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Los Angeles, California

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: North American Geography

   Los Angeles, California
   Skyline of Los Angeles, California

                  Official flag of Los Angeles, California

   Official seal of Los Angeles, California
   Flag Seal
   Nickname: "City of Angels"
   Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California
   Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California
   Coordinates: 34°03′N 118°15′W
   State California
   County Los Angeles County
   Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
   Area
    - City 1,290.6 km²  (498.3  sq mi)
    - Land 1,214.9 km²  (469.1 sq mi)
    - Water 75.7 km² (29.2 sq mi)  5.8%
    - Urban 4,319.9 km² (1,667.9 sq mi)
   Elevation 0 m – 1,548 m  (0 ft – 5,079 ft)
   Population
    - City (2006 ) 4,097,340
    - Density 3,165/km² (8,198/sq mi)
    - Urban 12,146,000
    - Metro 12,923,547
   Time zone PST ( UTC-8)
    - Summer ( DST) PDT ( UTC-7)
   Website: www.lacity.org

   The City of Los Angeles, known also as "L.A.," is the most populous
   city in the state of California and the second-most populous in the
   United States. It is an alpha world city having a population of
   approximately 4 million people and spanning 498 square miles. According
   to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Los Angeles metropolitan area has a
   total area of 4,850 square miles and is home to roughly 13 million
   people.

   Los Angeles was founded in 1781 by Spanish missionaries, yet it was not
   incorporated as a municipality until April 4, 1850—five months before
   California achieved statehood. It is the county seat of Los Angeles
   County.

   The Los Angeles area, recognized by its sprawling urban terrain, is one
   of the world's most important centers of culture, science, technology,
   international trade, and higher education, and is home to numerous
   world-renowned institutions in a broad range of professional and
   cultural fields. The city and its immediate surrounding vicinity leads
   the world in producing popular entertainment—such as motion pictures,
   television, and recorded music—which forms the base of its
   international fame and global status.

History

   The Los Angeles coastal area was inhabited by the Tongva (or
   Gabrieleños), Chumash, and earlier Native American nations for
   thousands of years. The Spanish arrived in 1542, when Juan Cabrillo
   visited the area. In 1769, Gaspar de Portolà led an expedition across
   southern California with Franciscan Padres Junípero Serra and Juan
   Crespi.

   In 1771, Father Serra had the Mission San Gabriel Arcángel built near
   Whittier Narrows in today's nearby San Gabriel Valley. On September 4,
   1781, a group of 46 Spanish and Mexican settlers from Sonora set out
   from the San Gabriel mission to establish a settlement along the banks
   of the Porciúncula River (now Los Angeles River). These settlers were
   of African, Indian, Filipino, and Spanish ancestry, of whom two-thirds
   were mulatto. They created a "sub-mission" known as the Mission Nuestra
   Señora Reina de los Angeles.

   The new governor of California, Felipe de Neve, recommended to the
   viceroy in Mexico that the site be developed into a pueblo (town). The
   area was duly named "El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los
   Angeles del Río de Porciúncula," ("The Town of Our Lady the Queen of
   the Angels on the River Porciúncula"). It remained a small ranch town
   for decades, but by 1820 the population had increased to about 650
   residents, making it the largest civilian community in Spanish
   California. Today the outline of the Pueblo is preserved in a historic
   monument familiarly called Olvera Street, formerly Wine Street, which
   was named after Agustin Olvera.
   Olvera Street.
   Enlarge
   Olvera Street.

   Mexico's independence from Spain was achieved in 1821, and the pueblo
   continued as a part of Mexico. Mexican rule ended during the
   Mexican-American War, when Americans took control of the fledgling city
   after the Battle of Rio San Gabriel in 1847. The Treaty of Cahuenga,
   signed a few days after the battle, ended hostilities in California,
   and in the later Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), Mexico formally
   ceded Alta California and other territories to the United States.
   Americans solidified control over the city after they flooded into
   California during the California Gold Rush and secured the subsequent
   admission of California into the United States. Los Angeles was
   incorporated as a city in 1850.

   Railroads arrived when the Southern Pacific completed its line to Los
   Angeles in 1876. Oil was discovered in 1892, and by 1923 Los Angeles
   was supplying one-quarter of the world's petroleum. Even more important
   to the city's growth was water. In 1913, William Mulholland completed
   the aqueduct that assured the city's growth. In 1915, the City of Los
   Angeles began annexation of dozens of neighboring communities without
   water supplies of their own. A largely fictionalized account of the
   Owens Valley Water War can be found in the 1974 motion picture
   Chinatown.

   In the 1920s the motion picture and aviation industries both flocked to
   Los Angeles and helped to further develop it. Los Angeles is also known
   to be the home of the Ross-Loos Medical Group, founded in 1929, which
   is considered to be the first Health Maintenance Organization in the
   United States. The city was the proud host of the 1932 Summer Olympics
   and along with it the development of Baldwin Hills, the original
   Olympic Village. This period also saw the arrival of the exiles from
   the increasing pre-war tension in Europe, including such notables as
   Thomas Mann, Fritz Lang, Bertolt Brecht, Arnold Schoenberg, and Lion
   Feuchtwanger. World War II brought new growth and prosperity to the
   city, although many of its Japanese-American residents were transported
   to internment camps for the duration of the war. The postwar years saw
   an even greater boom as urban sprawl expanded into the San Fernando
   Valley.

