]] wars also contributed to the region's growth, as the federal government increased its contracting with private defense firms.<ref name="boon" />

==Regional organizations==
===Northern Virginia Regional Commission===
The Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.novaregion.org/ |title=Northern Virginia Regional Commission - Website {{!}} Official Website |website=www.novaregion.org |access-date=2020-04-01 |archive-date=April 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200403223133/https://www.novaregion.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref> is a regional government that represents a regional council of thirteen member Northern Virginia local governments.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.novaregion.org/66/Member-Governments |title=Member Governments {{!}} Northern Virginia Regional Commission - Website |website=www.novaregion.org |access-date=2020-04-01 |archive-date=August 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805184314/https://www.novaregion.org/66/Member-Governments |url-status=live }}</ref> These local governments include the counties of [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]], [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun]], and [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William]].  The local governments include the incorporated cities of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]], [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]], and [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]]. The local governments also include the incorporated towns of [[Dumfries, Virginia|Dumfries]], [[Herndon, Virginia|Herndon]], [[Leesburg, Virginia|Leesburg]], and [[Vienna, Virginia|Vienna]]. NVRC's chief roles and functions are providing information, performing professional and technical services for its members, and serving as a mechanism for regional coordination regarding the environment, transportation, affordable housing, community planning, military, and human services. Programs and projects address a wide array of local government interests.

According to Virginia's Regional Cooperation Act, NVRC is a political subdivision. The region is technically referred to as Virginia's planning district #8.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.vapdc.org/ |title=About VAPDC |website=Vapdc 080318 |language=en |access-date=2020-04-01 |archive-date=May 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200529232029/https://www.vapdc.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The commission was established pursuant to Articles 1 and 2, Chapter 34, of the Acts of the Virginia General Assembly of 1968, subsequently revised and reenacted as the Regional Cooperation Act. Any incorporated county, city, or town in Northern Virginia with a population exceeding 3,500 that adopts NVRC's charter agreement is eligible to become a member of the commission.

===Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments===
{{Main|Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments}}
Northern Virginia constitutes a considerable portion of the population and number of jurisdictions that comprise the [[Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments]] (MWCOG). Founded in 1957, MWCOG is a regional organization of 22 Washington-area local governments, as well as area members of the [[Maryland General Assembly|Maryland]] and [[Virginia General Assembly|Virginia]] state legislatures, the [[U.S. Senate]], and the [[U.S. House of Representatives]]. MWCOG provides a forum for discussion and the development of regional responses to issues regarding the environment, transportation, public safety, homeland security, affordable housing, community planning, and economic development.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mwcog.org/about/ |title=MWCOG.org – About Us<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=January 26, 2009 |archive-date=February 19, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219201038/http://www.mwcog.org/about/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board, a component of MWCOG, is the federally designated [[metropolitan planning organization]] for the metropolitan Washington area, including Northern Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mwcog.org/transportation/tpb/ |title=MWCOG.org – Transportation – TPB<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=January 26, 2009 |archive-date=February 4, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090204013200/http://www.mwcog.org/transportation/tpb/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
| 1900 = 188919
| 1910 = 194731
| 1920 = 206504
| 1930 = 229205
| 1940 = 298588
| 1950 = 488945
| 1960 = 788162
| 1970 = 1118064
| 1980 = 1357387
| 1990 = 1805091
| 2000 = 2253251
| 2010 = 2794957
| align-fn = center
| footnote = 1900–2020<ref>{{cite web |author=Resident Population Data |url=http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/apportionment-pop-text.php |title=Resident Population Data – 2010 Census |publisher=2010.census.gov |access-date=December 22, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023151158/http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/apportionment-pop-text.php |archive-date=October 23, 2012}}</ref>
| 2020 = 3197076
| estyear = 2023
| estimate = 3257133
}}{{As of|2020|April}} there were 3,197,076 people in Northern Virginia; approximately 37 percent of the state's population.<ref name="coopercenter">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/ |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division |title=Population and Housing Unit Estimates |format=Excel |access-date=14 February 2022 |archive-date=July 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709054630/https://www.census.gov/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

These population counts include all counties within Virginia that are part of the [[Washington Metropolitan Area|Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area]] or the [[Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area|Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA Combined Statistical Area]] as defined by the [[Office of Management and Budget|U.S. Office of Management and Budget]]<ref name=":0">https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/metro-micro/about/omb-bulletins.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190329074403/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/metro-micro/about/omb-bulletins.html |date=March 29, 2019 }} | OMB Bulletin No. 18-04, Revised Delineations of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Delineations of These Areas</ref> within the [[Executive Office of the President of the United States]].

Of the 3,159,639 people in Northern Virginia in the 2019 estimates, 2,776,960 lived in "central" counties, or those counties and equivalent entities as delineated by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget as forming part of the urban core of the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area. These counties include [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]], [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Fauquier County, Virginia|Fauquier]], [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun]], [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William]], [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford]] and the [[independent city (United States)|independent cities]] of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]], [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]], [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]] and [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]].

An additional 390,679 people lived in counties of the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area or the Baltimore-Washington Combined Statistical Area not considered "central." These counties, largely considered exurban or undergoing suburban change, include [[Clarke County, Virginia|Clarke]], [[Culpeper County, Virginia|Culpeper]], [[Frederick County, Virginia|Frederick]], [[Madison County, Virginia|Madison]], [[Rappahannock County, Virginia|Rappahannock]], [[Spotsylvania County, Virginia|Spotsylvania]], [[Warren County, Virginia|Warren]], and the independent city of [[Winchester, Virginia|Winchester]].

In addition, there are counties outside of the Washington Metropolitan Area that under more broad definitions are referred to as being part of Northern Virginia. The [[University of Virginia]] Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service categorizes [[King George County, Virginia|King George County]] as part of Northern Virginia, though the county was removed from the Washington Metropolitan Area in 2003.<ref>https://demographics.coopercenter.org/virginia-regions {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527011943/https://demographics.coopercenter.org/virginia-regions |date=May 27, 2020 }} | University of Virginia, Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service</ref> King George County and [[Orange County, Virginia|Orange County]] also include areas, such as [[Lake of the Woods, Virginia|Lake of the Woods]], where the cross-commuting interchange with the Washington Metropolitan Area is high enough to merit inclusion in the Metropolitan Area,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://statchatva.org/files/2015/11/Commuting-1024x1024.jpg |title=Archived copy |access-date=March 16, 2019 |archive-date=October 18, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018214033/http://statchatva.org/files/2015/11/Commuting-1024x1024.jpg |url-status=dead}}</ref> although more far-flung parts of these counties still cause the county-wide commuter interchange to fall below the threshold for inclusion in the Washington Metropolitan Area or Washington-Baltimore Combined Statistical Area. The demographic figures above do not include population counts for these two counties.

===Racial and ethnic composition===
The [[2020 United States census|2020 U.S. Census]] resulted in the following racial and ethnic composition for Northern Virginia:
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|'''Jurisdiction'''
|'''Population (2020 Census)'''
|'''White alone, not Hispanic or Latino'''
|'''Hispanic or Latino'''
|'''Black or African American alone'''
|'''Asian alone'''
|'''American Indian and Alaska Native alone'''
|'''Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone'''
|'''Two or More Races'''
|-
|City of Alexandria
|159,467
|51.9%
|16.7%
|21.8%
|5.9%
|0.2%
|0.0%
|5.3%
|-
|Arlington County
|238,643
|61.4%
|15.6%
|9.7%
|11.0%
|0.6%
|0.1%
|3.6%
|-
|Clarke County
|14,783
|85.3%
|6.4%
|4.7%
|1.4%
|0.7%
|0.1%
|2.5%
|-
|Culpeper County
|52,552
|69.8%
|11.6%
|14.6%
|1.7%
|0.8%
|0.2%
|3.3%
|-
|City of Fairfax
|24,146
|56.2%
|17.2%
|4.9%
|17.2%
|0.1%
|0.0%
|5.1%
|-
|Fairfax County
|1,150,309
|50.0%
|16.5%
|10.6%
|20.1%
|0.5%
|0.1%
|3.9%
|-
|City of Falls Church
|14,658
|71.2%
|10.6%
|4.8%
|10.0%
|0.6%
|0.1%
|4.7%
|-
|Fauquier County
|72,972
|79.0%
|9.2%
|7.8%
|1.7%
|0.5%
|0.1%
|2.8%
|-
|Frederick County
|91,419
|82.3%
|9.3%
|4.7%
|1.8%
|0.5%
|0.1%
|2.4%
|-
|City of Fredericksburg
|27,982
|54.3%
|12.4%
|21.2%
|4.7%
|0.3%
|0.1%
|5.8%
|-
|Loudoun County
|420,959
|54.8%
|13.9%
|8.1%
|20.3%
|0.5%
|0.1%
|3.9%
|-
|Madison County
|13,837
|84.3%
|3.2%
|9.3%
|0.6%
|0.3%
|0.0%
|2.9%
|-
|City of Manassas
|42,772
|39.5%
|38.1%
|15.4%
|6.3%
|1.4%
|0.2%
|3.6%
|-
|City of Manassas Park
|17,219
|31.2%
|41.0%
|15.6%
|11.5%
|1.6%
|0.3%
|3.5%
|-
|Prince William County
|482,204
|41.5%
|24.5%
|22.2%
|9.4%
|1.1%
|0.2%
|4.7%
|-
|Rappahannock County
|7,348
|88.3%
|4.4%
|4.2%
|1.0%
|0.4%
|0.1%
|2.0%
|-
|Spotsylvania County
|140,032
|66.6%
|10.7%
|17.5%
|2.8%
|0.5%
|0.2%
|3.6%
|-
|Stafford County
|156,927
|59.3%
|14.2%
|20.0%
|3.6%
|0.8%
|0.2%
|4.5%
|-
|Warren County
|40,727
|86.0%
|5.3%
|5.0%
|1.3%
|0.6%
|0.1%
|2.6%
|-
|City of Winchester
|28,120
|65.7%
|18.3%
|11.3%
|2.7%
|0.9%
|0.1%
|3.6%
|}
Northern Virginia as a whole is 51.2% White, 17.4% Hispanic, 16.3% Asian, 14.1% Black, and 2.4% Other.

