Des Moines in English, [demwan] in French listen) is the capital and the most populous city of the State of Iowa. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, until it was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857. It is also the county seat of Polk County. Des Moines is the headquarters for the Principal Financial Group, the Meredith Corporation, and Ruan Transportation. Other major corporations such as Wells Fargo, ING Group, and John Deere have large operations in or near the metro area. Forbes Magazine ranked Des Moines as the 11th "Best Place for Business" in 2006.

U.S. Interstates 35 and 80 pass through the City of Des Moines. Des Moines is located at 41°35′27″N, 93°37′15″W (41.590939, -93.620866)GR1. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 200.1 km˛ (77.2 mi˛). 196.3 km˛ (75.8 mi˛) of it is land and 3.8 km˛ (1.5 mi˛) of it (1.88%) is water.