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This article is about the south of the U. S. state of California. For the peninsula in western Mexico, see Baja California peninsula. For the university in Los Angeles, see University of Southern California. For the Mexican state of the Sudcalifornianos, see Baja California Sur.
"SoCal" and "Socal" redirect here. For other uses, see SoCal (disambiguation).
Southern California
Megaregion of the U.S.
Los Angeles
Los Angeles
San Diego
San Diego
Long Beach
Long Beach
Country United States
State California
Population
22.4 million

Southern California (SoCal) is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles, Greater San Diego, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego, spilling over the Mexican border into Tijuana. Southern California, along with the San Francisco Bay Area, is a major cultural and economic center for the State of California and beyond.

Its population encompasses a total of five metropolitan areas: Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside-San Bernardino, San Diego, Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura and the El Centro area. Out of these, three are major metropolitan areas; the Los Angeles area with over 12 million inhabitants, the Riverside-San Bernardino area with over 4 million inhabitants, and the San Diego area with over 3 million inhabitants. Two of the largest conurbations in California are also located here, the Los Angeles urban area with 14,775,000 people and the San Diego urban area with 2,880,000 people. The region as a whole houses nearly the population of Texas, with more than 22.4 million people, and is the nation's second most populous region, behind the urban seaboard of the Northeastern United States. As of July 1, 2008, roughly 61% of California's total population resides in Southern California.

To the west of Southern California lies the Pacific Ocean and Channel Islands; to the south is the international border between the United States and Mexico; to the east are the Colorado Desert and the Colorado River at the state's border with Arizona, and the Mojave Desert with the state's border with Nevada beyond.

Significance

San Diego Marina district
Sunset in Venice, California

Within its boundaries are two major world cities, Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as three of the country's largest metropolitan areas.[1] With a population of 1,336,865, San Diego is the second most populous city in California, and the eighth most populous in the U.S. Just to the north, with a population of 4,094,764, Los Angeles is the most populous city in California, and the second most populous in the country.

Its counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, and Riverside are in the top 15 most populous counties in the United States and all five are the top 5 most populous counties in California.[2] The region is also home to Los Angeles International Airport, the third-busiest airport in the United States by passenger volume (see World's busiest airports by passenger traffic) and the second by international passenger volume (see Busiest airports in the United States by international passenger traffic); San Diego International Airport the busiest single runway airport in the world; Van Nuys Airport, the world's busiest general aviation airport; major commercial airports at Orange County, Ontario, Burbank and Long Beach; and numerous smaller commercial and general aviation airports. Southern California is also home to the Port of Los Angeles, the United States' busiest commercial port, the adjacent Port of Long Beach, and the Port of San Diego. Also of note in the region is the freeway system, which is the world's busiest. Six of the seven lines of the commuter rail system, Metrolink, run out of Downtown Los Angeles, connecting Los Angeles, Ventura, San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange, and San Diego counties with the other line connecting San Bernardino, Riverside, and Orange counties directly.

University of California, Santa Barbara

The Tech Coast is a moniker that has gained use as a descriptor for the region's diversified technology and industrial base as well as its multitude of prestigious and world-renowned research universities and other public and private institutions. Amongst these include five University of California campuses (Los Angeles (UCLA), Irvine, Riverside, Santa Barbara, and San Diego (UCSD) campuses), 10 California State University campuses (Channel Islands, Dominguez Hills, Fullerton, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Cal Poly, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona), Northridge (CSUN), San Bernardino, San Diego (SDSU), and San Marcos campuses), as well as private institutions such as Caltech, the University of Southern California (USC), Pepperdine University, Loyola Marymount University, Chapman University, the Claremont Colleges and the University of San Diego (USD).

File:Universal Studios Hollywood 2007.jpg
Universal Studios at Hollywood

Southern California is also the entertainment (motion picture, television, and recorded music) capital of the world[citation needed] and is home to Hollywood, the center of the motion picture industry[citation needed]. Headquartered in Southern California are The Walt Disney Company (which also owns ABC), Sony Pictures, Universal, MGM, Paramount Pictures (parent company of Dreamworks), 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers, and as well as Univision, Activision, and THQ.