===Background===
{| id="toc" style="float: right; margin-left: 2em; width: 30%; font-size: 85%;" cellspacing="3"
! colspan="4" |'''Demographics in Northern Virginia's five largest jurisdictions'''<ref name="wwwcensusgov" />
|-
|'''[[Household income in the United States|Household income]]'''||'''No. VA'''||'''U.S.'''
|-
|($200k+)||13.6%||3.7%
|-
|$100k+||46.1%||19.0%
|-
|$75k-100k||15.1%||12.1%
|-
|$50k-75k||16.3%||18.8%
|-
|$25k-50k||14.2%||25.6%
|-
|$25k or less||8.4%||24.5%
|-
|'''[[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Race]]'''||'''No. VA'''||'''U.S.'''
|-
|White||67.2%||74.1%
|-
|Black or African American||11.6%||12.4%
|-
|Asian||12.5%||4.3%
|-
|(Hispanic or Latino)||13.9%||N/A
|-
|Some other race||N/A||6.2%
|-
|Two or more races||2.4%||2.1%
|-
|'''[[Educational attainment in the United States|Educational attainment]]'''||'''No. VA'''||'''U.S.'''
|-
|(Graduate/professional)||25.2%||9.9%
|-
|Bachelor's or higher||55.5%||27.0%
|-
|Associate's||5.7%||7.4%
|-
|Some college||14.8%||19.5%
|-
|High school/equivalent||15.8%||30.2%
|-
|Less than high school||8.1%||15.9%
|}
Northern Virginia is home to people from diverse backgrounds, with significant numbers of [[Korean Americans]], [[Vietnamese Americans]], [[Bangladeshi Americans]], [[Chinese Americans]], [[Filipino Americans]], [[Russian Americans]], [[Arab Americans]], [[Palestinian Americans]], [[Uzbek Americans]], [[Afghan Americans]], [[Ethiopian Americans]], [[Indian Americans]], [[Iranian Americans]], [[Thai Americans]], and [[Pakistani Americans]]. [[Annandale, Virginia|Annandale]], [[Centreville]], [[Chantilly, Virginia|Chantilly]], and [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax City]] have very large [[Korean American]] communities. [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]] has a large Vietnamese American community, and the region is home to a small [[Tibetan Americans|Tibetan American]] community.

There is a sizable [[Hispanic and Latino|Hispanic]] population, primarily consisting of [[Salvadorans]], [[Peruvians]], [[Puerto Ricans]], [[Cubans]], [[Bolivians]], [[Mexicans]], and [[Colombians]]. Arlington is the center of the largest [[Bolivians|Bolivian]] community in North America (mostly immigrants from [[Cochabamba]]).{{Citation needed|date=November 2008}}  Many of these immigrants work in transportation-related fields, small businesses, hospitality, vending, gardening, construction, and cleaning.

Of those born in the U.S. and living in Northern Virginia's four largest counties, their place of birth by [[List of regions of the United States|census region]] is 60.5 percent from the [[Southern United States|South]], 21.0 percent from the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]], 11.5 percent from the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]], and 7.0 percent from the [[Western United States|West]]. 33.7 percent were born in Virginia, which is categorized as part of the [[Southern United States]] along with neighboring Maryland and Washington, D.C., by the Census Bureau.{{cn|date=March 2023}}

===Educational attainment===
The core Northern Virginia jurisdictions of Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William comprising a total population of 1,973,513 is highly educated, with 55.5 percent of its population 25 years or older holding a bachelor's degree or higher.{{Citation needed|date=July 2009}} This is comparable to [[Seattle]], the most educated large city in the U.S., with 53.4 percent of residents having at least a bachelor's degree.<ref name="Most Educated City in US">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Ranking/2003/R02T160.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041013165801/http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Ranking/2003/R02T160.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 13, 2004 |title=ACS: Ranking Table – Percent of People 25 Years and Over Who Have Completed a Bachelor's Degree |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=2008-08-27 |df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/STTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=16000US5363000&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S1501&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-redoLog=false |title=Seattle city, Washington – Educational Attainment<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=November 12, 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212054840/http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/STTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=16000US5363000&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S1501&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-redoLog=false |archive-date=February 12, 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The number of graduate/professional degree holders in Arlington is relatively high at 34.3 percent, nearly quadruple the rate of the U.S. population as a whole.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/STTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=05000US51013&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S1501&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-redoLog=false |title=Arlington County, Virginia – Educational Attainment<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=November 12, 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212055553/http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/STTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=05000US51013&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S1501&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-redoLog=false |archive-date=February 12, 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Affluence===
[[File:Route267vausawiehle.jpeg|right|thumb|[[Reston, Virginia|Reston]], a [[planned community]],<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/01/AR2011030106539.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |title=City planners use Reston as a model |first=Janet |last=Rems |date=March 3, 2011 |access-date=March 4, 2011 |archive-date=June 29, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629023138/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/01/AR2011030106539.html |url-status=live }}</ref> seen from the [[Dulles Toll Road]], in December 2006]]
The region is known in Virginia and the [[Washington metropolitan area]] for its relative affluence. [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]] in Northern Virginia is one of the seven counties in the nation where black households make more than white households.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Henderson |first1=Tim |title=Black households make more money than white ones in these seven counties |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/black-households-make-money-white-ones-seven-counties |access-date=20 February 2023 |work=PBS NewsHour |date=10 November 2016 |language=en-us |archive-date=August 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805024530/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/black-households-make-money-white-ones-seven-counties |url-status=live }}</ref> Among large cities or counties in the nation with [[median household income]]s in excess of $100,000, the top two cities, which comprise over half the region's population, are in Northern Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/prod/2008pubs/acs-09.pdf |title=Income, Earnings, and Poverty Data From the 2007 American Community Survey |access-date=December 7, 2017 |archive-date=May 5, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505163232/http://www.census.gov/prod/2008pubs/acs-09.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> 

Northern Virginia also has one of the highest costs of living in the nation, making the actual purchasing power of these households considerably less than in other less affluent areas.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.coli.org/COLIAdjustedMHI.asp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080702224956/http://www.coli.org/COLIAdjustedMHI.asp |url-status=dead |title=Cost of Living Can Significantly Affect "Real" Median Household Income<!-- Bot generated title --> |archivedate=July 2, 2008}}</ref> According to [[Nielsen Company|Nielsen]] Claritas, Loudoun County and Arlington County have the highest concentration of 25- to 34-year-olds with incomes of $100,000+ in the nation.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/06/AR2009110604170.html |title=Loudoun tops the nation in 25-to-34-year-olds with hefty incomes |date=November 6, 2009 |newspaper=The Washington Post |last=Gowen |first=Annie |access-date=September 6, 2017 |archive-date=May 25, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525013400/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/06/AR2009110604170.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nielsen.com/us/en |title=Nielsen &#124; Audience is Everything |website=www.nielsen.com |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005162121/https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1988, [[Tysons Galleria]], a large shopping mall, opened across [[Virginia Route 123]] from [[Tysons Corner Center]] with high-end department stores [[Neiman Marcus]] and [[Saks 5th Avenue]], hoping to become the Washington area's upscale shopping destination. The mall had trouble with sales and attracting high-end boutiques well into the 1990s and faced competition from [[Fairfax Square]], which opened nearby in 1990 with the largest [[Tiffany & Co.]] boutique outside of New York City.<ref name="Swanky">{{cite news |last1=Potts |first1=Mark |title=The Swanky Side of Fairfax Square |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/1989/11/13/the-swanky-side-of-fairfax-square/275dd28c-ed87-42c6-a5a9-e82dcf496e6a/ |access-date=20 February 2023 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=13 November 1989 |archive-date=August 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827234742/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/1989/11/13/the-swanky-side-of-fairfax-square/275dd28c-ed87-42c6-a5a9-e82dcf496e6a/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Following a 1997 renovation, Tysons Galleria was able to attract high-end stores. In 2002, [[National Geographic Society|''National Geographic'']] described it as "the [[Rodeo Drive]] of the [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]]."<ref name="Galleria">{{Cite web |url=http://www.smartliteusa.com/one_sheets/06_TysonsGalleria.Plat.04.pdf |title=Tysons Galleria |access-date=January 2, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320061741/http://www.smartliteusa.com/one_sheets/06_TysonsGalleria.Plat.04.pdf |archive-date=March 20, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> 