   The Watts riots in 1965 showed the nation the deep racial divisions
   that the city faced. In 1969, Los Angeles was one of two "birthplaces"
   of the Internet, as the first ARPANET transmission (the Internet's
   ancestor) was sent from UCLA to SRI in Menlo Park. The XXIII Olympiad
   was successfully hosted in Los Angeles in 1984. The city was once again
   tested by the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the 1994 Northridge earthquake
   and by a city-wide vote on San Fernando Valley and Hollywood secession
   that was defeated in 2002. Now, urban redevelopment and gentrification
   have been taking place at a furious pace in various parts of the city,
   most notably Downtown, which is poised to be the home of many more
   cultural and entertainment institutions than ever before.

Geography

   West Los Angeles from the air, showing the communities of Santa Monica,
   Westwood, and Marina del Rey, and the San Fernando Valley (in
   background)
   Enlarge
   West Los Angeles from the air, showing the communities of Santa Monica,
   Westwood, and Marina del Rey, and the San Fernando Valley (in
   background)

   According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area
   of 498.3 square miles (1,290.6  km²)—469.1 square miles (1,214.9 km²)
   of it is land and 29.2 square miles (75.7 km²) of it is water. The
   total area is 5.86% water.

   The extreme north-south distance is 44 miles (71  km), the extreme
   east-west distance is 29 miles (47 km), and the length of the city
   boundary is 342 miles (550 km). The land area is the 9th largest among
   cities in the Continental United States.

   The highest point in Los Angeles is Sister Elsie Peak (5,080  feet) at
   the far reaches of the northeastern San Fernando Valley, part of Mt.
   Lukens. The Los Angeles River is a largely seasonal river flowing
   through the city, with headwaters in the San Fernando Valley. Its
   length is almost entirely lined in concrete.

   The Los Angeles area is remarkably rich in native plant species. With
   its beaches, dunes, wetlands, hills, mountains, and rivers, the area
   contains a number of important biological communities. The largest area
   is coastal sage scrub, which covers the hillsides in combustible
   chaparral. Native plants include: California poppy, matilija poppy,
   toyon, coast live oak, giant wild rye grass, and hundreds of others.
   Unfortunately, many native species are so rare as to be endangered,
   such as the Los Angeles sunflower.

   There are many exotic flowers and flowering trees that are blooming
   year-round, with subtle colors, including the jacaranda, hibiscus,
   phlox, bougainvillea, coral tree blossoms and bird of paradise. If
   there were no city here, flower-growing could still flourish as an
   industry, as it does in Lompoc. Wisteria has been known to grow to
   house-lot size, and in Descanso Gardens there are forests of camellia
   trees. Orchids require special attention in this Mediterranean climate.

Geology

   Like most areas of coastal California, Los Angeles is subject to
   earthquakes, due to its proximity to the San Andreas Fault, as well as
   to the smaller San Jacinto and Banning faults. The most recent major
   earthquake was the 1994 Northridge earthquake, which was centered in
   the northern San Fernando Valley. Coming less than two years after the
   1992 riots, the Northridge earthquake was an emotional shock to
   Southern Californians, and caused physical damage totalling billions of
   dollars. Other major earthquakes in the Los Angeles area include the
   1987 Whittier Narrows earthquake, the 1971 Sylmar earthquake, and the
   1933 Long Beach earthquake. Nevertheless, most earthquakes are
   relatively minor. Many areas in Los Angeles witness one or two minor
   earthquakes per year, usually inflicting little or no damage.
   Imperceptible quakes are detected by seismometers on a daily basis.

Cityscape

   Sunset Strip
   Enlarge
   Sunset Strip

   The city is divided into many neighborhoods, many of which were towns
   that were annexed by the growing city. There are also several
   independent cities in and around Los Angeles, but they are popularly
   grouped with the city of Los Angeles, either due to being completely
   engulfed as enclaves by Los Angeles, or lying within its immediate
   vicinity.

   Generally, the city is divided into the following areas: Downtown L.A.,
   East L.A., South Los Angeles, the Harbour Area, Hollywood, Wilshire,
   the Westside (which includes Westwood, Brentwood, West Los Angeles, and
   Venice as well as the cities of Santa Monica, and parts of West
   Hollywood and Beverly Hills), and the San Fernando and Crescenta
   valleys. In the last ten years, "Eastside" has appeared as a new
   designation to contrast with the more traditional "Westside"
   description (though many Angelenos reject the term as a trendy East
   Coast import).

   Some well-known communities of Los Angeles include Venice Beach, the
   Downtown Financial District, Los Feliz, Silver Lake, Hollywood, Hancock
   Park, Koreatown, and the extremely affluent areas of Bel-Air, Hollywood
   Hills, Pacific Palisades, Holmby Hills, and Brentwood to name a few.