Besides the entertainment industry, Southern California is also home to a large home grown surf and skateboard culture. Companies such as Volcom, Quiksilver, O'Neill clothing division, No Fear, Lost Enterprises, Sector 9,[3] RVCA, Body Glove and Surfline[4] are all headquartered here. Professional skateboarder Tony Hawk, professional surfers Rob Machado, Tim Curran, Bobby Martinez, Pat O'Connell, Dane Reynolds, and Chris Ward, and professional snowboarder Shaun White live in Southern California. Some of the world's legendary surf spots are here as well, including Trestles, Rincon, The Wedge, Huntington Beach, and Malibu, and it is second only to the island of Oahu in terms of famous surf breaks. Some of the world's biggest extreme sports events including the X Games,[5] Boost Mobile Pro,[6] and the U.S. Open of Surfing are all in Southern California. Southern California is also important to the world of yachting. The annual Transpacific Yacht Race, or "Transpac", from Los Angeles to Hawaii, is one of yachting's premier events. The San Diego Yacht Club held the America's Cup, the most prestigious prize in yachting, from 1988 to 1995 and hosted three America's Cup races during that time.

Southern California is home to many sports franchises and sports networks such as Fox Sports Net. Professional teams that are located in the region include the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Galaxy, Chivas USA, and San Diego Chargers. Southern California also is home to a number of popular NCAA sports programs, such as the UCLA Bruins, the USC Trojans, and the San Diego State Aztecs.

Northern boundary of Southern California

California counties below the sixth standard parallel
The famous Andaz West Hollywood Hotel on the Sunset Strip

"Southern California" is not a formal geographic designation and definitions of what constitutes Southern California vary. Geographically, California's north-south midway point lies at exactly 37° 9' 58.23" latitude, around 11 miles below San Jose;[citation needed] however this does not coincide with popular use of the term. When the state is divided into two areas (Northern and Southern California) the term "Southern California" usually refers to the ten southern-most counties of the state. This definition coincides neatly with the county lines at 35° 47′ 28″ north latitude which forms the northern borders of San Luis Obispo, Kern, and San Bernardino counties. Another definition for Southern California uses the Tehachapi Mountains as the northern boundary.

Though there is no official definition for the northern boundary of Southern California, such a division has existed from the time when Mexico ruled California and political disputes raged between the Californios of Monterey in the upper part and Los Angeles and the lower part of Alta California. Following the aquistion of California by the United States, the division continued as part of the attempt of William M. Gwin, in the interest of the slave power, to arrage the division of Alta California at 36 degrees, 30 minutes, the line of the Missouri Compromise. Instead, the passing of the Compromise of 1850 enabled California to be admitted to the Union as a free state, preventing Southern California from becoming its own separate slave state.

Subsequently, Californios (dissatisfied with inequitable taxes and land laws) and pro-slavery Southerners in the lightly populated, "Cow Counties" of Southern California attempted three times in the 1850s to achieve a separate statehood or territorial status separate from Northern California. The last attempt, the Pico Act of 1859, was passed by the California State Legislature, signed by the State governor John B. Weller. It was approved overwhelmingly by nearly 75% of voters in the proposed Territory of Colorado. This terrirory was to include all the counties up to the then much larger Tulare County (that included what is now Kings County and most of Kern, and part of Inyo Counties) and San Luis Obispo County. The proposal was sent to Washington, D.C. with a strong advocate in Senator Milton Latham. However the secession crisis following the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 led to the proposal never coming to a vote.[7][8]

In 1900, the Los Angeles Times defined Southern California as including "the seven counties of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura and Santa Barbara." In 1999 the Times added a newer county — Imperial — to that list.[9]

Most definitions in use today include all the land south of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Tehachapi Mountains, the latter located about 70 miles (113 km) north of Los Angeles.[10] Southern California is a culturally diverse and well known area worldwide. Many tourists frequent South Coast for its popular beaches, and the eastern Desert for its dramatic open spaces.

Central California, as a third distinct region, extends from Santa Barbara County (or even Ventura County) to northernmost Monterey County. Western Kern County is in the San Joaquin Valley—southern Central Valley region, therefore it and northern San Luis Obispo, while below the sixth standard parallel, are not considered to be part of southern California, but rather as being in either in the "Central Valley" or the "Central Coast". [citation needed] The state is most commonly divided & promoted by its regional tourism groups as consisting of northern, central, and southern California regions. The two AAA Auto Clubs of the state, the California State Automobile Association and the Automobile Club of Southern California, choose to simplify matters by dividing the state along the lines where their jurisdiction for membership apply, as either Northern or Southern California, in contrast to the 3 region point of view. Another influence, is the geographical phrase "South of the Tehachapis", which would split the southern region off at the crest of that transverse range, but in that definition, the desert portions of north Los Angeles County and eastern Kern and San Bernardino Counties would be included in the Southern California region, due to their remoteness from the central valley, and interior desert landscape.