In 2008, luxury home service [[Sotheby's]] International Realty, which had three offices in Virginia serving the rest of the state, and two in Washington, D.C., opened a new office in [[McLean, Virginia|McLean]] to sell high-end real estate in Northern Virginia.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Plumb |first1=Tierney |title=Sotheby's International Realty opens shop in Northern Virginia |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2008/09/15/daily62.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |work=Washington Business Journal |date=18 September 2008 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=January 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116160454/https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2008/09/15/daily62.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Crime===
According to the "Crime in Virginia 2021" report, published by the Department of State Police, Northern Virginia had homicide rates below the state average:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!'''Jurisdiction'''
!'''Population (2020 Census)'''
!'''Homicides (2020)'''
!'''Homicide Rate (per 100,000)'''
!Homicides (2021)
!Homicide Rate (per 100,000)
|-
|Alexandria city
|159,467
|3
|1.88
|2
|1.25
|-
|Arlington County
|238,643
|3
|1.26
|0
|0.00
|-
|Clarke County
|14,783
|0
|0.00
|0
|0.00
|-
|Culpeper County
|52,552
|0
|0.00
|0
|0.00
|-
|Fairfax city
|24,146
|0
|0.00
|0
|0.00
|-
|Fairfax County
|1,150,309
|16
|1.39
|26
|2.26
|-
|Falls Church city
|14,658
|1
|6.82
|0
|0.00
|-
|Fauquier County
|72,972
|3
|4.11
|3
|4.11
|-
|Frederick County
|91,419
|3
|3.28
|2
|2.19
|-
|Fredericksburg city
|27,982
|3
|10.72
|3
|10.72
|-
|Loudoun County
|420,959
|1
|0.24
|3
|0.71
|-
|Madison County
|13,837
|1
|7.23
|1
|7.23
|-
|Manassas city
|42,772
|1
|2.34
|1
|2.34
|-
|Manassas Park city
|17,219
|0
|0.00
|0
|0.00
|-
|Prince William County
|482,204
|7
|1.45
|10
|2.07
|-
|Rappahannock County
|7,348
|0
|0.00
|0
|0.00
|-
|Spotsylvania County
|140,032
|5
|3.57
|3
|2.14
|-
|Stafford County
|156,927
|2
|1.27
|4
|2.55
|-
|Warren County
|40,727
|0
|0.00
|0
|0.00
|-
|Winchester city
|28,120
|2
|7.11
|1
|3.56
|-
|'''REGION TOTAL'''
|'''3,197,076'''
|'''51'''
|'''1.60'''
|'''59'''
|'''1.85'''
|}
A 2009 report by the Northern Virginia Regional Gang Task Force suggests that anti-gang measures and crackdowns on [[illegal immigrants]] by local jurisdictions are driving gang members out of Northern Virginia and into more immigrant-friendly locales in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and the rest of Virginia.<ref name="gangsflee">{{cite news |last1=Klopott |first1=Freeman |title=Gangs flee N.Va.for havens in Md., D.C., report says |url=https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/gangs-flee-nvafor-havens-in-md-dc-report-says |access-date=20 February 2023 |work=Washington Examiner |date=27 October 2009 |language=en |archive-date=February 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220032651/https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/gangs-flee-nvafor-havens-in-md-dc-report-says |url-status=live }}</ref> The violent crime rate in Northern Virginia fell 17 percent from 2003 to 2008.<ref name="gangsflee" /> Fairfax County has the lowest crime rate in the Washington metropolitan area, and the lowest crime rate amongst the 50 largest jurisdictions of the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/news/2006/316.htm |title=Crime Drops for Fourth Straight Year in Fairfax County |publisher=Fairfax County |date=5 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070817061725/https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/news/2006/316.htm |archive-date=17 August 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-659226.html |title=2 Counties: A Dangerous Difference; While Montgomery's Crime Rate Has Risen, Fairfax's Is Down Series: VULNERABLE SUBURBS: THE GROWTH OF VIOLENT CRIME Series Number: 2/2}}</ref><ref>{{cite interview |last=Connolly |first=Gerald |title=Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Election |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2007/10/31/DI2007103102204.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |date=1 November 2007 |publisher=[[The Washington Post]] |archive-date=October 13, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013102442/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2007/10/31/DI2007103102204.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

While the region has extremely low violent crime rates, it is an emerging hub for teen [[sex trafficking]], with regional gangs finding it more profitable than selling drugs or weapons.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Zapotosky |first1=Matt |title=Gangs in Northern Virginia increasingly selling children for sex |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/gangs-in-northern-virginia-increasingly-selling-children-for-sex/2013/09/29/3386e1a8-1c9c-11e3-82ef-a059e54c49d0_story.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=29 September 2013 |archive-date=October 7, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171007111558/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/gangs-in-northern-virginia-increasingly-selling-children-for-sex/2013/09/29/3386e1a8-1c9c-11e3-82ef-a059e54c49d0_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of the Washington Metropolitan Area}}
[[File:Stand up scene (8712578924).jpg|thumb|[[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington]], home to some of the tallest high rises in the [[Washington metropolitan area]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Downey |first1=Kirstin |title=High-Rises Approved That Would Dwarf D.C. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/05/AR2007050501208.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=6 May 2007 |archive-date=January 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170102210313/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/05/AR2007050501208.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?searchID=39386636 |title=Diagrams - SkyscraperPage.com |website=skyscraperpage.com |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005172126/https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?searchID=39386636 |url-status=live }}</ref>]]

Former Virginia Governor [[Bob McDonnell]] described Northern Virginia as "the economic engine of the state" during a January 2010 Northern Virginia Technology Council address.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hubler |first1=David |title=Virginia's new governor keeps focus on jobs and technology |url=https://washingtontechnology.com/2010/01/virginias-new-governor-keeps-focus-on-jobs-and-technology/343618/ |access-date=20 February 2023 |work=Washington Technology |date=27 January 2010 |language=en |archive-date=April 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417024504/https://washingtontechnology.com/2010/01/virginias-new-governor-keeps-focus-on-jobs-and-technology/343618/ |url-status=live }}</ref><!-- more summary sentences needed-->

{{As of|2007}} the Northern Virginia office submarkets contain {{cvt|172000000|sqft|m2}} of office space, 33 percent more than those in Washington, D.C., and 55 percent more than those in its Maryland suburbs. {{cvt|8000000|sqft|m2}} of office space is under construction in Northern Virginia. 60 percent of the construction is occurring in the Dulles Corridor submarket.<ref>{{cite news |title=The CoStar Office Market Watch |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/articles/commercialrealestate052807.html |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=20 February 2023 |language=en |date=28 May 2007 |archive-date=April 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170402051818/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/articles/commercialrealestate052807.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

As of September 2008, the unemployment rate in Northern Virginia was 3.2 percent, about half the national average, and the lowest of any metropolitan area.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://money.cnn.com/interactive/economy/state-unemployment-rates/ |title=Unemployment: Where does your state rank? |website=CNNMoney |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=September 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923154556/https://money.cnn.com/interactive/economy/state-unemployment-rates/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2008/11/10/daily73.html |title=Northern Virginia still creating jobs |newspaper=Washington Business Journal |date=October 26, 2008 |first=Jeff |last=Clabaugh |access-date=2008-11-14 |archive-date=October 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025225946/http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2008/11/10/daily73.html |url-status=live }}</ref> While the U.S. as a whole had negative job growth between September 2007 to September 2008, Northern Virginia gained 12,800 jobs, representing half of Virginia's new jobs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sungazette.net/articles/2008/10/26/arlington/news/nw877.txt |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130222172232/http://www.sungazette.net/articles/2008/10/26/arlington/news/nw877.txt |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 22, 2013 |title=Arlington Jobs Picture Still Best in Virginia |publisher=Sun Gazette Newspapers |date=October 26, 2008 |first=Scott |last=McCaffrey |access-date=2008-11-14 }}</ref> As of July 2010, the unemployment rate of the region was 5.2 percent.<ref>{{cite news |last1=McCaffrey |first1=Scott |title=Unemployment Dips Slightly Across Arlington |url=https://www.insidenova.com/news/arlington/unemployment-dips-slightly-across-arlington/article_1330b1b0-c467-5519-b470-bd95c8528980.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |work=InsideNoVA |date=2 September 2010 |language=en |archive-date=February 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220032652/https://www.insidenova.com/news/arlington/unemployment-dips-slightly-across-arlington/article_1330b1b0-c467-5519-b470-bd95c8528980.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 

