Калифорния сочинение на английском с переводом

By far the most populous state of the United States is California. Located in the southwestern corner of the United States, California is home to a great diversity of natural environments and cultural influences. In the year 2000, over 33 million people lived in California.

Безусловно, самым густонаселенным штатом США является Калифорния. Калифорния, расположенная в юго-западном углу Соединенных Штатов, является домом для большого разнообразия природных сред и культурных влияний. В 2000 году в Калифорнии проживало более 33 миллионов человек.

California’s many mountains and valleys produce a wide variety of climates and natural regions. In the interior, southeastern parts of the state are many areas of desert. For example, Death Valley, which is so deep that it is below sea level, is extremely dry. Temperatures in Death Valley sometimes exceed 50 degrees Celsius. Other valleys are more pleasant and hospitable places. In the central valley, many farms grow vast amounts of fruits and vegetables.

Множество гор и долин Калифорнии создают самые разные климатические условия и природные регионы. Внутри юго-восточной части штата много пустынь. Например, Долина Смерти, которая настолько глубока, что находится ниже уровня моря, чрезвычайно засушлива. Температура в Долине Смерти иногда превышает 50 градусов по Цельсию. Другие долины — более приятные и гостеприимные места. В центральной долине многие фермы выращивают огромное количество фруктов и овощей.

California also contains many tall, snow-covered mountains. On the slopes of some mountains are forests that have very large trees. Some of the giant redwood trees of California reach heights of 100 metres or more.

В Калифорнии также есть много высоких заснеженных гор. На склонах некоторых гор есть леса с очень большими деревьями. Некоторые из гигантских красных деревьев Калифорнии достигают высоты 100 метров и более.

Many of the cities in California have Spanish names. This is because many of those cities began as religious missions that were started by Spanish priests. Mexico owned California during the early nineteenth century, but few Mexican people lived there. The United States gained control of California during the 1840s, and the discovery of gold brought many Americans and others to California.

Многие города Калифорнии носят испанские названия. Это потому, что многие из этих городов начинались как религиозные миссии, которые были начаты испанскими священниками. Мексика владела Калифорнией в начале девятнадцатого века, но там жило мало мексиканцев. Соединенные Штаты получили контроль над Калифорнией в 1840-х годах, и открытие золота привело многих американцев и других людей в Калифорнию.

Today, California contains some of the largest cities in the United States. Within the greater Los Angeles area, one can find Hollywood, known as the movie capital of the world. Many rich people live in suburbs such as Beverly Hills, and many poor people live in other neighborhoods throughout the city. The Los Angeles area is home to over 15 million people, many of whom have immigrated to the United States from Mexico and from many Asian countries. Los Angeles is a very large city that has spread across a great area. As a consequence, the city has many traffic jams and air pollution, or smog, is sometimes a problem.

Сегодня в Калифорнии находятся одни из крупнейших городов США. В районе Большого Лос-Анджелеса находится Голливуд, известный как мировая столица кино. Многие богатые люди живут в пригородах, таких как Беверли-Хиллз, а многие бедняки живут в других районах города. В районе Лос-Анджелеса проживает более 15 миллионов человек, многие из которых иммигрировали в Соединенные Штаты из Мексики и многих азиатских стран. Лос-Анджелес — очень большой город, раскинувшийся на огромной территории. Как следствие, в городе много пробок, а загрязнение воздуха или смог иногда становится проблемой.

Further north is the city of San Francisco, one of the most beautiful cities of the United States. The image of the Golden Gate Bridge, which crosses the harbour of San Francisco, is famous around the world. Also famous are the hilly streets of San Francisco and the trolley cars that provide transportation along them. San Francisco’s Chinese community is one of the largest in North America, and the city also contains a vibrant artistic and cultural life. San Francisco was destroyed by an earthquake in 1906 and was damaged again in 1989.

Дальше на север находится город Сан-Франциско, один из самых красивых городов США. Образ моста Золотые Ворота, который пересекает гавань Сан-Франциско, известен во всем мире. Известны также холмистые улицы Сан-Франциско и троллейбусы, которые курсируют по ним. Китайская община Сан-Франциско — одна из крупнейших в Северной Америке, и в городе также кипит яркая художественная и культурная жизнь. Сан-Франциско был разрушен землетрясением в 1906 году и снова пострадал в 1989 году.

California has always had a special place in the imagination of Americans. This is hardly surprising, given the variety and diversity of this vast state!

Калифорния всегда занимала особое место в воображении американцев. В этом нет ничего удивительного, учитывая разнообразие и разнообразие этого огромного штата!

