(Not to be confused with Lincoln County, Nebraska.) Lincoln (pronounced /ˈlɪŋkən/) is the capital of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers 92.81 square miles (240.38 km2) with a population of 277,348 in 2015. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 72nd-largest in the United States. The city is the economic and cultural anchor of a substantially larger metropolitan area in the southeastern part of the state called the Lincoln-Beatrice Metropolitan Area. The metropolitan area is home to 345,478 people, making it the 105th-largest combined statistical area in the United States. The city was founded in 1856 as the village of Lancaster on the wild salt marshes of what was to become Lancaster County. In 1867, the village of Lancaster became Nebraska's state capital and was renamed Lincoln. Bertram G. Goodhue designed state capitol building was completed in 1932 and is the second tallest capitol in the United States. As the city is the seat of government for the state of Nebraska, the state and the United States government are major employers. The University of Nebraska was founded in Lincoln in 1867. The university is the largest in Nebraska with 25,006 students enrolled and is the city's third-largest employer. Other primary employers fall within the service and manufacturing industries, including a growing high-tech sector. The region makes up a part of what is known as the greater Midwest Silicon Prairie. Designated as a "refugee-friendly" city by the U.S. Department of State in the 1970s, the city was the twelfth-largest resettlement site per capita in the United States by 2000. Refugee Vietnamese, Karen (Burmese ethnic minority), Sudanese, and Yazidi (Iraqi ethnic minority) people have been resettled in the city. Lincoln Public Schools during the school year of 2015–16 provided support for approximately 2,600 students from 118 countries, who spoke 96 different languages.

Lincoln, the capital of the state of Nebraska, was founded in 1856 by the name Lancaster. Lincoln today has two metropolitan areas; Lancaster County and Seward County. Lincoln is referred to as a Music City, thanks to many live music arenas spread thought the city like; Pinnacle Bank Arena, Zoo Bar, Duffy's Tavern and Bourbon Theatre. Lincoln tourism includes; Sunken Gardens, one of the most famous attractions in Lincoln, this garden has several ponds, a variety of flora and fauna and a waterfall; Alice Abel Arboretum, with over 100 species of trees; Nebraska State Capitol, a seat of the government; Fairview, home of William Jennings Bryan, a three time US presidential candidate; and museums like Frank H. Woods Telephone Museum, Lincoln Children's Museum and Museum of American Speed.