In the mid-2000s, Fairfax County was one of few places in the nation that attracted more [[Creative class|creative-class]] workers than it created.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.baconsrebellion.com/Issues05/04-25/Koelemay.html |title=Competing for the Creative Class |first=Doug |last=Koelemay |publisher=Bacon's Rebellion |date=25 April 2005 |access-date=August 28, 2016 |archive-date=December 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227040940/http://www.baconsrebellion.com/Issues05/04-25/Koelemay.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Internet===
[[File:Crystal City Metro headhouse 2016.jpg|thumb|[[Crystal City, Virginia|Crystal City]] in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] was selected as a location for [[Amazon (company)|Amazon's]] [[Amazon HQ2]] real estate search. The regional headquarters complex will include up to {{cvt|6000000|sqft|m2|-2}},<ref name=arch>{{cite news |url=https://archpaper.com/2019/05/amazon-arlington-virginia-crystal-city-hq2-zgf/ |title=Amazon reveals first rendering of its HQ2 in Arlington, Virginia |publisher=The Architect's Newspaper |date=May 17, 2019 |last=Franklin |first=Sydney |access-date=May 31, 2019 |archive-date=May 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190517212350/https://archpaper.com/2019/05/amazon-arlington-virginia-crystal-city-hq2-zgf/ |url-status=live }}</ref> rivaling the nearby Pentagon.]]
Northern Virginia is the busiest [[Internet]] intersection in the nation,<ref name=gp/> with up to 70 percent of all Internet traffic flowing through [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]] data centers every day.<ref name="louddata1">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/data-centers-boom-in-loudoun-county-but-jobs-arent-following/2014/01/17/b4a704c8-7f0e-11e3-93c1-0e888170b723_story.html |title=Data centers boom in Loudoun County, but jobs are not following |first=Jonathan |last=O'Connell |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=17 January 2014 |access-date=November 25, 2015 |archive-date=November 25, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151125204543/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/data-centers-boom-in-loudoun-county-but-jobs-arent-following/2014/01/17/b4a704c8-7f0e-11e3-93c1-0e888170b723_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It is the largest [[data center]] market in the world by capacity, with nearly double that of [[London]], and the world's fastest-growing data market as of 2018.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://data-economy.com/northern-virginia-worlds-first-data-centre-market-to-reach-one-gigawatt-of-capacity/ |title=Northern Virginia – world's first data center market to reach one gigawatt of capacity |publisher=Data Economy |date=April 26, 2019 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190531035405/https://data-economy.com/northern-virginia-worlds-first-data-centre-market-to-reach-one-gigawatt-of-capacity/ |archive-date=31 May 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://datacenterfrontier.com/northern-va-ready-for-a-data-center-building-boom/ |title=Northern Virginia: America's Largest Data Center Market |publisher=Data Center Frontier |date=2017-03-16 |last=Miller |first=Rich |access-date=October 17, 2017 |archive-date=October 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017095144/https://datacenterfrontier.com/northern-va-ready-for-a-data-center-building-boom/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Loudoun County expects to have {{cvt|6500000|sqft|m2}} of data center space by 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Censer |first1=Marjorie |title=After dramatic growth, Ashburn expects even more data centers |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/after-dramatic-growth-ashburn-expects-even-more-data-centers/2011/06/09/gIQAZduLjJ_story.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=27 August 2011 |quote="Loudoun officials said they expect 6.5 million square feet in data centers by 2021." |archive-date=October 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017094035/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/after-dramatic-growth-ashburn-expects-even-more-data-centers/2011/06/09/gIQAZduLjJ_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> By 2012, [[Dominion Resources|Dominion Energy]] expects that 10 percent of all electricity it sends to Northern Virginia will be used by the region's data centers alone.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usnews.com/articles/news/energy/2009/03/24/the-internets-hidden-energy-hogs-data-servers.html |title=The Internet's Hidden Energy Hogs: Data Servers |first=Kent |last=Garber |work=[[U.S. News & World Report]] |date=March 24, 2009 |access-date=2007-03-25 |archive-date=April 27, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427041522/http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/energy/2009/03/24/the-internets-hidden-energy-hogs-data-servers.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Accenture]] estimates that 70 percent of [[Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud]] servers are located in their Northern Virginia zone.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2012/03/14/estimate-amazon-cloud-backed-by-450000-servers |title=Estimate: Amazon Cloud Backed by 450,000 Servers |date=March 14, 2012 |website=Data Center Knowledge |last=Miller |first=Rich |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005172134/https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2012/03/14/estimate-amazon-cloud-backed-by-450000-servers |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2013/01/15/amazon-to-add-capacity-to-us-east-region |title=Amazon Adding Cloud Capacity in Northern Virginia |date=January 15, 2013 |website=Data Center Knowledge |last=Miller |first=Rich |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005172137/https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2013/01/15/amazon-to-add-capacity-to-us-east-region |url-status=live }}</ref> A 2015–16 estimate by [[Greenpeace]] puts Amazon's current and upcoming power capacity in Northern Virginia at over 1 [[gigawatt]].<ref name="gp">{{cite news |url=https://datacenterfrontier.com/amazon-approaches-1-gigawatt-of-cloud-capacity-in-virginia/ |publisher=Data Center Frontier |title=Amazon Approaches 1 Gigawatt of Cloud Capacity in Virginia |date=2017-01-16 |last=Miller |first=Rich |access-date=October 17, 2017 |archive-date=October 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017093719/https://datacenterfrontier.com/amazon-approaches-1-gigawatt-of-cloud-capacity-in-virginia/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Federal government===
{{Main|List of federal agencies in Northern Virginia}}
[[File:US intelligence budget.png|thumb|The region is home to three of the four largest [[United States Intelligence Community|U.S. intelligence agencies]] by budget.]]
The [[Federal government of the United States|federal government]] is a major employer in Northern Virginia, which is home to numerous government agencies, including the headquarters of the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] and [[the Pentagon]], headquarters of the [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]]. The area also includes [[Fort Myer]], [[Fort Belvoir]], [[Marine Corps Base Quantico]], the [[FBI Academy]], [[Drug Enforcement Administration|DEA Academy]], [[Naval Criminal Investigative Service]], the [[United States Patent and Trademark Office|U.S. Patent and Trademark Office]], and [[United States Geological Survey|U.S. Geological Survey]].

Government contracting is an important part of the region's economy. Arlington alone is home to over 600 federal contractors and has the highest weekly wages of any major jurisdiction in the [[Washington metropolitan area]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fedsmith.com/article/1825/ |title=Best East Coast Cities for Defense Jobs |access-date=January 14, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090124094549/http://www.fedsmith.com/article/1825/ |archive-date=January 24, 2009 |url-status=dead |last=Ledford |first=Tranette}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |url=http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2006/12/art1full.pdf |title=Industry dynamics in the Washington, DC, area: has a second job core emerged? |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070605035724/https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2006/12/art1full.pdf |archive-date=5 June 2007 |magazine=Monthly Labor Review |publisher=Bureau of Labor Statistics |date=December 2006 |last1=Perrins |first1=Gerald |last2=Nilsen |first2=Diane}}</ref>

The following government agencies have either 10,000+ employees or a $10+ billion budget:
*[[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA)
*[[Defense Logistics Agency]] (DLA)
*[[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]] (DOD)
*[[Drug Enforcement Administration]] (DEA)
*[[National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency]] (NGA)
*[[National Reconnaissance Office]] (NRO)
*[[Transportation Security Administration]] (TSA)
*[[United States Patent and Trademark Office]] (USPTO)
*[[United States Fish and Wildlife Service]] (FWS)

Other federal agencies in Northern Virginia include:
*[[DARPA]]
*[[National Science Foundation]] (NSF)
*[[Office of the Director of National Intelligence]] (ODNI)

===Notable companies===
{{Further|Dulles Technology Corridor|List of companies headquartered in Northern Virginia}}
[[File:Capital One World Headquarters.jpg|thumb|[[Capital One Tower (Virginia)|Capital One Tower]] in [[Tysons, Virginia|Tysons]], the tallest building in the [[Washington metropolitan area]] and a centerpiece of the {{cvt|5000000|sqft|m2|-2}} headquarters campus for [[Capital One]]<ref name=bis>{{cite news |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/breaking_ground/2014/03/positive-review-for-capital-ones-massive.html |title=Positive review for Capital One's massive headquarters in Tysons |publisher=[[American City Business Journals]] |work=Washington Business Journal |url-access=subscription |last=Neibauer |first=Michael |date=20 March 2014 |access-date=May 31, 2019 |archive-date=October 25, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025031312/https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/breaking_ground/2014/03/positive-review-for-capital-ones-massive.html |url-status=live }}</ref>]]

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left"
|+[[List of public corporations by market capitalization|Largest public companies]] ([[Fortune 500|''Fortune'' 500]] 2021)<ref name="f500">{{cite news |title=Fortune 500 |work=Fortune.com |url=https://fortune.com/franchise-list-page/visualize-the-fortune-500-2021 |access-date=February 14, 2022 |archive-date=January 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220127010006/https://fortune.com/franchise-list-page/visualize-the-fortune-500-2021/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
!Company
!Industry
!Headquarters
!National rank
|-
|[[AES Corporation]]
|[[Energy industry|Utilities: Gas and Electric]]
|data-sort-value="vaarlington"|[[Arlington County, Virginia]]
|313
|-
|[[Beacon Building Products]]
|[[Wholesaling|Wholesalers: Diversified]]
|[[Herndon, Virginia]]
|420
|-
|[[Boeing]]
|[[Arms industry|Aerospace and Defense]]
|[[Crystal City, Virginia]]
|58
|-
|[[Booz Allen Hamilton]]
|[[Information technology|Information Technology Services]]
|data-sort-value="vamclean"|[[McLean, Virginia]]
|391
|-
|[[CACI|CACI International]]
|[[Information technology|Information Technology Services]]
|[[Reston, Virginia]]
|473
|-
|[[Capital One|Capital One Financial]]
|[[Commercial bank|Commercial Banks]]
| data-sort-value="vamclean" |[[Tysons, Virginia]]
|99
|-
|[[DXC Technology]]
|[[Information technology|Information Technology Services]]
| data-sort-value="vatysons" |[[Ashburn, Virginia]]
|152
|-
|[[Freddie Mac]]
|[[Diversified financial|Diversified Financials]]
| data-sort-value="vamclean" |[[Tysons, Virginia]]
|47
|-
|[[General Dynamics]]
|[[Defense contractor|Aerospace and Defense]]
| data-sort-value="vafalls" |[[Reston, Virginia]]
|84
|-
|[[Hilton Worldwide]]
|[[Hospitality industry|Hospitality]]
|data-sort-value="vamclean"|[[Tysons, Virginia]]
|324
|-
|[[Leidos]]
|[[Information technology|Information Technology Services]]
|data-sort-value="vareston"|[[Reston, Virginia]]
|248
|-
|[[Northrop Grumman]]
|[[Defense contractor|Aerospace and Defense]]
| data-sort-value="vafalls" |[[West Falls Church, Virginia]]
|86
|-
|[[NVR, Inc.]]
|[[Construction|Homebuilders]]
| data-sort-value="vareston" |[[Reston, Virginia]]
|383
|-
|[[Science Applications International Corporation|Science Applications]]
|[[Information technology|Information Technology Services]]
|[[Reston, Virginia]]
|412
|}

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left"
|+[[List of largest private non-governmental companies by revenue|Largest private companies]] (''[[Forbes]]'' America's Largest Private Companies 2021)<ref name="forbesprivate">{{cite magazine |date=2021 |title=America's Largest Private Companies |url=https://www.forbes.com/largest-private-companies/list/ |magazine=[[Forbes]] |access-date=February 14, 2022 |archive-date=February 1, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201052900/https://www.forbes.com/largest-private-companies/list/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
!Company
!Industry
!Headquarters
!National rank
|-
|[[Bechtel]]
|[[Construction]]
|[[Reston, Virginia]]
|15
|-
|[[Carahsoft]]
|[[Information technology|Information Technology Services]]
| data-sort-value="vareston" |[[Reston, Virginia]]
|44
|-
|[[Mars, Incorporated|Mars]]
|[[Confectionery|Food and Drink]]
| data-sort-value="vamclean" |[[McLean, Virginia]]
|4
|}

[[Verisign]], the manager of the [[.com]] and [[.net]] [[top-level domain]]s, is based in the region. Major companies formerly headquartered in the region include [[AOL]], [[Mobil]], [[Nextel]]/[[Sprint Corporation|Sprint]], [[PSINet]], [[Sallie Mae]], [[MCI Communications]], [[Transurban]], and [[UUNET]].