Climate

   The city is situated in a Mediterranean climate or subtropical zone,
   experiencing mild, reasonably wet winters and warm to hot, mildly humid
   summers. Generally the weather is dry in all seasons, but can be
   relatively cold in the winter. Breezes from the Pacific Ocean tend to
   keep the beach communities of the Los Angeles area cooler in summer and
   warmer in winter than those further inland, and summer temperatures can
   sometimes vary by as much as 25 °F warmer in the inland communities
   compared to that of the coastal communities. The coastal communities of
   Los Angeles are commonly affected by a phenomenon known as a 'marine
   layer', a dense cloud cover caused by the proximity of the ocean, that
   helps keep the temperatures cooler throughout the year. Temperatures in
   the summer can get well over 90 °F (32 °C), but average summer daytime
   highs are 85 °F (29 °C), with overnight lows of 66 °F (18 °C). Winter
   daytime high temperatures will get up to around 65 °F (21 °C), on
   average, with overnight lows of 45 °F (8 °C) and during this season
   rain is common. The median temperature in January is 58.3 °F (14.6 °C)
   and 74.3 °F (23.5 °C) in July. The highest temperature recorded within
   city borders was 119.0 °F (48.33 °C) in Woodland Hills on July 22,
   2006; the lowest temperature recorded was 18.0 °F (−7.8 °C) in 1989, in
   Canoga Park. The highest temperature ever recorded for Downtown Los
   Angeles was 112.0 °F (44.4 °C) on June 26, 1990, and the lowest
   temperature ever recorded was 28.0 °F (−2.2 °C) on January 4, 1949.
   Rain occurs mainly in the winter and spring months (February being the
   wettest month) with great variations in storm severity year by year.
   Los Angeles averages 15 inches (381 mm) of precipitation per year. It
   rarely snows in the city basin, but the mountains slopes within city
   limits typically receive snow every year. With weather permitting, it
   is possible to snow ski and surf on the same day in the Los Angeles
   area.
   Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
   Avg high °F (°C) 65^°F (18^°C) 66^°F (18^°C) 68^°F (20^°C) 70^°F
   (21^°C) 73^°F (22^°C) 76^°F (24^°C) 82^°F (27^°C) 82^°F (27^°C) 81^°F
   (27^°C) 77^°F (25^°C) 73^°F (22^°C) 68^°F (20^°C) 73^°F (22^°C)
   Avg low °F (°C) 48^°F (8^°C) 49^°F (9^°C) 50^°F (10^°C) 53^°F (11^°C)
   56^°F (13^°C) 58^°F (14^°C) 62^°F (16^°C) 63^°F (17^°C) 61^°F (16^°C)
   58^°F (14^°C) 53^°F (11^°C) 50^°F (10^°C) 55^°F (12^°C)
   Rainfall in. (mm) 2.7" * 3.1" 2.2" 1.3" 0.3" 0.1" 0.0" 0.0" 0.2" 0.4"
   1.1" 2.5" 14.0"
   * One inch is roughly 25 millimeters. Source for weather statistics:
   Weatherbase

Environmental issues

   Downtown Los Angeles on a smoggy late afternoon with Griffith
   Observatory in the foreground at left.
   Enlarge
   Downtown Los Angeles on a smoggy late afternoon with Griffith
   Observatory in the foreground at left.

   Due to the city's geography making it susceptible to atmospheric
   inversion as well as the population's heavy reliance on automobiles as
   a major form of transportation, the city suffers from air pollution in
   the form of smog. The Los Angeles Basin and the San Fernando Valley
   hold in the fumes from automobiles, diesel trucks, shipping, and
   locomotive engines, as well as manufacturing and other sources. In
   addition, the groundwater is increasingly threatened by MTBE from gas
   stations and perchlorate from rocket fuel. Some consider urban sprawl
   to be a result of the city's transportation system. Unlike other large
   cities that rely on rain to clear smog, Los Angeles only gets 15 inches
   (380 mm) of rain each year, so the smog is able to accumulate over
   multiple consecutive days. This has brought much attention from the
   state of California to the need for low emissions vehicles. As a
   result, pollution levels have dropped markedly in recent decades. The
   number of Stage 1 smog alerts has declined from over 100 per year in
   the 1970s to almost zero in the new millennium. Despite this remarkable
   success, the 2004 annual report of the American Lung Association ranks
   the city as the most polluted in the country with short-term particle
   pollution, year-round particle pollution, and ozone pollution. Smog
   from the basin is pushed towards the mountains, where the pollutants
   harm trees. However, even more aggressive steps are now being taken to
   improve the air quality in the years to come.

Government

   Los Angeles City Hall
   Enlarge
   Los Angeles City Hall

   The city is governed by a mayor-council system. The current mayor is
   Antonio Villaraigosa. There are 15 city council districts. Other
   elected city officials include the City Attorney, Rocky Delgadillo, and
   the City Controller, Laura Chick. The city attorney prosecutes
   misdemeanors within the city limits. The district attorney, elected by
   county voters, prosecutes misdemeanors in unincorporated areas and in
   78 of the 88 cities in the county, as well as felonies throughout the
   county.

   The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) polices the city of Los
   Angeles, but the city also maintains three specialized police agencies;
   The Office of Public Safety, within the General Services Department
   (which is responsible for security and law enforcement services at city
   facilities throughout the city, including City Hall, city parks and
   libraries, the Los Angeles Zoo, and the Convention Center), the Port
   Police, within the Harbour Department (which is responsible for land,
   air and sea law enforcement services at the Port of Los Angeles), and
   the Airport Police, within the Los Angeles World Airports Department
   (which is responsible for law enforcement services at all four
   city-owned airports, including Los Angeles International Airport (LAX),
   Ontario International Airport (ONT), Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD),
   and Van Nuys Airport (VNY), the largest general aviation airport in the
   country).

   The LAPL, Los Angeles Public Library System and Los Angeles Unified
   School District (LAUSD) are among the largest such organizations in the
   country. The LAUSD is the second largest school district in the United
   States; only the New York City Department of Education is larger. The
   Los Angeles Department of Water and Power provides service to city
   residents and businesses.

