Denver ( DEN-vər) is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. It is located in the western United States, in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. With a population of 715,522 as of the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010, Denver is the 19th most populous city in the United States and the fifth most populous state capital. It is the principal city of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood metropolitan statistical area, with almost 3 million people the most populous metropolitan area in Colorado. Denver is the economic and cultural center of the broader Front Range Urban Corridor, home to more than 5 million people. Denver's downtown district lies about 12 miles (19 kilometers) east of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Named after James W. Denver, the governor of the Kansas Territory at the time, Denver was founded at the confluence of Cherry Creek and the South Platte River in 1858 during the Gold Rush era. Nicknamed the "Mile High City" because its official elevation is exactly one mile (5280 feet or 1609.344 meters) above sea level, Denver grew beyond its prospecting origins to become the principal commercial and transportation hub for a broad region spanning the Great Plains and Rocky Mountain West. The 105th meridian west of Greenwich, the longitudinal reference for the Mountain Time Zone, passes directly through Denver Union Station. As the most populous metropolitan area in a 560-mile (900 km) radius, Denver is a major cultural hub with a variety of museums and cultural institutions, including the Denver Performing Arts Complex and Denver Art Museum. Denver also has sports teams in all five major professional leagues. While the 10-county Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 2,963,821 and the 12-county Denver–Aurora, CO Combined Statistical Area had a population of 3,623,560 at the 2020 United States census, Denver functions as the principal city of the 18-county Front Range Urban Corridor, an oblong urban region stretching across Colorado and Wyoming with a population of 5,055,344 at the 2020 U.S. census. Regarded for its sunny weather and access to nature, Denver was named the best place to live in the United States by U.S. News & World Report in 2016.