==Attractions==
[[File:Udvar-Hazy Center center outside view.jpg|thumb|The [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center]], part of the [[National Air and Space Museum]] at [[Dulles International Airport]]]]
The region's large shopping malls, such as [[Potomac Mills (shopping mall)|Potomac Mills]] and [[Tysons Corner Center]], attract many visitors, as do the region's [[American Civil War|Civil War]] battlefields, which include the sites of both the [[First Battle of Bull Run|First]] and [[Second Battle of Bull Run]] in [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]] and the [[Battle of Fredericksburg]] in [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]].<ref>[[Battle of Fredericksburg]]</ref>{{Circular reference|date=May 2020}} [[Old Town Alexandria]] is known for its historic churches, townhouses, restaurants, gift shops, artist studios, and cruise boats. 

The waterfront and outdoor recreational amenities such as biking and running trails, including the [[Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park|Washington and Old Dominion Rail Trail]] that leads from Alexandria to the foothills of the Blue Ridge, the [[Mount Vernon Trail]] and trails along various stream beds, whitewater and sea kayaking, and rock climbing areas along the [[Potomac River]], [[List of parks in the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area|various parks]], [[Great Falls Park]], and historic [[Mount Vernon]], which opened a new visitor center in 2006. The Government Island park and quarry in [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]] has views of the Potomac River. Aquia Creek was the source for many of the building materials for the [[White House]], and [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]].<ref>[[Public Quarry at Government Island]]</ref>{{Circular reference|date=May 2020}} Also in [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]] are historic places, including [[George Washington]]'s boyhood home, [[Ferry Farm]],<ref>[[Ferry Farm]]</ref>{{Circular reference|date=May 2020}}, the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] headquarters and plantation [[Chatham Manor]]<ref>[[Chatham Manor]]</ref>{{Circular reference|date=May 2020}}, and [[Gari Melchers Home & Studio]].<ref>[[Gari Melchers Home & Studio]]</ref>{{Circular reference|date=May 2020}}

[[Arlington National Cemetery]] and the [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center]], an annex of the [[National Air and Space Museum]], which includes exhibits that cannot be housed at the main museum in Washington, D.C., due to space constraints. Concerts and other live shows are held at the [[Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts]] in [[Wolf Trap, Virginia|Wolf Trap]].<ref name="about.com top ten">{{cite web |url=http://dc.about.com/od/touristattractions/tp/NorthernVirginiaAttractions.htm |title=Top 10 Northern Virginia Attractions |last=Cooper |first=Rachel |publisher=About.com |access-date=April 12, 2010 |archive-date=January 22, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090122192958/http://dc.about.com/od/touristattractions/tp/NorthernVirginiaAttractions.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Politics==

{{Hidden begin
 |titlestyle = background:#ccccff;
 |title      = Presidential elections results
}}
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; font-size:95%;"
|+ Presidential elections results<ref>{{cite web |url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS |title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections |first=David |last=Leip |website=uselectionatlas.org |access-date=July 16, 2018 |archive-date=March 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323225526/https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|- bgcolor=lightgrey
! Year
! [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
! [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
! [[Third Party (United States)|Third parties]]
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[2024 United States presidential election in Virginia|2024]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|37.2% ''614,910''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''59.8%''' ''989,347''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.1% ''50,583''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 2020|2020]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|34.3% ''567,659''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''63.7%''' ''1,053,815''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|2.1% ''33,812''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 2016|2016]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|34.8% ''505,659''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''58.6%''' ''851,505''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|6.7% ''96,693''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 2012|2012]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|42.1% ''575,477''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''56.4%''' ''771,396''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.5% ''20,330''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 2008|2008]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|41.2% ''530,038''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''57.8%''' ''743,193''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|1.0% ''12,920''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 2004|2004]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|48.9% ''539,992''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''50.3%''' ''554,592''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|0.8% ''9,102''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 2000|2000]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''49.6%''' ''459,322''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|46.7% ''432,189''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|3.7% ''34,276''
|-
| style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[United States presidential election in Virginia, 1996|1996]]'''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''47.4%''' ''367,540''
|  style="text-align:center;" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|46.5% ''360,492''
|  style="text-align:center; background:honeyDew;"|6.1% ''47,413''
|-
|}
{{Hidden end}}

===Background===
[[File:2017.10.27.120606 King Street Alexandria Virginia USA.jpg|thumb|[[Alexandria, Virginia]], the adopted hometown of [[George Washington]]]]
From the mid-1880s until the mid-1960s Virginia politics were dominated by [[Conservative Democrat]]s. After [[World War I]], under the leadership of [[Harry Flood Byrd]], who became [[Governor of Virginia]] and later a [[United States Senate|U.S. senator]], the group became known as the [[Byrd Organization]]. With a power base in a network of the constitutional officers of most of Virginia's counties, they controlled Virginia's state government. The Byrd Organization largely followed conservative and anti-debt principles espoused by Byrd, who grew up in a rural setting during the fiscally stressed era following [[Reconstruction Era of the United States|Reconstruction]]. Although a member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] and an initial supporter of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], Senator Byrd became a bitter opponent of the [[New Deal]] and related national policies, particularly those involving fiscal and social issues. He became Virginia's senior senator after the death of Senator [[Carter Glass]] of [[Lynchburg, Virginia|Lynchburg]] in 1946.

The period following [[World War II]] saw substantial growth in the size and diversity of Virginia's suburban areas, including Northern Virginia, [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], and [[Hampton Roads]]. People of the emerging middle class were increasingly less willing to accept the rural focus of the General Assembly, nor Byrd's extreme positions on public debt and social issues. The latter was nowhere more graphically illustrated than with Byrd's violent opposition to [[racial integration]] of the state's [[state school |public schools]]. His leadership in the failed policy of [[Massive Resistance]] to racial desegregation of the public schools and efforts to circumvent related rulings of the [[United States Supreme Court]] ultimately caused closure of some public schools in the state and alienated many middle-class voters. The Byrd Organization had never been strong in Virginia's independent cities, and beginning in the 1960s, city and suburban factions increasingly supported efforts to make broad changes in Virginia. In this climate, the [[Republican Party of Virginia]] began making inroads.

Rulings by both state and federal courts that "Massive Resistance" was unconstitutional and a move to compliance with the court orders in early 1959 by Governor [[J. Lindsay Almond]], and the General Assembly could be described as marking the Byrd Organization's "last stand", although the remnants of the Organization continued to wield power for a few years longer.<ref name="Glarud">{{cite journal |last1=Glasrud |first1=Bruce |date=May 1977 |title=The Crisis of Conservative Virginia: The Byrd Organization and the Politics of Massive Resistance (book review) |journal=The Journal of Southern History |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=324–325 |doi=10.2307/2207385 |publisher=The Journal of Southern History, Vol. 43, No. 2 |last2=Ely |first2=James W. |jstor=2207385}}</ref>

When Senator Byrd resigned in 1965, he was replaced by his son [[Harry F. Byrd Jr.]] in the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]]. In 1969, however, the 80-year domination of Virginia politics by the Byrds ended with the election of [[Linwood Holton]], a conservative Democrat who subsequently became a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] and was reelected in 1973, representing the first Republican governor had been elected in the 20th century. 

During the last quarter of the 20th century, Virginia's Republicans gained ground against the Democrats. Republican [[John Warner]] from Northern Virginia gained one of the seats in the U.S. Senate in 1978. After longtime state senator [[Douglas Wilder|L. Douglas Wilder]] became governor in 1989, the first African American to be elected a governor in the United States, Republicans subsequently gained control of the Governor's mansion after the 1993 election. Republicans finally gained control of the General Assembly in the 1999 elections.

For a number of years, the recurring Republican theme was to reduce waste in state government and taxes. However, this seemed to reach a peak during the administration of [[Jim Gilmore]], with a move to repeal an unpopular car tax accompanied by a failure to provide promised replacement funds to the counties, cities and towns. Subsequently, two Democrats were elected consecutively as governor, and control in the General Assembly shifted back to a more bipartisan balance of power. As governor, both [[Mark Warner]] and [[Tim Kaine]] were confronted with stabilizing state economics and dealing with a deteriorating transportation funding situation partially caused by the state's failure to index state fuel taxes to inflation, with a "cents per gallon" tax rate unchanged since the administration of Democratic Governor [[Gerald Baliles]] in 1986.

