Back Kalifornië Afrikaans Kalifornien ALS ካሊፎርኒያ Amharic California AN California ANG كاليفورنيا Arabic ܟܐܠܦܘܪܢܝܐ ARC كاليفورنيا ARY كاليفورنيا ARZ California AST
 | This article contains one or more duplicated citations. The reason given is: DuplicateReferences detected: (June 2025)
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California | |
|---|---|
| Nickname: The Golden State[1] | |
| Motto: | |
| Anthem: "I Love You, California" | |
 Location of California within the United States | |
| Country | United States |
| Before statehood | Mexican Cession unorganized territory |
| Admitted to the Union | September 9, 1850 (31st) |
| Capital | Sacramento |
| Largest city | Los Angeles |
| Largest metro and urban areas | Greater Los Angeles |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Gavin Newsom (D) |
| • Lieutenant Governor | Eleni Kounalakis (D) |
| Legislature | State Legislature |
| • Upper house | State Senate |
| • Lower house | State Assembly |
| Judiciary | Supreme Court of California |
| U.S. senators | Alex Padilla (D) Adam Schiff (D) |
| U.S. House delegation |
|
| Area | |
• Total | 163,696 sq mi (423,970 km2) |
| • Land | 155,959 sq mi (403,932 km2) |
| • Water | 7,737 sq mi (20,047 km2) 4.7% |
| • Rank | 3rd |
| Dimensions | |
| • Length | 760 mi (1,220 km) |
| • Width | 250 mi (400 km) |
| Elevation | 2,900 ft (880 m) |
| Highest elevation | 14,505 ft (4,421.0 m) |
| Lowest elevation | −279 ft (−85.0 m) |
| Population (2024) | |
• Total |  39,431,263[6] |
| • Rank | 1st |
| • Density | 251.3/sq mi (97/km2) |
| • Rank | 11th |
| • Median household income |  $95,500 (2023)[7] |
| • Income rank | 5th |
| Demonym(s) | Californian Californio (archaic Spanish) Californiano (Spanish) |
| Language | |
| • Official language | English |
| • Spoken language | |
| Time zone | UTC−08:00 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−07:00 (PDT) |
| USPS abbreviation | CA |
| ISO 3166 code | US-CA |
| Traditional abbreviation | Calif., Cal., Cali. |
| Latitude | 32°32′ N to 42° N |
| Longitude | 114°8′ W to 124°26′ W |
| Website | ca |
California (/ˌkælɪˈfɔːrnjə/) is a state in the Western United States that lies on the Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares an international border with the Mexican state of Baja California to the south. With almost 40 million residents across an area of 163,696 square miles (423,970 km2), it is the largest state by population and third-largest by area.
Prior to European colonization, California was one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse areas in pre-Columbian North America. European exploration in the 16th and 17th centuries led to the colonization by the Spanish Empire. The area became a part of Mexico in 1821, following its successful war for independence, but was ceded to the United States in 1848 after the Mexican–American War. The California gold rush started in 1848 and led to social and demographic changes, including depopulation of Indigenous tribes. It organized itself and was admitted as the 31st state in 1850 as a free state, following the Compromise of 1850. It never had the status of territory.
The Greater Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay areas are the nation's second- and fifth-most populous urban regions, with 19 million and 10 million residents respectively.[11] Los Angeles is the state's most populous city and the nation's second-most. California's capital is Sacramento. Part of the Californias region of North America, the state's diverse geography ranges from the Pacific Coast and metropolitan areas in the west to the Sierra Nevada mountains in the east, and from the redwood and Douglas fir forests in the northwest to the Mojave Desert in the southeast. Two-thirds of the nation's earthquake risk lies in California.[12] The Central Valley, a fertile agricultural area, dominates the state's center. The large size of the state results in climates that vary from moist temperate rainforest in the north to arid desert in the interior, as well as snowy alpine in the mountains. Droughts and wildfires are an ongoing issue,[13] while simultaneously, atmospheric rivers are turning increasingly prevalent and leading to intense flooding events—especially in the winter.