   The city government has been perceived as inefficient and ineffective
   by residents of some areas, which led to an unsuccessful secession
   movement by the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood in 2002. The campaign
   to defeat secession was led by then Mayor James Hahn. The most often
   raised complaint is that city administration in Downtown gives priority
   to high-density neighborhoods like Mid-City and Downtown at the expense
   of its far-flung suburban neighborhoods.

Neighbourhood councils

   To promote public participation in government and make government more
   responsive to local needs, voters created neighbourhood councils in the
   Charter Reform of 1999. The councils were first proposed by City
   Council member Joel Wachs in 1996 and were hotly contested for a number
   of years. Indeed, they are still hotly contested ten years later.

   The councils cover districts which are not necessarily identical to the
   traditional neighborhoods of Los Angeles, the borders of which often
   reflect those of cities that were annexed to Los Angeles.

   86 neighbourhood councils are currently certified and all "
   stakeholders" – meaning anyone who lives, works or owns property in a
   neighbourhood – may vote for council members. Participation in NC
   elections has, for the most part, been proportionally as narrow as in
   city, state and federal elections.

   Though the councils are strictly advisory, and have little actual
   power, they are still official government bodies and so must abide by
   California's Brown Act, which strictly governs the meetings of
   deliberative assemblies. These and other regulatory requirements have
   proven frustrating for some activists unaccustomed to bureaucratic
   procedures. For those with organizing experience, or the administrative
   ability to overcome regulatory hurdles, the councils have been
   effective advocates for community interests.

   The first notable achievement of the neighbourhood councils,
   collectively, was their organized opposition in March 2004 to an 18%
   increase in water rates by the Department of Water and Power (a
   municipal monopoly), which led the City Council to approve only a
   limited increase pending independent review. More recently, the
   councils petitioned the City Council in summer, 2006 to allow them to
   independently introduce ideas for legislative action, but the City
   Council voted to give the idea further study (this, despite 18 months
   of committee hearings).

   As Mayor, James Hahn provided each council with $50,000 for any project
   of their choice and an additional $100,000 for street improvements in
   their neighbourhood. These financial commitments have been maintained
   by current Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Economy

   The economy of Los Angeles is driven by international trade,
   entertainment (television, motion pictures, recorded music), aerospace,
   agriculture, petroleum, and tourism. Los Angeles is also the largest
   manufacturing centre in the United States. The contiguous ports of Los
   Angeles and Long Beach together comprise the most significant port in
   North America and one of the most important ports in the world, and
   they are vital to trade within the Pacific Rim. Other significant
   industries include media production, finance, telecommunications, law,
   health and medicine, and transportation.

   The city is home to three major Fortune 500 companies, including
   aerospace contractor Northrop Grumman, energy company Occidental
   Petroleum Corporation, and homebuilding company KB Home.

   Other companies headquartered in Los Angeles include Twentieth Century
   Fox, Latham & Watkins, Univision, Metro Interactive, LLC, Premier
   America, CB Richard Ellis, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Guess?,
   O'Melveny & Myers LLP, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, Tokyopop,
   The Jim Henson Company, Paramount Pictures, Robinsons-May, Sunkist, Fox
   Sports Net, Health Net, Inc., 21st Century Insurance, and The Coffee
   Bean & Tea Leaf.

   The metropolitan area contains the headquarters of even more companies,
   many of whom wish to escape the city's high taxes. For example, Los
   Angeles charges a gross receipts tax based on a percentage of business
   revenue, while most neighboring cities charge only small flat fees. The
   companies below clearly benefit from their proximity to Los Angeles,
   while at the same time avoiding the city's taxes (and other problems).
   Some of the major companies headquartered in the cities of Los Angeles
   county are Shakey's Pizza ( Alhambra), Academy of Motion Picture Arts
   and Sciences ( Beverly Hills), City National Bank (Beverly Hills),
   Hilton Hotels (Beverly Hills), DiC Entertainment ( Burbank), The Walt
   Disney Company ( Fortune 500 – Burbank), Warner Bros. (Burbank),
   Countrywide Financial Corporation (Fortune 500 – Calabasas), THQ
   (Calabasas), Belkin ( Compton), Sony Pictures Entertainment (parent of
   Columbia Pictures, located in Culver City), Computer Sciences
   Corporation (Fortune 500 – El Segundo), DirecTV (El Segundo), Mattel
   (Fortune 500 – El Segundo), Unocal (Fortune 500 – El Segundo),
   DreamWorks SKG ( Glendale), Sea Launch ( Long Beach), ICANN ( Marina
   Del Rey), Cunard Line ( Santa Clarita), Princess Cruises (Santa
   Clarita), Activision ( Santa Monica), and RAND (Santa Monica). The L.A.
   area is also home to the U.S. headquarters of all but two of the major
   Asian automobile manufacturers ( Nissan North America is in the process
   of relocating its headquarters from Gardena to the Nashville area, and
   Subaru's U.S. operations are based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey).
   Further, virtually all the world's automakers have design and/or tech
   centers in the L.A. region.

   There are many other well-known companies with headquarters located in
   the County of Los Angeles or the greater Los Angeles area, but they are
   far beyond the City of Los Angeles (and the scope of this article).

   Downtown Los Angeles is also the home of the Los Angeles Convention
   Centre which hosts many popular events including the annual LA Auto
   Show in January.

Demographics

   Los Angeles at night, photographed from Mulholland Drive.
   Enlarge
   Los Angeles at night, photographed from Mulholland Drive.

