南京市，简称“宁”，古称金陵、建康 ，江苏省辖地级市、省会、副省级市、特大城市 、南京都市圈核心城市 ，国务院批复确定的中国东部地区重要的中心城市、全国重要的科研教育基地和综合交通枢纽 。截至2023年8月，南京市辖11个区，总面积6587.04平方千米 ，建成区面积868.28平方千米。 2023年末，南京市常住人口954.70万人。
南京市地处中国东部、长江下游、濒江近海，是中国人民解放军东部战区司令部驻地 ，国务院规划定位的长三角辐射带动中西部地区发展的重要门户城市和东部沿海经济带与长江经济带战略交汇的重要节点城市 。
南京市是首批国家历史文化名城，中华文明的重要发祥地，长期是中国南方的政治、经济、文化中心。南京在35~60万年前已有南京猿人在汤山生活，有7000多年文明史，3100多年建城史和近500年的建都史，长干古城的发掘将南京建城史向前推至3100多年前的商代晚期。
南京市是国家重要的科教中心，自古以来就是一座崇文重教的城市，有“天下文枢”“东南第一学”之称，明清中国一半以上的状元均出自南京江南贡院。截至2022年，南京有各类高等院校68所，其中双一流高校13所、111计划高校10所、211高校8所、两院院士97人，均仅次于北京上海；2023自然指数-科研城市排名，南京位列全球第6、中国第3。
Nanjing, abbreviated as "Ning" and formerly known as Jinling and Jiankang, is a prefecture level city, provincial capital, sub provincial city, mega city, and core city of the Nanjing metropolitan area under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province. It has been approved by the State Council as an important central city in eastern China, a national important scientific research and education base, and a comprehensive transportation hub. As of August 2023, Nanjing has 11 districts under its jurisdiction, with a total area of 6587.04 square kilometers and a built-up area of 868.28 square kilometers. At the end of 2023, the permanent population of Nanjing was 9.547 million.
Nanjing is located in the eastern part of China, downstream of the Yangtze River, and near the sea. It is the headquarters of the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army of China, an important gateway city planned and positioned by the State Council to drive the development of the central and western regions through the radiation of the Yangtze River Delta, and an important node city at the strategic intersection of the eastern coastal economic belt and the Yangtze River economic belt.
Nanjing is one of the first national historical and cultural cities, an important birthplace of Chinese civilization, and has long been the political, economic, and cultural center of southern China. Nanjing already had Nanjing ape people living in Tangshan 350000 to 600000 years ago, with a civilization history of over 7000 years, a city building history of over 3100 years, and a capital building history of nearly 500 years. The excavation of Changgan Ancient City pushed the history of Nanjing's city building forward to the late Shang Dynasty over 3100 years ago.
Nanjing is an important center of science and education in the country. Since ancient times, it has been a city that values culture and education. It is known as the "cultural hub of the world" and the "first school in the southeast". More than half of the top scorers in Ming and Qing China came from the Jiangnan Gongyuan in Nanjing. As of 2022, there are 68 types of higher education institutions in Nanjing, including 13 Double First Class universities, 10 111 Plan universities, 8 211 universities, and 97 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, all second only to Beijing and Shanghai; In the 2023 Nature Index - Research City Ranking, Nanjing ranks 6th globally and 3rd in China.