which states share borders with virginia?
North Carolina
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 Virginia has a total area of 42 @,@ 774 @.@ 2 square miles ( 110 @,@ 784 @.@ 7 km2 ) , including 3 @,@ 180 @.@ 13 square miles ( 8 @,@ 236 @.@ 5 km2 ) of water , making it the 35th @-@ largest state by area . Virginia is bordered by Maryland and Washington , D.C. to the north and east ; by the Atlantic Ocean to the east ; by North Carolina and Tennessee to the south ; by Kentucky to the west ; and by West Virginia to the north and west . Virginia 's boundary with Maryland and Washington , D.C. extends to the low @-@ water mark of the south shore of the Potomac River . The southern border is defined as the 36 ° 30 ′ parallel north , though surveyor error led to deviations of as much as three arcminutes . The border with Tennessee was not settled until 1893 , when their dispute was brought to the U.S. Supreme Court . 

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 Additionally , 0 @.@ 5 % of Virginians are American Indian or Alaska Native , and 0 @.@ 1 % are Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander . Virginia has extended state recognition to eight Native American tribes resident in the state , though some lack federal recognition status . Most Native American groups are located in the Tidewater region . 

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 Virginians were instrumental in writing the United States Constitution . James Madison drafted the Virginia Plan in 1787 and the Bill of Rights in 1789 . Virginia ratified the Constitution on June 25 , 1788 . The three @-@ fifths compromise ensured that Virginia , with its large number of slaves , initially had the largest bloc in the House of Representatives . Together with the Virginia dynasty of presidents , this gave the Commonwealth national importance . In 1790 , both Virginia and Maryland ceded territory to form the new District of Columbia , though the Virginian area was retroceded in 1846 . Virginia is called " Mother of States " because of its role in being carved into states like Kentucky , which became the 15th state in 1792 , and for the numbers of American pioneers born in Virginia . 

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 = = = Southeast United States and Virginia = = = 

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 Virginia ( / vərˈdʒɪnjə / vər @-@ JIN @-@ yə , UK / vərˈdʒɪniə / vər @-@ JIN @-@ ee @-@ ə ) , officially the Commonwealth of Virginia , is a state located in the Mid @-@ Atlantic and / or Southern regions of the United States . Virginia is nicknamed the " Old Dominion " due to its status as the first colonial possession established in mainland British America , and " Mother of Presidents " because eight U.S. presidents were born there , more than any other state . The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay , which provide habitat for much of its flora and fauna . The capital of the Commonwealth is Richmond ; Virginia Beach is the most populous city , and Fairfax County is the most populous political subdivision . The Commonwealth 's estimated population as of 2014 is over 8 @.@ 3 million . 