Census 2000

   As of the census^ GR2 of 2000, there were 3,694,820 people, 1,275,412
   households, and 798,407 families residing in the city. The population
   density was 7,876.8 people per square mile (3,041.3/km²). There were
   1,337,706 housing units at an average density of 2,851.8 per square
   mile (1,101.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city (As of 2005) was 28%
   White, 20% African American, 0.4% Native American, 11.1% Asian, 0.3%
   Pacific Islander, 26.9% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more
   races. 47% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race and
   28.5% were White, not of Latino/Hispanic origins. Los Angeles is home
   to one of the largest communities of Asian Americans and Latin
   Americans of any city in the United States. There is also a fairly
   large Armenian population, but does not compare to the number of
   Armenians in Glendale.

   There were 1,275,412 households of which 33.5% had children under 18,
   41.9% were married couples, 14.5% had a female householder with no
   husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. 28.5% of households were
   made up of individuals and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65
   years of age or older. The average household size was 2.83 and the
   average family size 3.56.

   The age distribution was: 26.6% under 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 34.1%
   from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 9.7% who were 65 or older. The
   median age was 32. For every 100 females there were 99.4 males. For
   every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males.

   The median income for a household was $36,687, and for a family was
   $39,942. Males had a median income of $31,880, females $30,197. The per
   capita income was $20,671. 22.1% of the population and 18.3% of
   families were below the poverty line. 30.3% of those under the age of
   18 and 12.6% of those aged 65 or older were below the poverty line.

   The city's gross population density statistic is deceptively low,
   because of the sparsely-inhabited Santa Monica Mountains which separate
   the Los Angeles Basin from the San Fernando Valley. South of the Santa
   Monica Mountains, the population density throughout most of the city is
   much greater than 7,876.8 people per square mile (3,041.3/km²). Los
   Angeles has some of the most densely-populated urban land in the United
   States. Hollywood Boulevard, Fairfax Avenue and Vernon Avenue provides
   a good example. The land area, 50 square miles (130 km²), is only
   slightly larger than San Francisco but, according to U.S. Census Bureau
   data, this region housed about 30% more people in 2000 (more than
   1,000,000).

   It is also of interest to note that the post-1950 population increase
   did not occur exclusively in suburban or peripheral locations. The
   increase in the central area population—while many other American
   cities have experienced central area population declines—is due in part
   to Los Angeles' large immigrant population.

   In the period from 1920 to 1960, African Americans from the Southeast
   U.S. arrived in Los Angeles and its population grew 15 times. Since
   1990, the African American population dropped in half as its middle
   class relocated to the suburbs, notably the Antelope Valley and Inland
   Empire and Latinos have moved into the once predominantly African
   American district of South Los Angeles. African Americans still remain
   predominant in some portions of the city, including Crenshaw District,
   Leimert Park, and Baldwin Hills (as well as neighboring View
   Park-Windsor Hills and Ladera Heights) which is considered to be one of
   the wealthiest majority-black neighborhoods in the United States. Los
   Angeles still has the largest African-American community of any city in
   western United States. Also many other websites say that African
   Americans make up about 25% of L.A.

National origins

   City of Los Angeles
   Population by year
   1890 50,395
   1900 102,479
   1910 319,198
   1920 576,673
   1930 1,238,048
   1940 1,504,277
   1950 1,970,358
   1960 2,479,015
   1970 2,816,061
   1980 2,966,850
   1990 3,485,398
   2000 3,694,820
   2005 3,844,829
   2006 4,097,340

   Of 2,182,114 U.S.-born people, 1,485,576 were born in California,
   663,746 were born in a different state of the United States, and 61,792
   were born in a United States territory (Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin
   Islands, or Northern Marianas).

   Of 1,512,720 foreign born people, 100,252 were born in Europe, 376,767
   were born in Asia, 64,730 were born in Africa, 94,104 were born in
   Caribbean/Oceania, 996,996 were born in Latin America, and 13,859 were
   born in Northern America. Of such foreign-born people, 569,771 entered
   between 1990 to March 2000. 509,841 are naturalized citizens and
   1,002,879 are not citizens.

   By the next national census, Los Angeles is expected to have a Latino
   majority for the first time since 1850. The city has the second largest
   percentage of foreign-born citizens of any major U.S. city, after
   Miami. The Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is the number one
   entry for immigrants in the country. The Hispanic (Mexico, Central
   America and South America), Asian American, and Caribbean populations
   are growing particularly quickly — the Asian-American population is the
   largest of any city in the U.S and the city contains the largest
   concentration of Los Angeles County's 1.4 million Asians. Los Angeles
   hosts the largest populations of Armenians, Bulgarians, Ethiopians,
   Filipinos, Guatemalans, Salvadorans, Nicaraguans, Hungarians, Koreans,
   Mexicans, Pacific Islanders such as Samoans, Russians and Thais in the
   country, and in the world outside of their respective countries. Los
   Angeles is also home to the largest populations of Japanese and
   Persians living in the U.S., and has one of the largest Native American
   populations in the country. L.A. had experienced minor waves of
   European immigration in the late 1800s/early 1900s and the city has
   some Americans of German, Greek, Irish, Italian, Polish and Ukrainian
   descent.

   Los Angeles is home to people from more than 140 countries, who speak
   at least 224 different languages. Ethnic enclaves like Chinatown,
   Historic Filipinotown, Koreatown, Little Armenia, Little Ethiopia,
   Little Persia, Little Tokyo, and Thai Town provide examples of the
   polyglot character of Los Angeles.

