text: New York is often referred to as New York State to distinguish it from New York City .
simplified: New York also has Long Island ; Long Island is a large island in the Atlantic Ocean that contains the Queens and Brooklyn boroughs ( neighborhoods ) of New York City . The larger part of New York , north and northwest of New York City and Long Island , is commonly named `` upstate New York '' , and contains the cities of Buffalo , Rochester , Syracuse , and the state capital Albany .