Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135. The name “Schenectady” is derived loosely from a Mohawk word for “on that side of the pinery,” or “near the pines,” or “place beyond the pine plains. ” It is in eastern New York, near the confluence of the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers. It is in the same metropolitan area as the state capital, Albany, about 19 miles south-east.