The Golden State California

   California is located in the southwestern part of the USA. It is estimated to be the richest state of the USA that is why it is also called the Golden State.
   Between 1850 and 1854, San Jose, Vallejo, and San Francisco served as the temporary capital cities. In 1854, the capital city was permanently moved to Sacramento.
   The main cities are Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego, San Jose, etc. The total area is about 405 000 sq. km. It is the third biggest state of the USA after Alaska and Texas. State population is about 35, 000,000. It has the highest density of population. The largest City of California is Los Angeles, which is the 2nd largest city in the USA after New York city.
   In 2003 the Governor of the state California became the well-known actor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
   California’s history is unique. It has been shaped, in part, by its geography. California has four main regions: the temperate coastal region, the Central Valley, once an inland sea, the desert, and the mountain region. The imposing Sierra Nevada caused California to develop in relative isolation from the rest of the nation. After Americans began to settle in California in large numbers during the nineteenth century, it would usually be weeks before news would arrive to the state from the East. Four flags have flown over California: Russian, Spanish, Mexican and the United States.
   The name « California» came from a knightly romance book that was published in 1510. It was about an island paradise near India where beautiful Queen Calif ia ruled over a country of beautiful black Amazons with lots of pearls and gold. Cortez’s men thought they found the island in 1535, because they found pearls. Later, it was found that the island was re ally a peninsula.
   The first settlers to arrive in California after the Native Americans were Spanish. Russia had some small settlements, involved in whaling and fur trapping in Northern California, but Russia didn’t attempt to colonize the area except in very isolated areas. Spanish priests were sent to California to convert the Indians to Christianity. Spain hoped to make the California native population into good Spaniards, loyal to Spain.
   Spain couldn’t find enough Spaniards willing to leave Spain for the New World and her attempts to convert the Indians into Spaniards failed. Spain had made the same errors that the English made with the Colonies. Spain forbade New Spain from trading with any other nation besides Spain, and Spanish settlers who were born in Spain were considered to be a higher class than pure Spanish born in New Spain, Even though New Spain had adopted the culture of Spain, the Spanish restrictions would soon drive Spain from the New World just as the English had been driven out.
   The English began to fight for California almost 500 years ago with Queen Elizabeth I. England had ceased to become a real threat since the American Colonists had driven England from much of the New World. England had left something dangerous in her stead. It is English culture. Though the United States was a multinational state, English culture was the overriding tie that bound these people together.
   It was this discovery of gold that hastened California’s statehood. By the mid nineteenth century, California became a state of the USA because of the Gold Rush which started in earnest in 1849.
   On September 9,1850, President Fillmore officially made California the thirty-first state.
   Winter comes early in the Californian mountains and many settlers lost their lives, if they tried to cross the hostile Sierra Nevada and penetrate to California from the eastern part of the country in winter.
   The most common method of travel to California from the East for that time was by ship. Settlers would leave the East Coast and have to travel south all the way around the tip„of South America. The only other way to get to California was to get off the ship in Panama, cross the isthmus by land, and pick up a ship on the West coast of Panama that was headed north. Many travellers died of disease crossing the tropical Isthmus of Panama.
   Only after the construction of the railroad which linked California to the rest of the country, California itself could offer a lot to the nation. The rich Central Valley eventually became known as the breadbasket of the world. California’s mild climate allowed for year-round farming and growing of fruit and vegetables.
   Prior to the Gold Rush, California had more Native Americans than all the other states combined. Now California still has the largest population of Native Americans. California has one of the largest Chinese communities outside Asia in the entire world, the majority of whom live in San Francisco. California has the largest Armenian population outside Armenia. From the economical point of view California is the largest producer of goods of all the states and the largest agricultural state in the Union. California is the fifth largest economy in the world, if it were a separate country.