The economy of California is the largest of any U.S. state, with an estimated 2024 gross state product of $4.172 trillion as of Q4 2024.[14] It is the world's largest sub-national economy and if it were an independent country, it would be the fourth-largest economy in the world (putting it, as of 2025, behind Germany and ahead of Japan) when ranked by nominal GDP.[15][16] The state's agricultural industry also leads the nation in agricultural output,[17][18][19] led by its production of dairy, almonds, and grapes.[20] With the busiest port in the country (Los Angeles), California plays a pivotal role in the global supply chain, hauling in about 40% of goods imported to the US.[21] Notable contributions to popular culture, ranging from entertainment, sports, music, and fashion, have their origins in California. Hollywood in Los Angeles is the center of the U.S. film industry and one of the oldest and one of the largest film industries in the world; profoundly influencing global entertainment since the 1920s. The San Francisco Bay's Silicon Valley is the center of the global technology industry.[22]
In terms of ethnic and racial diversity, the 2020 census showed no single ethnic group forming a majority. The largest groups (over 1%) are Latino: 39%; White (Non-Hispanic): 35%; Asian: 15%; and Black or African American: 5%. Two or More Races: 4%. The number of Latino residents grew by 4.6 million between 2000 and 2020, while the number of white residents declined by over 2 million.[23]
- ^ "California". americaslibrary.gov. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
- ^ a b "Chapter 2 of Division 2 of Title 1 of the California Government Code". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Mount_Whitneywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
USGSwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED) 1 meter Downloadable Data Collection from The National Map 3D Elevation Program (3DEP)—National Geospatial Data Asset (NGDA) National Elevation Data Set (NED)". United States Geological Survey. September 21, 2015. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
- ^ "United States Census Quick Facts California". Retrieved January 5, 2025.
- ^ "Household Income in States and Metropolitan Areas: 2023" (PDF). Retrieved January 12, 2025.
- ^ "Languages Spoken at Home". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- ^ "California Government Code § 424". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
- ^ "California Government Code § 422". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
- ^ "American FactFinder—Results". factfinder.census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on January 24, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
- ^ "What is the Earthquake Risk in California?". California Earthquake Authority. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
CALIFORNIA IS HOME TO TWO-THIRDS OF OUR NATION'S EARTHQUAKE RISK.
- ^ Elassar, Alaa (April 3, 2022). "California once prohibited Native American fire practices. Now, it's asking tribes to use them to help prevent wildfires". CNN. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ "Gross Domestic Product by State and Personal Income by State, 3rd Quarter 2024 -Tables Only". Bureau of Economic Analysis. Retrieved June 5, 2025.
- ^ Burke, Molly (April 23, 2025). "California is now 4th-largest economy in world, surpassing Japan". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 23, 2025.
- ^ "California's Economy". Public Policy Institute of California. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ Palmer, Brian (July 10, 2013). "The C-Free Diet". Slate.
- ^ "CDFA—Statistics". California Department of Food and Agriculture.
- ^ "California farms produce a lot of food—but what and how much might surprise you". Orange County Register. July 27, 2017.
- ^ Vic Tolomeo; Kelly Krug; Doug Flohr; Jason Gibson (October 31, 2012). "California Agricultural Statistics: 2011 Crop Year" (PDF). National Agricultural Statistics Service. United States Department of Agriculture. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 24, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
- ^ Karlamangla, Soumya (November 4, 2021). "The Busiest Port in the U.S." The New York Times. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
But despite its glitzy image, L.A. is home to the busiest port in the Western Hemisphere. It plays a major role in the global supply chain
- ^ "California Gross domestic product (GDP) (millions of current dollars)". U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis. Archived from the original on August 6, 2016. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
- ^ Nicholas A. Jones, and Beverly M. Pratt. "Race and Ethnicity: 2020 Census Results for California" (Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau, November 3, 2021) p 40 online
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