<P> New York City encompasses five different county - level administrative divisions called boroughs: Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island . Each of the boroughs is coextensive with a respective county, the primary administrative subdivision within New York State . The Bronx and Queens are concurrent with the counties of the same name, while Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island correspond to New York, Kings, and Richmond Counties respectively . </P> <P> Boroughs have existed since the consolidation of the city in 1898, when the city and each borough assumed their current boundaries . However, the boroughs have not always been coextensive with their respective counties . Before 1914, the borough of The Bronx had been earlier in the southern part of Westchester County which had then been annexed to New York County in two stages in 1874 and 1895--finally, in 1914 the county was created to match the borough . Before 1899, the County of Queens included an eastern part, which was split - off during the consolidation to become Nassau County . </P>

New york city and manhattan the same thing