Religion

   Los Angeles is home to adherents of many religions, and has over 100
   Christian denominations, with Roman Catholicism being the largest due
   to the high numbers of Hispanic and Irish Americans.

   The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles leads the largest
   archdiocese in the country. Roger Cardinal Mahony oversaw construction
   of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, completed in 2002 at the
   north end of downtown. The Los Angeles Temple of The Church of Jesus
   Christ of Latter-day Saints is their second-largest temple and is
   located in West Los Angeles. L.A. had a wave of Mormon settlers in the
   1860s to generate a fairly large community of members of that church.

   Los Angeles is home to the third largest population of Jewish people in
   the United States. Many synagogues of the Reform, Conservative,
   Orthodox, and Reconstructionist movements can be found throughout the
   city. Most are located in the San Fernando Valley and West Los Angeles.
   The area in West LA around Fairfax and Pico Boulevards contains a large
   amount of Orthodox Jews. The oldest synagogue in Los Angeles is the
   Breed Street Shul in East Los Angeles, which is currently being
   renovated.

   The Azusa Street Revival (1906–1909) in Los Angeles was a key milestone
   in the history of the Pentecostal movement. Not long after Christian
   Fundamentalism received its name and crucial promotion in Los Angeles.
   In 1909, the Bible Institute of Los Angeles (B.I.O.L.A. now Biola
   University) published and widely distributed a set of books called The
   Fundamentals, which presented a defense of the traditional conservative
   interpretation of the Bible. The term fundamentalism is derived from
   these books.

   In the 1920s, Aimee Semple McPherson established a thriving evangelical
   ministry, with her Angelus Temple in Echo Park open to both black and
   white church members of the Foursquare Church. Billy Graham became a
   celebrity during a successful revival campaign in Los Angeles in 1949.
   Herbert W. Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God used to have its
   headquarters in nearby Pasadena, now in Glendale. Until his death in
   2005, Dr. Gene Scott was based near downtown. The Metropolitan
   Community Church, a fellowship of Christian congregations with a focus
   on outreach to gays and lesbians, was started in Los Angeles in 1968 by
   Troy Perry. Jack Chick, of " Chick Tracts", was born in Boyle Heights
   and lived in the area most of his life.

   Because of Los Angeles's large multi-ethnic population, there are
   numerous organizations in the area representing a wide variety of
   faiths, including Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Sikhism,
   Bahá'í, various Eastern Orthodox Churches, Sufism and others.
   Immigrants from Asia for example, have formed a number of significant
   Buddhist congregations making the city home to the biggest variety of
   Buddhists in the world. There are over 300 temples in Los Angeles. Los
   Angeles has been a destination for Swamis and Gurus since as early as
   1900, including Paramahansa Yogananda (1920). The Self-Realization
   Fellowship is headquartered in Hollywood and has a private park in
   Pacific Palisades. Los Angeles is the home to a number of Neopagans, as
   well as adherents of various other mystical religions. One wing of the
   Theosophist movement is centered in Los Angeles, and another is in
   neighboring Pasadena. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi founded the Transcendental
   Meditation movement in Los Angeles in the late 1950s. The Kabbalah
   Centre is in the city. The Church of Scientology has had a presence in
   Los Angeles since it opened February 18, 1954, and it has several
   churches, museums, and recruiting sites in the area, most notably the
   Celebrity Centre in Hollywood, in fact the world's largest community of
   Scientologists can be found in LA.

Crime

   The COMPSTAT unit of the LAPD tabulates Part I offenses (violent and
   property crimes) committed in the city. Los Angeles has been
   experiencing significant decline in Part I offenses since the
   mid-1990s, and hit a record low in 2005, with 43,231 acts of violence,
   of which 487 were homicides. Criminality peaked in 1992 with 72,667
   recorded acts of violence, of which 1,096 were homicides; and 245,129
   recorded property crimes. The distribution of homicides in the city is
   uneven with nearly half of such crimes occurring in the four stations
   of the South Bureau of the LAPD encompassing South Los Angeles and the
   Harbour area. A further quarter occur in the areas covered by the
   Central Bureau which covers Downtown and its environs. Property crimes
   were three times more common than violent crimes; 110,231 were recorded
   in 2005.

   Despite negative stereotypes, when compared to other large cities, Los
   Angeles fares relatively well, with a total crime index lower than that
   of San Francisco, Chicago, and Boston. Also, among the largest cities
   in the United States, only New York City has a lower overall crime rate
   .

   Many movies and songs about Los Angeles depict the notion that the city
   is home to a large number of gangsters and professional criminals.
   According to a May 2001 Drug Threat Assessment by the National Drug
   Intelligence Centre, Los Angeles County is home to 152,000 gang members
   organized into 1,350 gangs. Car chases happen more often than in most
   other major cities, with the city's complex freeway system allowing for
   lengthier pursuits. Other autmobile-oriented crimes include: car-to-car
   shootings, drive-by shootings, hit-and-run accidents, and carjackings.

Culture

   The official flower of LA, Strelitzia reginae
   Enlarge
   The official flower of LA, Strelitzia reginae

   The people of Los Angeles are known as Angelenos. Nighttime hotspots
   include places such as Downtown Los Angeles, Silver Lake, Hollywood,
   and West Hollywood, which is the home of the world-famous Sunset Strip.
   Disney Hall, designed by Frank Gehry.
   Enlarge
   Disney Hall, designed by Frank Gehry.

