Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. Divided between Collin, Dallas, Denton, Kaufman, and Rockwall counties, the city had a 2010 population of approximately 1.2 million, according to the United States Census Bureau. The city is the largest economic center of the 12-county metropolitan area that according to the March 2010 U.S. Census Bureau release, had a population of roughly 6.5 million as of July 2009. The metropolitan area is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States.Dallas was founded in 1841 and formally incorporated as a city in February 1856. The city's economy is primarily based on banking, commerce, telecommunications, computer technology, energy, and transportation, home to several Fortune 500 companies. Located in North Texas and a major city in the American South, Dallas is the core of the largest inland metropolitan area in the United States that lacks any navigable link to the sea. The city's prominence arose from its historical importance as a center for the oil and cotton industries, and its position along numerous railroad lines. Dallas developed a strong industrial and financial sector, and a major inland port, due largely to the presence of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, one of the largest and busiest airports in the world. It was rated as a beta world city by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group & Network.

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