The San Fernando Valley

The San Fernando Valley lies northwest of Hollywood across the Santa Monica Mountains. The Los Angeles section of the valley covers 234 square miles (606 square kilometers), which the city annexed in 1915. When Los Angeles annexed the section, it consisted of large open areas and several rural communities. Today, huge housing developments and shopping centers cover the San Fernando Valley. Over 1 million people, about a third of Los Angeles's residents, live in the valley. Most of them live in single-family houses with patios and barbecues in the backyard. Many homes include a backyard swimming pool. The area also has numerous small apartment buildings and high-rise buildings. The independent communities of Burbank and San Fernando also are in the valley. Another valley community, Northridge, was the center of a major earthquake in 1994.

The City

Los Angeles can be divided into eight main sections:
- Downtown Los Angeles
- South-Central Los Angeles
- Central Los Angeles
- The San Fernando Valley
- West Los Angeles
- South Bay
- The Port of Los Angeles
- East Los Angeles

Metropolitan Area

By 2000, it had about 9 1/2 million people and ranked as the nation's largest single metropolitan area.

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The ocean and the mountains help give Los Angeles a mild climate the year around.

The People

More than half the people of Los Angeles County moved there from other parts of the United States or from other countries.

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Geography and climate

Los Angeles lies on the Pacific coast in southern California. It is about 350 miles (563 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco and about 130 miles (209 kilometers) northwest of San Diego and the Mexican border.