   Some well-known shopping areas are the Hollywood and Highland complex,
   the Beverly Centre, The Grove, Melrose Avenue, and Robertson Boulevard.

Arts and theatre

   The famous Hollywood sign, a symbol of the city's world famous
   entertainment culture.
   Enlarge
   The famous Hollywood sign, a symbol of the city's world famous
   entertainment culture.

   The city also offers several cultural institutions, and some of the
   most notable include the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the
   Getty Centre and Villa, the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), the
   Museum of Neon Art (MONA), the Norton Simon Museum, the Museum of
   Tolerance, the Skirball Cultural Centre, the Latino Museum of History,
   Art, and Culture, the George C. Page Museum, the Japanese American
   National Museum, the California Science Centre, and the Natural History
   Museum of Los Angeles County. There are also numerous smaller art
   galleries throughout the area, most noticeably in West Hollywood and
   Santa Monica.

   There are many venues for the performing arts such the Music Centre of
   Los Angeles County (consisting of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, home
   of the Los Angeles Opera, the Ahmanson Theatre, which hosts big
   Broadway-style productions, and the Mark Taper Forum), the Ford
   Amphitheatre, the Greek Theatre, the Hollywood Bowl, the Pantages
   Theatre, and the new home of the Academy Awards, the Kodak Theatre. The
   city also has many smaller theaters such as the famous Actors Gang
   Theatre and the Coronet Theatre.

   Architectural landmarks in the city include the Walt Disney Concert
   Hall (home to the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra), the Cathedral of
   Our Lady of the Angels, and the Bradbury Building. Important works of
   Frank Lloyd Wright (the " Hollyhock House"), Richard Neutra, and other
   well-known architects are found throughout the city. There is also a
   current renaissance of downtown Los Angeles as an arts and
   entertainment district, with the restoration and development of
   historic buildings, Broadway theaters, and businesses such as
   restaurants and clubs. A number of new residents are migrating to
   downtown, with the construction of hundreds of new penthouses and
   lofts.

   Residents of the city of Los Angeles are served by the Los Angeles
   Public Library (LAPL) and its branch locations. Residents of the
   unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County and various cities within
   the county are served by the County of Los Angeles Public Library The
   LAPL is funded by voter-approved bond and tax levy packages. The
   Central Library is located in downtown Los Angeles and has been
   recognized as a National Historic Site.

Sports

   Los Angeles is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League
   Baseball, the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL, the Los Angeles Lakers and
   Los Angeles Clippers of the NBA, the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA,
   the Los Angeles Galaxy and Club Deportivo Chivas USA of Major League
   Soccer, the Los Angeles Riptide of Major League Lacrosse, and the Los
   Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League. Los Angeles has been
   without an NFL franchise since 1995 despite being the second-biggest
   television market in North America. Prior to 1995, the Rams (1946-1994)
   and the Raiders (1982-1994) of the NFL were in the Los Angeles market.
   The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and Anaheim Ducks are both based in
   nearby Anaheim.

   Beach volleyball and windsurfing were both invented in the area (though
   predecessors of both were invented in some form by Duke Kahanamoku in
   Hawaii). Venice, also known as Dogtown, is credited with being the
   birthplace of skateboarding and the place where Rollerblading first
   became popular. Area beaches are popular with surfers, who have created
   their own subculture.

   Los Angeles has twice played host to the summer Olympic Games, in 1932
   and in 1984. When the tenth Olympic Games were hosted in 1932, the
   former 10th Street was renamed Olympic Blvd. The 1984 Summer Olympics
   inspired the creation of the Los Angeles Marathon, which has been held
   every year in March since 1986. Super Bowls I and VII were also held in
   the city as well as soccer's international World Cup in 1994. Los
   Angeles is also hoping to be the host of the 2016 Olympics.

   The Los Angeles area contains varied topography, notably the hills and
   mountains rising around the metropolis, making Los Angeles the only
   major city in the United States bisected by a mountain range; four
   mountain ranges extend into city boundaries. Thousands of miles of
   trails crisscross the city and neighboring areas, providing
   opportunities for exercise and wilderness access on foot, bike, or
   horse. Across the county a great variety of outdoor activities are
   available, such as skiing, rock climbing, gold panning, hang gliding,
   and windsurfing. Numerous outdoor clubs serve these sports, including
   the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club, which leads over 4,000 outings
   annually in the area.

   Los Angeles also boasts a number of sports venues, including the
   STAPLES Centre, a sports and entertainment complex that also hosts
   concerts and awards shows such as the Grammys.

Famous landmarks

   Mann's Chinese Theater, Hollywood sign, Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles
   City Hall, Hollywood Bowl, Chinatown, Disney Concert Hall, Kodak
   Theatre,

Transportation

   High-capacity freeway interchange in Los Angeles
   Enlarge
   High-capacity freeway interchange in Los Angeles

   Los Angeles has one of the largest freeway systems in the world, with
   27 intertwining freeways handling millions of commuters as they journey
   a daily collective migration of about 100 million miles (160 million
   km). Los Angeles is the most car-populated metropolis in the world with
   1.8 registered automobiles per licensed driver.