Population, Land Area & Population Density (07-01-2008 est.)
County
Ref. 		Population
 Land
mi² 		Land
km² 		Pop.
/mi² 		Pop.
/km²
Los Angeles County[11] 9,862,049 4,060.87 10,517.61 2,428.56 937.67
Orange County[12] 3,010,759 789.40 2,044.54 3,813.98 1,472.59
San Diego County[13] 3,001,072 4,199.89 10,877.67 714.56 275.89
Riverside County[14] 2,100,516 7,207.37 18,667.00 291.44 112.53
San Bernardino County[15] 2,015,355 20,052.50 51,935.74 100.50 38.80
Kern County[16] 800,458 8,140.96 21,084.99 98.32 37.96
Ventura County[17] 797,740 1,845.30 4,779.31 432.31 166.92
Santa Barbara County[18] 405,396 2,737.01 7,088.82 148.12 57.19
San Luis Obispo County[19] 265,297 3,304.32 8,558.15 80.29 31.00
Imperial County[20] 163,972 4,174.73 10,812.50 39.28 15.17
Southern California 22,422,614 56,512.35 146,366.31 396.77 153.19
California 36,756,666 155,959.34 403,932.84 235.68 91.00

Urban landscape

Southern California consists of a heavily developed urban environment, home to some of the largest urban areas in the state, along with vast arid areas that have been left undeveloped. It is the second-largest urbanized region in the United States, second only to the Washington/Philadelphia/New York/Boston Northeastern Megalopolis. Whereas these cities are dense, with major downtown populations and significant rail and transit systems, much of Southern California is famous for its large, spread-out, suburban communities and use of automobiles and highways. The dominant areas are Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and Riverside-San Bernardino, each of which is the center of its respective metropolitan area, composed of numerous smaller cities and communities. The urban area is also host to an international metropolitan region in the form of San Diego–Tijuana, created by the urban area spilling over into Baja California.

Traveling south on Interstate 5, the main gap to continued urbanization is Camp Pendleton. The communities along Interstate 15 and Interstate 215 are so inter-related that Temecula and Murrieta have as much connection with San Diego metropolitan area as they do with the Inland Empire. To the east, the United States Census Bureau considers the San Bernardino and Riverside County areas, Riverside-San Bernardino area as a separate metropolitan area from Los Angeles County. While many commute to L.A. and Orange Counties, there are some differences in development, as most of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties were developed in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Downtown Los Angeles skyline seen on a sunset October day. At 1,018 feet (310 m), 73 floors, The U.S. Bank Tower stands as the West Coast's tallest since 1989.

Natural landscape

Main article: Geography of Southern California

Southern California consists of one of the more varied collections of geologic, topographic, and natural ecosystem landscapes in a diversity outnumbering other major regions in the state and country. The region spans from Pacific Ocean islands, shorelines, beaches, and coastal plains, through the Transverse and Peninsular Ranges with their peaks, into the large and small interior valleys, to the vast deserts of California.

Introductory categories include:

Regions

Divisions

Salton Sea in the Coachella Valley.
The Oceanside Pier on the San Diego County coast.
Downtown Los Angeles.

Southern California is divided culturally, politically, and economically into distinctive regions, each containing its own culture and atmosphere anchored usually by a city with both national and sometimes global recognition which are often the hub of economic activity for its respective region and being home to many tourist destinations. Each region is further divided into many culturally distinct areas, but as a whole combine to create the Southern California atmosphere.

Metropolitan areas

Southern California consists of one Combined Statistical Area, the Greater Los Angeles Area, and five Metropolitan Statistical Areas.

Major cities (over 200,000 inhabitants)

See: Category: Cities in Southern California
Disneyland in Anaheim.

Population figures for California cities are 2009 State of California estimates[21]

Other cities with over 100,000 inhabitants

Ventura City Hall in Old Town Ventura
Downtown Santa Monica

Other county seats (under 100,000 inhabitants)

Counties

The City of Long Beach.
South and west of the Southern Santa Lucia, Santa Ynez, Topatopa, Santa Susana. San Gabriel, San Bernardino Mountains, Santa Ana, and Laguna Mountains
North and east of the above mountain ranges

Geographical regions

Satellite view of cismontane Southern California

Southern California is also divided into:

  • the Coastal Region. densely populated with more affluence than inland areas. This region includes the coastal interior valleys west of the coastal mountains with all of Orange County and portions of: San Diego County, Los Angeles County, Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, and San Luis Obispo County
  • the Desert Region, larger and sparsely populated, with portions of: Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County, Riverside County, Imperial County, and San Diego County. The division between the Coastal Regions and the Inland Empire/Imperial Valley winds along the backs of the coastal mountain ranges such as the Santa Ana Mountains.
    • A related floristic province term is the Transmontane Region on the rain shadow side of the same Mountain Ranges, with the term "Southern California" including this zone geographically and when distinguishing all the 'southland' from Northern California.