===21st-century politics===
[[File:Virginia Presidential Election Results 2020.svg|thumb|right|300px|Map of the [[2020 United States presidential election in Virginia]]]]
[[File:Virginia Presidential Election Results 2024.svg|thumb|right|300px|Map of the [[2024 United States presidential election in Virginia]]]]
[[File:Virginia Congressional Districts, 118th Congress.svg|thumbnail|300px|Virginia Congressional Districts as of 2023]]

In the 21st century, Northern Virginia is known for becoming increasingly favorable to the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] at both the state and national level. Fairfax County supported [[John Kerry]] in the [[2004 United States presidential election|2004 presidential election]], and also voted heavily for [[Barack Obama]] in the [[2008 United States presidential election|2008 presidential election]], the first time a Democratic candidate for president carried the Commonwealth of Virginia since [[Lyndon Johnson]] in [[1964 United States presidential election|1964]]. The area also voted for Democrats [[Jim Webb]] in 2006 for U.S. Senate, [[Tim Kaine]] in 2005 for governor, and [[Mark Warner]] in 2001 for governor. In these three races for statewide office, the margins tallied in Northern Virginia provided the Democratic candidate with a winning margin of victory.

Democrat [[Jim Webb]] defeated incumbent Senator [[George Allen (U.S. politician)|George Allen]] by the slim margin of 49.6 to 49.2 percent in 2006.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://sbe.virginiainteractive.org/nov2006/l_02.htm |title=General Election- November 7, 2006<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=November 16, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061121122311/http://sbe.virginiainteractive.org/nov2006/l_02.htm |archive-date=November 21, 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> However, that margin increased to 58.1 to 40.7 percent in favor of the Democratic challenger in the counties and cities of Northern Virginia, whereas Webb ran behind Allen somewhat, 46.1 to 52.7 percent, in the remainder of the commonwealth. Webb carried [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]], [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]], and [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]], as well as the more urban areas of [[Arlington, Virginia|Arlington]], [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], and [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]]. Allen's sole wins in Northern Virginia were the cities of [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]] and [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]], winning the latter two only by the narrow margins of 3.54 and 2.38 percent, respectively.

In the [[2004 United States presidential election|2004 presidential election]], 53 percent of Northern Virginia voters voted for [[John Kerry]], the Democratic candidate and 46 percent voted for [[George W. Bush]], the [[United States Republican Party|Republican]] candidate. This contrasted with the rest of Virginia, which gave 43 percent to Kerry and 56 percent to Bush. Kerry also carried [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]], the most populous county in Virginia, and [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax City]], the first time those jurisdictions had voted Democratic since [[1964 United States presidential election|Johnson's national landslide in 1964]]. The strongest support in the area for the Democrats lies inside [[Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)|the Beltway]], in Arlington, [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], and parts of Fairfax County. The more distant areas (i.e., [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]], [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]] and [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]]) historically have been more conservative; however, as they have increased in population, they have become more liberal. Both Mark Warner in 2001 and John Kerry in 2004 lost Loudoun and Prince William counties. Tim Kaine won [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]], and [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun]] counties in 2005. Tim Kaine won [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County in 2018]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://fredericksburg.com/news/local/election-results-in-fredericksburg-region-reflect-suburban-rural-divide/article_e15de970-eb88-56b2-8d7f-1a93fe20ee06.html |title=Election results in Fredericksburg region reflect suburban-rural divide |first=Jeff |last=Branscome |publisher=The Free Lance-Star |website=Fredericksburg.com |date=7 November 2018 |url-access=subscription |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005172126/https://fredericksburg.com/news/local/election-results-in-fredericksburg-region-reflect-suburban-rural-divide/article_e15de970-eb88-56b2-8d7f-1a93fe20ee06.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2006 despite not polling as strongly as Mark Warner statewide, Democratic senate candidate Jim Webb won both Loudoun and Prince William counties. In 2005, 65 percent of the voters of Northern Virginia voted for Democrat [[Tim Kaine]] for governor over [[Jerry Kilgore (politician)|Jerry Kilgore]], who received only 32 percent of the vote, easily 14 points lower than George W. Bush's showing only a year earlier.

The Democrats in Virginia also have made considerable gains in the [[Virginia House of Delegates]] which helped turn both chambers of the state legislature to the Democrats. Since 2015 Democrats have flipped districts in the suburbs of Washington D.C in counties such as [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]], [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]], and [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]]. These flips have shown the changing demographics and voting bloc in these counties and the expansion of suburbanization and Northern Virginia. For example, the 28th district a seat held by Republicans since 1984 in Stafford County and parts of Fredericksburg and seat of former Republican Virginia Speaker of the House [[William J. Howell]]. 10 years ago Republicans won the Virginia House of Delegates election with 74% of the vote in the district. In the 2019 election [[Joshua G. Cole]], a fierce Democrat and supporter of the Green New Deal, flipped the district by 4 points. Another district the 2nd district that encompasses Prince William County and Stafford County was once a swing district held by both Republicans and Democrats. In 2017, Democrats flipped the district with 64% of the vote and was re-elected with 60% of the vote with [[Jennifer Caroll Foy]] a supporter of the Equal Rights Amendment which she passed this year with the new Democratic trifecta in the state.

The [[Virginia's 7th congressional district|7th]], [[Virginia's 8th congressional district|8th]], the [[Virginia's 10th congressional district|10th]], and the [[Virginia's 11th congressional district|11th]] [[Virginia's congressional districts|congressional districts]] lie within Northern Virginia.(As of 5/15/2023) The current representatives are from the 8th district is [[Don Beyer]] (D), from the 7th district is [[Abigail Spanberger]] (D), from the 10th district is [[Jennifer Wexton]] (D), and the current representative from the 11th district is [[Gerry Connolly]] (D). Three of four districts voted for Jim Webb in the 2006 Senate election.

In the 2005 gubernatorial election, the entire region continued to move away from the Republicans. Fairfax County, Arlington County, the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax City, and Falls Church, and for the first time,{{Citation needed|date=June 2008}} Loudoun County and Prince William County, went to Tim Kaine, the Democratic candidate. The area continued to be more Democratic the closer it was to Washington, D.C., but Richmond resident Kaine was able to accomplish what Northern Virginian Mark Warner had been unable to do just four years earlier in 2001: carry Loudoun County and Prince William County (as well as win over 60 percent of the vote in Fairfax County).

In 2008, economist [[Nancy Pfotenhauer]], a spokesperson and adviser for the [[John McCain 2008 presidential campaign|John McCain presidential campaign]], created controversy by referring to the areas of Virginia not included in Northern Virginia as "real Virginia", picking up on a Republican [[talking point]] that [[Sarah Palin]] promoted; namely that red states are the "real America" and more "pro-America".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tapper |first=Jake |title=McCain Adviser Says Northern Virginia Not "Real" Virginia |date=October 18, 2008 |url=http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/10/mccain-adviser.html |access-date=2008-10-28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081026174213/http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/10/mccain-adviser.html |archive-date=October 26, 2008 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> [[Joe McCain]], brother of John McCain, also called Arlington and Alexandria in Northern Virginia "communist country".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tapper |first=Jake |title=Joe McCain Makes Bad Joke |date=October 5, 2008 |url=http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/10/joe-mccain-make.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006112808/http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/10/joe-mccain-make.html |archive-date=6 October 2008 |url-status=dead |access-date=2008-12-06}}</ref>

In the [[2008 United States presidential election|2008 presidential election]], the majority of Northern Virginia voters voted for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. Over 70 percent of registered voters in Arlington, Alexandria and Falls Church voted for Obama.<ref name="cnn.com">{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/county/#VAP00map |work=CNN |title=County Results - Election Center 2008 - Elections & Politics from CNN.com |access-date=May 20, 2010 |archive-date=January 18, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090118011517/http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/county/#VAP00map |url-status=live }}</ref> Fairfax County, Loudoun County, Manassas and Prince William County also went to Obama, with Obama receiving 60 percent of the vote in Fairfax County compared to Republican candidate John McCain's 39 percent.<ref name="cnn.com"/> Obama's win in Fairfax County, the most populous county in the state, marks the second time a Democrat has carried that county since [[Solid South#Democratic factionalization over the Civil Rights Movement|the 1964 breakdown of Democratic predominance in the South]] (the other being the 2004 presidential elections when the county went to John Kerry). Obama's victory in Northern Virginia continues the trend of Northern Virginia favoring Democrats over Republicans.

In the [[2009 Virginia gubernatorial election|2009 gubernatorial election]], though Arlington, Alexandria, and Falls Church would back Democratic [[Senate of Virginia|state Senator]] [[Creigh Deeds]] in his unsuccessful run for governor, Republican former state Attorney General, and future Governor, [[Bob McDonnell]], who overwhelmingly defeated Deeds 59 to 41 percent across the state as a whole, won Fairfax County, Loudoun County, Stafford County, Manassas, and Prince William County. However, a January 2010 special state senate election in the Fairfax county-based 37th State Senatorial district, which was held following [[Ken Cuccinelli]]'s (R) resignation from the [[Senate of Virginia]] upon his election as state attorney general two months earlier, was won by then-[[Virginia House of Delegates|Delegate]] [[David W. Marsden]] (D). Marsden's victory would suggest that despite McDonnell's performance in northern Virginia during the 2009 gubernatorial election, the Democratic trend in the region has not been reversed.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/in_the_right/2010/01/virginia-special-election-send.html |title=Virginia Special Election Sends a Message to GOP |access-date=2010-02-13 |publisher=The Economist Group |date=January 13, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100116103718/http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/in_the_right/2010/01/virginia-special-election-send.html |archive-date=January 16, 2010 |url-status=dead |last=Pascoe |first=Bill}}</ref>

