Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Wayne County. The city is located on the Detroit River, north of Windsor, Ontario. Founded in 1701 by French fur traders, it is a major port city in a region sometimes called the American Rust Belt for its industrial areas which for Detroit are mainly in the southeastern part of the city. Today, it is known as the world's traditional automotive center and an important source of popular music—legacies celebrated by the city's two familiar nicknames, Motor City and Motown. The city's present name comes from the Detroit River, which in turn derives from the French Rivière du Détroit, meaning "River of the Strait". The name alludes to the connection the river forms between Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie, although it is not literally a strait.

Residents are generally known as "Detroiters." The name Detroit is also sometimes used as shorthand for the entire Metro Detroit area, a sprawling region with a population of 4,488,335 as of the 2005 Census Bureau estimates. Local colloquialisms for the city are The D and The 313 (its area code).