   The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and other
   agencies operate an extensive system of bus lines, as well as subway
   and light rail lines. True to reputation, Los Angeles' rail system does
   not have high ridership, averaging 276,900 trips a day, 0.4% of the 65
   million taken daily. This compares with ridership of 699,599 trips for
   Washington Metrorail's subway, 664,700 trips for Boston's subway T, the
   city of Chicago's L with 644,200, and New York City's 6.0 million
   average daily weekday trips taken. Adding in trips taken by bus raises
   this number to about 1.7 million. The rail system includes the Red Line
   subway, the Gold, Blue, and Green light rail lines, and the Orange
   Line, a bus rapid transit line. The special red Metro Rapid buses have
   also been highly touted as a prime example of a successful bus transit
   program since these buses operate like a rail line and run through the
   best-known parts of the city. However, during rush hour, they are apt
   to get mired in gridlock along with other vehicles, and the traffic
   signal holding or changing capability is of little help. Currently
   under construction is an eastside extension of the Gold Line. In the
   works is a new rail line called the Expo Line. Momentum is slowly
   building to extend the subway under Wilshire Boulevard all the way to
   the ocean in Santa Monica, extending the city's public transportation
   system further. Rail passenger service is provided by Amtrak and
   Metrolink from historic Union Station. Rail shipping is handled by
   Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway.

   The Los Angeles metropolitan area is served by more airports than any
   major city in the world, with 5 major commercial airports, and many
   more general-aviation airports. The main Los Angeles airport is Los
   Angeles International Airport ( IATA: LAX,  ICAO: KLAX), the fifth
   busiest commercial airport in the world. LAX handled 55 million
   passengers and 2 million tons of cargo in 2003. Other major commercial
   airports include Ontario International Airport ( IATA: ONT,  ICAO:
   KONT), Bob Hope Airport ( IATA: BUR,  ICAO: KBUR), formerly known as
   Burbank Airport, Long Beach Municipal Airport ( IATA: LGB,  ICAO:
   KLGB), and John Wayne Airport ( IATA: SNA,  ICAO: KSNA) of Orange
   County. Los Angeles also has the world's busiest general-aviation
   airport, Van Nuys Airport ( IATA: VNY,  ICAO: KVNY).

   The sea ports of the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach
   together make up the Los Angeles – Long Beach Harbour, the busiest and
   overall third-largest container shipping port in the world. There are
   also smaller, non-industrial harbors along L.A.'s coastline. Most of
   these contain sailboats and yachts, like Redondo Beach and Marina del
   Rey.

Education

Colleges and universities

   University of California, Los Angeles
   Enlarge
   University of California, Los Angeles
   University of Southern California
   Enlarge
   University of Southern California

   There are several public colleges and universities in the city,
   including the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), California
   State University, Los Angeles (CSULA), California State University,
   Long Beach (CSULB), and California State University, Northridge (CSUN).

   Private schools in and around the city include the University of
   Southern California (USC), the California Institute of Technology
   (Caltech), Antioch University's Los Angeles campus, Southern California
   University of Health Sciences, Pepperdine University, Loyola Marymount
   University (LMU), Mount St. Mary's College, Occidental College (Oxy),
   Otis College of Art and Design (Otis), Art Centre College of Design,
   Alliant International University, Southwestern University School of
   Law, American Film Institute, Charles R. Drew University, and Southern
   California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc)

   The community college system consists of nine campuses governed by the
   trustees of the Los Angeles Community College District: Los Angeles
   City College (LACC), Los Angeles Harbour College, Los Angeles Pierce
   College, Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC), Los Angeles Mission
   College, East Los Angeles College (ELAC), West Los Angeles College, Los
   Angeles Southwest College, and Los Angeles Trade Technical College.

Schools and libraries

   Los Angeles Unified School District serves the city of Los Angeles, as
   well as several surrounding communities. It is the second-largest
   school district in the United States, with over 700,000 students. After
   Proposition 13 in 1978, urban school districts had considerable trouble
   with funding and LAUSD became known for its underfunded, overcrowded
   and poorly maintained campuses. Wealthy and upper-middle-class parents
   placed their children in elite private schools, while middle-class
   families fled into suburban school districts beyond LAUSD boundaries.
   Since then, the LAUSD has embarked on an aggressive school construction
   program to relieve overcrowding.

   The Los Angeles Public Library system operates 72 public libraries in
   the city.

Sister cities

   A sign near City Hall points to the sister cities of Los Angeles.
   Enlarge
   A sign near City Hall points to the sister cities of Los Angeles.

   Los Angeles has 28 sister cities:
     * India Ahmedabad, India
     * Greece Athens, Greece
     * New Zealand Auckland, New Zealand
     * Beirut, Lebanon
     * Germany Berlin, Germany
     * France Bordeaux, France
     * Australia Brisbane, Australia
     * South Korea Busan, South Korea
     * Israel Eilat, Israel
     * Egypt Giza, Egypt
     * People's Republic of China Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
     * Italy Ischia, Italy
     * Indonesia Jakarta, Indonesia
     * Lithuania Kaunas, Lithuania

     * Zambia Lusaka, Zambia
     * Philippines Makati City, Philippines
     * Mexico Mexico City, Mexico
     * Canada Montreal, Quebec, Canada
     * Russia Moscow, Russia
     * India Mumbai, India
     * Japan Nagoya, Japan
     * Russia St. Petersburg, Russia
     * Brazil Salvador, Brazil
     * Croatia Split, Croatia
     * Republic of China Taipei, Taiwan
     * Iran Tehran, Iran
     * Canada Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
     * Armenia Yerevan, Armenia

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