In 2011, a poll by ''[[The Washington Post]]'' found that 47 percent of Virginians favored the legalization of same-sex marriage, 43 percent opposed it, and 10 percent had no opinion. It found 55 percent favored allowing same-sex couples to adopt children, while 35 percent opposed that and 10 percent had no opinion.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cohen |first1=Jon |last2=Helderman |first2=Rosalind S. |title=Virginians are almost evenly split on gay marriage, Post poll finds |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/politics/virginians-are-almost-evenly-split-on-gay-marriage-post-poll-finds/2011/05/06/AFFtojcG_story.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=9 May 2011 |archive-date=September 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220917131051/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/politics/virginians-are-almost-evenly-split-on-gay-marriage-post-poll-finds/2011/05/06/AFFtojcG_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The same poll found that 64 percent of residents [[Arlington, Virginia|Arlington]], [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]], [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]] support same-sex marriage, 63 percent of residents of [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun]], [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William]], [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]], [[Manassas Park, Virginia|Manassas Park]], [[Stafford, Virginia|Stafford]], [[Fauquier County, Virginia|Fauquier]], [[Culpeper, Virginia|Culpeper]], [[Madison, Virginia|Madison]], [[Rappahannock County, Virginia|Rappamannock]], [[Warrenton, Virginia|Warrenton]], [[Clarke County, Virginia|Clarke County]], [[Frederick County, Virginia|Frederick]], and [[Winchester, Virginia|Winchester]] support same-sex marriage, while only 42 percent of the rest of Virginia supports same-sex marriage.<ref>{{cite news |title=Virginia politics, Northern Virginia style |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics-northern-virginia-style/2011/05/10/AFAFmKlG_graphic.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=10 May 2011 |archive-date=February 6, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180206002537/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics-northern-virginia-style/2011/05/10/AFAFmKlG_graphic.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Arlington, Clarke, Culpeper, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Loudoun, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford, and Warren counties, as well as Alexandria, Falls Church, Fairfax, Fredericksburg, Manassas, Manassas Park, and Winchester cities, form Northern Virginia's contribution to the Washington metropolitan area; [[Hillary Clinton]] received 849,758 votes compared to [[Donald Trump]]'s 503,120 votes in the twelve-county and seven-city region, a 63–37 percent split in the [[2016 United States presidential election|2016 presidential election]]. Despite the 26 percent margin of victory for Clinton, seven counties voted for Trump. This compares to Clinton's 825,974 votes to Trump's 236,827 votes (78 to 22 percent) in Calvert, Charles, Frederick, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties in Maryland as well as her 282,830 votes to his 12,723 votes (96 to 4 percent) in Washington, D.C. Among the aforementioned counties in Maryland, Trump carried two of them. The entire Washington metropolitan area&nbsp;– all seventeen counties and seven cities in Maryland and Virginia, plus the District of Columbia&nbsp;– voted 1,958,562 ballots to 752,670 ballots (72 to 28 percent) for Clinton and Trump, respectively. Compared to the entire state, Northern Virginia's twelve counties and seven cities represent 36 percent of the total electorate.<ref name="Leip, David">{{cite web |url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/ |title=General Election Results&nbsp;– Virginia |publisher=United States Election Atlas |access-date=July 15, 2018 |author=Leip, David |archive-date=June 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604224433/http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Culture==
[[File:Wolf Trap Concert Hall in northern Virginia LCCN2011632950.tif|thumb|Spectators watching a performance at [[Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts|Wolf Trap]]]]
[[File:Tysons Galleria Dec 2009 (4228555779).jpg|thumb|The [[The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City|Pentagon City]] and [[Tysons Galleria]] (pictured) malls are both attached to their own [[The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company|Ritz-Carlton hotels]].]]
Due to the proximity to the capital, many Northern Virginians go to [[Washington, D.C.]], for cultural outings and nightlife. The [[John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts|Kennedy Center]] in Washington, D.C., is a popular place for performances, as is [[Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts]] near [[Vienna, Virginia|Vienna]]. [[Jiffy Lube Live]] (near [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]]), [[EagleBank Arena]] at [[George Mason University]] in [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], and [[Capital One Arena]] in Washington, D.C. serve as popular concert venues, and Capital One Arena also serves as the home of sporting events. [[Smithsonian Institution|Smithsonian]] museums also serve as local cultural institutions with easy proximity to Northern Virginia. The [[Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center|Udvar-Hazy Center]] of the [[National Air and Space Museum]] in Chantilly is also popular.
[[Tysons Corner Center]] ("Tysons I") is one of the largest malls in the country and is a hub for shopping in the area. [[Tysons Galleria]] ("Tysons II"), its counterpart across Route 123, carries more high-end stores. [[Tysons, Virginia|Tysons]] itself is the 12th-largest business district in the United States.<ref>Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce, [http://www.tysonschamber.org/our-community/, "Our Community"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107164923/http://www.tysonschamber.org/our-community/, |date=January 7, 2016 }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=September 2014}}  

Other malls include [[Springfield Mall (Virginia)|Springfield Mall]], [[Fair Oaks Mall]], Manassas Mall, [[Spotsylvania Towne Centre]] which has a mall and a mixed-use retail and commercial area, and [[The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City]]. [[Dulles Town Center]] is the region's newest mall, serving the eastern [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]] area. [[Reston Town Center]] is a high-density mixed-use retail, commercial, and residential development located just off the 267 Toll Road in [[Reston, Virginia|Reston]]. [[Potomac Mills (shopping mall)|Potomac Mills]], located in Prince William County, is the largest [[outlet mall]] in the region. The town of [[Leesburg, Virginia|Leesburg]] in Loudoun County contains the Leesburg Corner Premium Outlets outlet mall.

===Recreation===
Northern Virginia is home to many activities for families and individuals, including biking/walking trails, sports leagues, recreation facilities, museums, historic homes, and parks.

It is home to the [[Northern Virginia Swim League]], which comprises 102 community pools, and NVSL-Dive, which is composed of 47 teams in Fairfax and Arlington counties. The swim and dive teams compete over the course of 5–6 weeks from the end of June through the first weekend in August.

The [[National Capital Area Council]] operates in the Washington metropolitan area. It serves localities in the Washington D.C Metropolitan Area. In Northern Virginia, it has chapters and divisions that serve, Fairfax County, Loudoun County, Prince William County, Stafford County, Arlington County, the City of Alexandria, and the City of Fairfax. It also serves Caroline County, the City of Fredericksburg, and Spotsylvania County.

The National Capital Soccer League serves soccer leagues and associations in the Washington D.C Metropolitan Area. It includes Northern Virginia soccer associations in Fairfax County, Loudoun County, Prince William County, Stafford County, Arlington County, the City of Fredericksburg, the City of Alexandria, the City of Fairfax, and one soccer association in Culpeper County, Winchester, and Warrenton.

===Secession===

Former Republican delegate [[Jeannemarie Devolites Davis]] expressed a common sentiment when she said "The formula for funding school construction in Northern Virginia requires that we pay 500 percent more than the actual cost of a project. We have to pay 500 percent because we give 400 percent away to the rest of the state." The state government's funding level for transportation projects in Northern Virginia is a perennial issue that often causes consternation from the region's politicians and citizens.<ref name="washingtonian">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/people/9947.html |title=Will Northern Virginia Become the 51st State? |last=Lindsay |first=Drew |date=November 1, 2008 |magazine=The Washingtonian |access-date=April 18, 2010 |archive-date=March 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319233113/http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/people/9947.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Many people consider the idea of secession a rhetorical one used to express frustration with the treatment of Northern Virginia by the state government as well as the opposing political sentiments between it and the rest of Virginia. Critics often point out that all states include regions of varying income and political discrepancies within their borders. Nevertheless, the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., are often seen as an extension of the more urbanized Mid-Atlantic, north-east, and the Boston-Washington corridor, even though Virginia as a whole is considered a Southern state. This perception is especially fueled by the region's closeness to Washington, D.C., large numbers of Northern transplants, and the prevalence of both new immigrant communities and growing ethnic diversity. Nevertheless, there is no serious secessionist movement.

==Transportation==
{{main|Transportation in Northern Virginia}}
===Airports===
{{Further|Dulles International Airport|Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport}}
[[File:Washington Dulles International Airport at Dusk.jpg|thumb|[[Dulles International Airport]] in [[Dulles, Virginia|Dulles]]]]
[[File:National Airport Station.jpg|thumb|[[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport station]] at [[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport]] in [[Crystal City, Virginia|Crystal City]]]]
The area has two major airports, [[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport]] in [[Crystal City, Virginia|Crystal City]], the [[List of the busiest airports in the United States|nation's 23rd-busiest airport by passenger traffic as of 2022]] and the busiest airport in the [[Washington metropolitan area]], and [[Dulles International Airport]] in [[Dulles, Virginia|Dulles]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/bwi-reagan-national-airports-set-records-for-passenger-traffic/2017/04/01/276d5d0c-1572-11e7-ada0-1489b735b3a3_story.html |title=BWI, Reagan National airports set records for passenger traffic - the Washington Post |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=2017-07-11 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803054752/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/bwi-reagan-national-airports-set-records-for-passenger-traffic/2017/04/01/276d5d0c-1572-11e7-ada0-1489b735b3a3_story.html |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all |last=Aratani |first=Lori |date=1 April 2017}}</ref> in both passenger loadings and aircraft movements, and the 16th-busiest airport<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.faa.gov/news/updates/busiest_airports/index.cfm?airportType%3DAll%26year%3D2007 |title=FAA - Top 50 Busiest U.S. Airports for 2007 – All Airports |access-date=2009-01-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080605061605/http://www.faa.gov/news/updates/busiest_airports/index.cfm?airportType=All&year=2007 |archive-date=June 5, 2008 |df=mdy}}</ref> in the nation by takeoffs and landings in 2007. Dulles is the region's primary international gateway, serves as a hub for [[United Airlines]], and has recently improved its low-cost carrier offerings with the addition of multiple flights by [[Southwest Airlines|Southwest]] and [[JetBlue]].

