Los Angeles, California

City of Los Angeles
Downtown LA
Nickname: The City of Angels, L.A.
Coordinates: 34°03′N 118°15′W / 34.05, -118.25
Country	United States
State	California
County	Los Angeles County
Settled	1781
Incorporated	April 4, 1850
Government
- Type	Mayor-Council
- Mayor	Antonio Villaraigosa
- City Attorney	Rocky Delgadillo
Area
- City	498.3 sq mi (1,290.6 km²)
- Land	469.1 sq mi (1,214.9 km²)
- Water	29.2 sq mi (75.7 km²)
- Urban	1,667.9 sq mi (4,319.9 km²)
Elevation	0–5,079 ft (0–1,548 m)
Population (2006)
- City	3,849,368
- Density	8,205/sq mi (3,168/km²)
- Metro	12,950,119
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
Website: http://www.ci.la.ca.us/

Los Angeles (also called L.A.) is a city in southern California, in the United States of America. It has 3,847,400 people living in the city, and over 18 million people in the L.A. region. The city has an area of 1200 square kilometres. L.A. has the second largest population of any city in the USA, the first being New York City. It is the largest city in California.

History

Hollywood sign

The name Los Angeles comes from the Spanish language and it means "the Angels". The name is an abbreviation from the original name of the place. The original name is "El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de Porciuncula" (in English, "town of our lady the Queen of Angels of the little Portion"). Los Angeles was founded in 1781. The area had earlier been explored by two Franciscan priests named Junipero Serra and Juan Crespi, when California still belonged to Spain. On April 4, 1850 California became a State of the USA.

Sights

L.A. has many famous sights. There are many very long beaches, such as Venice Beach. Many visitors go to Hollywood, home to the Hollwood Walk of Fame and the Mann's (Grauman's) Chinese Theater, a large cinema. Los Angeles also has many fine museums such as the L.A. County Museum of Art and the Getty Museum.

Industries

Los Angeles is known for its large movie and television industry. Much of this is located in Hollywood. Some military aircraft are also made there. The music industry is also concentrated in the area. The city is also a banking center.

Neighborhoods

Los Angeles City Hall

Los Angeles has dozens of neighborhoods and named areas. Among the most famous are:

• Hollywood, former home of many movie studios.
• Elysian Park, home of Dodger Stadium.
• Venice Beach.
• Brentwood, a very wealthy area.
• Fairfax Avenue, home to many Jewish people.
• Westwood, home to the University of California at Los Angeles.
• Holmby Hills, home to the Playboy Mansion.
• Silverlake, a neighborhood with many gay pople.
• East L.A., where many Mexican Americans live.
• South-Central L.A., where many African Americans live.
• the San Fernando Valley, a large suburban area home to many Persian people.

Politics

The current mayor of Los Angeles is Antonio Villaraigosa.