Geographic features

View from La Jolla Cove in San Diego.
Peaks in the eastern San Gabriel Mountains, Angeles National Forest, San Bernardino County.
File:MojaveDesert.jpg
Coachella Valley Preserve in the Colorado Desert. eastern Riverside County
The historic Mission Inn, located in downtown Riverside.

Theme parks and waterparks

Los Angeles

  • Universal Studios Hollywood
  • Six Flags Magic Mountain
  • Six Flags Hurricane Harbor
  • Castle Park
  • Knott's Soak City Palm Springs
  • Wild Rivers
  • Raging Waters
  • Pacific Park

Orange County

  • Disneyland
  • Disney California Adventure
  • Knott's Berry Farm
  • Knott's Soak City USA

San Diego

  • Legoland
  • SeaWorld
  • Belmont Park
  • Knott's Soak City
  • Legoland Waterpark

Vinyard-Winery AVA districts

California wine AVA-American Viticultural Areas in Southern California:

Earthquakes

Each year the southern California area has about 10,000 earthquakes. Nearly all of them are so small that they are not felt. Only several hundred are greater than magnitude 3.0, and only about 15-20 are greater than magnitude 4.0.[22]

Major central business districts

Downtown Long Beach skyline

The following are major central business districts in Southern California:

Transportation

File:Lax sign.jpg
One of the large LAX signs that greet visitors to LAX. This sign is at the Century Boulevard entrance to Los Angeles International Airport
See: Category: Transportation in Southern California

Airports

The following airports currently have regularly scheduled commercial service:

Freeways

Main pages: Southern California freeways and Category:Southern California freeways

Interstate Highways

U.S. Highway system

California State Routes

Note: highway segments with names listed in italics are surface streets and not freeways.

Public transportation

See: Category: Public transportation in Southern California

Communication

Telephone area codes

Map of some major area codes in Southern California

Colleges and universities

Main article: List of colleges and universities in Southern California

Parks and recreation areas

Main Category: Parks in Southern California
  • Numerous parks provide recreation and open-space, some locations include:

Sports teams

See also: Freeway Series, Honda SuperClasico, Sports in California § Northern California–Southern California rivalry, and UCLA–USC rivalry
Team Sport League Venue
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Baseball American League (Major League Baseball) Angel Stadium of Anaheim
Los Angeles Dodgers National League (Major League Baseball) Dodger Stadium
San Diego Padres PETCO Park
Los Angeles Clippers Basketball National Basketball Association Staples Center
Los Angeles Lakers
San Diego Chargers Football National Football League Qualcomm Stadium
Anaheim Ducks Ice hockey National Hockey League Honda Center
Los Angeles Kings Staples Center
Chivas USA Soccer Major League Soccer The Home Depot Center
Los Angeles Galaxy

See also

References

  1. ^ The three metropolitan areas are:
    1. Los Angeles–Long Beach–Santa Ana (the second largest in the US),
    2. Riverside–San Bernardino–Ontario (the Inland Empire) and
    3. San Diego–Carlsbad–San Marcos - see: United States metropolitan areas
  2. ^ http://www.csac.counties.org/images/users/1/2008population.pdf
  3. ^ Sector 9 Incorporated - San Diego, California
  4. ^ Surfline - Huntington Beach, California
  5. ^ Yoon, Peter (2006-08-07). "X Games Take a Turn for the Better". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-05-23.
  6. ^ Higgins, Matt (2006-09-13). "Construction Stirs Debate on Effects on 'Perfect Wave'". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-09-13.
  7. ^ Michael DiLeo, Eleanor Smith, Two Californias: The Truth about the Split-state Movement, Island Press, Covelo, California, 1983. pg. 9-30.
  8. ^ J. M. Guinn, HOW CALIFORNIA ESCAPED STATE DIVISION, The Quarterly, Volumes 5-6 By Historical Society of Southern California, Los Angeles County Pioneers of Southern California
  9. ^ Leilah Bernstein, "Then and Now", Los Angeles Times, December 31, 1999, page 1 A library card is needed to access this link.
  10. ^ McWilliams, Carrey (1973). Southern California, An Island on the Land (9th ed.). Layton: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9780879050078. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  11. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Los Angeles County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Orange County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), San Diego County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Riverside County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), San Bernardino County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Kern County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Ventura County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  18. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Santa Barbara County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  19. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), San Luis Obispo County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  20. ^ U.S. Census Bureau (2008-07-01), Imperial County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau: State and County QuickFacts., retrieved 2009-11-19 {{citation}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  21. ^ "# E-4 Population Estimates for Cities, Counties and the State, 2001–2009, with 2000 Benchmark". California Department of Finance.
  22. ^ "USGS facts". data from Southern California Earthquake Center. Retrieved 2009-03-18.

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