===Subway and passenger trains===
{{Further|Virginia Railway Express|Washington Metro}}
Commuters are served by the [[Washington Metro]] [[Rapid transit|subway]] and the [[Virginia Railway Express]] (VRE), a commuter railroad. Metro is the second-busiest subway system in the nation after the [[New York City Subway]] system.<ref name="apta">{{cite web |url=http://www.apta.com/research/stats/ridership/riderep/documents/08q3hr.pdf |title=Heavy Rail Rapid Transit Ridership Report, Third Quarter 2008 |last=Dawson |first=Christie |date=December 4, 2008 |publisher=American Public Transportation Association |access-date=2009-01-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206112918/http://www.apta.com/research/stats/ridership/riderep/documents/08q3hr.pdf |archive-date=February 6, 2009}}</ref> A [[Silver Line (Washington Metro)|completed expansion project]] extends the system past [[Dulles International Airport]] into [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudon County]]. The VRE has two lines adjacent to I-66 and I-95 starting in Union Station and extending to [[Manassas, Virginia|Manassas]] and [[Spotsylvania, Virginia|Spotsylvania]], respectively.<ref>[[Virginia Railway Express]]</ref>{{Circular reference|date=May 2020}} VRE service is significantly more limited, but nevertheless saw over a year of continuous ridership increase from 2007 into 2008.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2008/102008/10112008/417108 |title=Fredericksburg.com – VRE riders breaking records |access-date=January 6, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109194546/http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2008/102008/10112008/417108 |archive-date=January 9, 2009 |url-status=dead |last=Hannon |first=Kelly |date=11 October 2008}}</ref> Bus service is provided by WMATA's Metrobus and several local jurisdictions.

===Highways===
The Washington metropolitan area has the worst traffic in the nation,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wamu.org/news/morning_edition/11/09/27/dc_area_has_worst_traffic_in_us |title=D.C. Area Has Worst Traffic in U.S |last=Trull |first=Armando |date=September 27, 2011| access-date=2011-12-03| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111201093751/http://wamu.org/news/morning_edition/11/09/27/dc_area_has_worst_traffic_in_us| archive-date=December 1, 2011| url-status=dead}}</ref> and Northern Virginia is home to six of the ten worst [[Traffic bottleneck|bottlenecks]] in the area.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/top-10-the-worst-traffic-bottlenecks-in-the-washington-area/article/153097 |title=Top 10: The worst traffic bottlenecks in the Washington area |first=Liz |last=Essley |date=December 2, 2011 |access-date=December 3, 2011 |url-access=registration |archive-date=June 30, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630182414/http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/top-10-the-worst-traffic-bottlenecks-in-the-washington-area/article/153097 |url-status=live }}</ref> To alleviate gridlock, local governments encourage using Metrorail, [[High-occupancy vehicle|HOV]], carpooling, [[slugging]], and other forms of mass transportation. Major limited- or partially limited-access highways include Interstates 495 (the [[Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)|Capital Beltway]]), [[Interstate 95 in Virginia|95]], [[Interstate 395 (District of Columbia–Virginia)|395]], and [[Interstate 66|66]], the [[Fairfax County Parkway]] and adjoining [[Franconia–Springfield Parkway]], the [[George Washington Memorial Parkway]], and the [[Virginia State Route 267|Dulles Toll Road]]. [[High-occupancy vehicle]] (HOV) lanes are used for commuters and buses on I-66, I-95/395, and the Dulles Toll Road. A study done by INRIX Roadway Analytics ranked Southbound I-95 from Washington D.C to the southern tip of Stafford County the worst single traffic hotspot in the nation. It also ranked Northbound I-95 from Spotsylvania County to the northern tip of Stafford County the seventh worst traffic hotspot in the nation.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://fredericksburg.com/news/transportation/d-c--to-stafford-stretch-of-i-95-tabbed-worst-traffic-hotspot-in-u/article_b094fa03-527a-5826-bba5-de7e24810b69.html |title=D.C.-to-Stafford stretch of I–95 tabbed worst traffic hotspot in U.S. |first=Scott |last=Shenk |publisher=The Free Lance-Star |website=Fredericksburg.com |date=27 September 2017 |url-access=subscription |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005172128/https://fredericksburg.com/news/transportation/d-c--to-stafford-stretch-of-i-95-tabbed-worst-traffic-hotspot-in-u/article_b094fa03-527a-5826-bba5-de7e24810b69.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Northern Virginia is also home to the Express Lanes. These express lanes are where a car has an [[E-ZPass]] transponder and is charged for riding a distance on the express lanes. They are currently being built on I-66, and are currently available on I-395, I-495 from the Springfield Interchange to Tysons Corner but are being extended to the [[Maryland]]-Virginia border, and I-95 from the end of I-395 (Springfield Interchange) to central [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]] and are being extended to [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]].

Two major regional bottlenecks, the [[Springfield Interchange]] and [[Woodrow Wilson Bridge]], were massively reconstructed with completion in 2007 and 2008. Generally, Potomac River crossings remain major choke points; proposals to add crossings (such as near [[Leesburg, Virginia|Leesburg]] or [[Quantico, Virginia|Quantico]] as part of a long-proposed [[Washington Outer Beltway|Outer Beltway]]) are opposed by Virginia communities near the suggested bridge sites, and by Marylanders who fear that new bridges would bring new housing development to green space in that state such as [[Poolesville]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2009}}  Because of Northern Virginia's high housing costs, tens of thousands of employees there choose more affordable housing far away in outer Virginia exurban counties, or in [[Prince George's County, Maryland|Prince George's County]] and [[Southern Maryland]], thus creating tremendous traffic congestion on the Potomac bridges. This situation is much like metropolitan areas of California. Furthermore, Fairfax County localities such as [[Great Falls, Virginia|Great Falls]], [[Dranesville, Virginia|Dranesville]], and [[Clifton, Virginia|Clifton]] impose low-density, large-acreage residential zoning, which forces developers to leapfrog into Loudoun and Prince William counties to build housing, thus increasing commuters' driving distances. In recent years, developers have continued to develop in [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudoun County]], but have filled [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]], leading many developers to move south to [[Stafford County, Virginia|Stafford County]], where local government has been more receptive to developments.

==Education==
===Primary education===
{{Further|Fairfax County Public Schools}}
[[File:GMU fall.JPG|thumb|[[George Mason University]] in [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]], the largest university in the state by enrollment with 40,185 students as of fall 2023]]
[[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]]'s [[Fairfax County Public Schools |public school system]] includes the [[Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology]], an award-winning [[magnet school]]. As of 2021, 19 of the region's schools appear in the top 200 of ''[[Newsweek]]''{{'}}s "America's Top Public High Schools", and Thomas Jefferson is ranked number one.<ref name="americatop">{{Cite web |url=https://www.newsweek.com/topic/high-schools |title=High Schools news & latest pictures from Newsweek.com |website=Newsweek |access-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005172125/https://www.newsweek.com/topic/high-schools |url-status=live }}</ref> In comparison, Washington, D.C., Maryland, and the rest of Virginia have 10 schools between them in the top 200.<ref name="americatop"/>

===Colleges and universities===
{{Further|George Mason University}}
With 40,185 students as of fall 2023, [[George Mason University]] in [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]] is the largest public university by student enrollment in Virginia.

Other higher education institutions include [[Northern Virginia Community College]] (colloquially known as NOVA) in [[Annandale, Virginia|Annandale]] (with several branch campuses throughout Northern Virginia), the [[University of Mary Washington]] in [[Fredericksburg, Virginia|Fredericksburg]], [[Patrick Henry College]] in [[Purcellville, Virginia|western Loudoun County]], and [[Marymount University]] in north Arlington. The [[University of Virginia]] and [[Virginia Tech]] maintain a Center in [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]], and [[George Washington University]] has a campus in [[Loudoun County, Virginia|Loudon County]]. [[Virginia Commonwealth University]] Health Systems has a satellite campus in [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax]] at the [[Inova Health System]].

==See also==
*[[List of U.S. state partition proposals]]
*[[Northern Virginia trolleys]]
*[[Potomac primary]]

==References==
<!--This article uses [[Wikipedia:Footnotes]] please add references using that system and adjust the other references as necessary. -->
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071001004238/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,997688-1,00.html D.C. Dotcom] ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' (2000)
*[http://www.baconsrebellion.com/Issues03/08-11/Northern_virginia.htm Where is Northern Virginia?] ''Bacon's Rebellion'' (2003)
*[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/15/AR2006111501395.html So Close, Yet So Far Apart] ''[[The Washington Post]]'' (2006)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070211194610/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C1587284%2C00.html The Federal Job Machine] ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' (2007)
*[http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/people/9947.html Will Northern Virginia Become the 51st State?] ''[[The Washingtonian (magazine)|The Washingtonian]]'' (2008)
*[http://timshorrock.com/?p=710 The Corporate Intelligence Community: A Photo Exclusive] ''[[Tim Shorrock]]'' (2010)
*[http://projects.washingtonpost.com/top-secret-america/] ''[[The Washington Post]]'' (2010)

==External links==
{{Sister project links|wikt=no |commons=Category:Northern Virginia |b=no |n=no |q=no |s=no |v=no |voy=Northern Virginia |species=no |display=Northern Virginia |d=Q596021}}

*[http://www.novaregion.org Northern Virginia Regional Commission]
*[http://www.thenovaauthority.org/ Northern Virginia Transportation Authority]

{{Virginia}}

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[[Category:Northern Virginia| ]]
[[Category:Regions of Virginia]]
[[Category:Washington metropolitan area]]
[[Category:Proposed states and territories of the United States]]