Золотой штат Калифорния

   Калифорния расположена в юго-западной части США. Считается, что это самый богатый штат США, именно поэтому он также называется Золотым штатом.
   Между 1850 и 1854 годом города Сан-Хосе, Валлехо и Сан-Франциско служили временными столицами штата. В1854 г. столица была перенесена в город Сакраменто.
   Главными городами являются Лос-Анджелес, Сан-Франциско, Санта-Барбара, Сан-Диего, Сан-Хосе, и др. Общая территория штата составляет приблизительно 405 000 кв. км. Это третий по величине штат США после штата Аляска и штата Техас. Население штата составляет приблизительно 35 000 000. Это самый густонаселенный штат. Самым большим городом штата Калифорния является Лос-Анджелес, который является 2-м по величине городом в США после Нью-Йорка.
   В 2003 году губернатором штата Калифорния стал известный актер Арнольд Шварценеггер.
   История Калифорнии уникальна. Она была частично сформирована «го географией. Калифорния имеет четыре главных региона: прибрежный регион с умеренным климатом, Центральную долину, когда-то это было внутреннее море, пустыню и область гор. Внушительные горы Сьерра Невада стали причиной того, что Калифорния развивалась в относительной изоляции от остальной части страны. После того как американцы в течение всего девятнадцатого столетия начали селиться в Калифорнии в большом количестве, нужно было несколько недель, чтобы новости с Востока достигли штата.
Четыре флага развевались над Калифорнией: русский, испанский, мексиканский и флаг Соединенных Штатов.
   Название «Калифорния» пришло из рыцарского романа, который был опубликован в 1510 году. Там рассказывалось о райском острове, расположенном возле Индии, где красивая королева Калифия управляла страной красивых черных амазонок с большим количеством жемчуга и золота. Люди Кортеса в 1535 г. подумали, что они нашли этот остров, потому что там был найден жемчуг. Позже выяснилось, что остров в действительности являлся полуостровом.
   Первые поселенцы, прибывшие в Калифорнию, не считая коренных американцев, были испанцами, позднее ставшие мексиканцами. У России было несколько маленьких поселений, расположенных в Северной Калифорнии, которые занимались китобойным промыслом и добычей пушнины, но Россия не пыталась колонизировать эту область, за исключением некоторых изолированных областей. Испанские священники были посланы в Калифорнию, чтобы обратить индейцев в христианскую веру. Испания надеялась сделать из коренного населения Калифорнии хороших испанцев, лояльных Испании.
   Испания не могла найти достаточное количество испанцев, желающих покинуть Испанию, и ее попытки сделать из индейцев испанцев потерпели неудачу. Испания сделала те же самые ошибки, что и англичане в отношении своих колоний. Испания запретила Новой Испании торговать с любой другой нацией, кроме Испании, а испанские поселенцы, которые родились в Испании, рассматривалось как более высокий класс, чем чистокровный испанец, рожденный в Новой Испании. Даже при том что Новая Испания приняла культуру Испании, испанские ограничения вытеснят Испанию из Нового Света так же, как были вытеснены англичане.
   Англичане начали бороться за Калифорнию почти 500 лет назад, во времена королевы Элизабеты Первой. Англия прекратила быть реальной угрозой, после того как американские колонисты вытеснили Англию из Нового Света. Но Англия оставила кое-что довольно опасное. Это английская культура. Хотя Соединенные Штаты были многонациональным государством, английская культура была именно тем связующим звеном; которое связывало всех этих людей вместе.
   Именно открытие золота ускорило становление Калифорнии как штата. В середине девятнадцатого столетия, благодаря золотой лихорадке, которая всерьез началась в 1849 году, Калифорния стала одним из штатов.
   9 сентября 1850 года президент Филлмор официально сделал Калифорнию тридцать первым штатом США.
   Зима наступает рано в калифорнийских горах, и многие поселенцы расставались с жизнями, если пробовали пересечь враждебные горы Сьерра Невада и проникнуть в Калифорнию из восточной части страны зимой.
   В то время самым распространенным способом путешествия в Калифорнию с востока, было путешествие на корабле. Поселенцы отплывали с восточного побережья и должны были полностью обогнуть южную оконечность Южной Америки. Другой способ добраться до Калифорнии состоял в том, чтобы сойти с корабля в Панаме, пересечь перешеек, и сесть на судно на Западном побережье Панамы, которое направлялось бы на Север. Много путешественников умерли от болезней, пересекая тропический перешеек Панамы.
   Только после сооружения железной дороги, которая связала Калифорнию с остальной частью страны, Калифорния смогла предложить нации многое.
Богатая центральная долина в конечном счете стала известной как житница (хлебная корзина) всего мира. Умеренный климат Калифорнии, позволял заниматься сельским хозяйством и выращивать фрукты и овощи круглый год.
   До золотой лихорадки Калифорния имела самое большое количество коренных американцев, больше чем все остальные штаты вместе взятые. Теперь в штате Калифорния все еще проживает самое большое количество коренных американцев. Калифорния имеет одну из самых больших в мире китайских общин за пределами Азии, большинство членов которой живет в городе Сан-Франциско. В Калифорнии проживает самое большое количество армян за пределами Армении. С экономической точки зрения Калифорния является самым большим производителем товаров среди всех штатов и самым большим сельскохозяйственным штатом в Соединенных Штатах. Если бы этот штат был отдельным государством, его экономика занимала бы пятое место в мире.
 

Questions:

1. Where is California locateu?
2. Is it a rich state?
3. What is the capital of the state?
4. What are the main cities of the state?
5. Is it the biggest state of the USA?
6. How many main regions does California have?
7. What is the origin of the state’s name?
8. Who were the first settlers to arrive in California after the Native Americans?
9. What errors did Spain make in California, which soon would drive Spain out?
10. When did the English fight for California begin?
11. What historical event hastened the statehood of California?.
12. When did California become a state of the USA?
13. What was the most common method of travel to California from the East for that time?
14. Is the number of native Americans great or not in California?
15. Is California a large agricultural state?

Vocabulary:

to be located — находиться, размещаться
to estimate — считать, полагать, оценивать, давать оценку; судить; расценивать
to serve — служить
permanently — постоянно
to move — переехать
density — плотность
well-known — выдающийся, знаменитый, известный, популярный
unique — уникальный, единственный в своем роде
to shape — придавать форму, формировать; получаться
temperate — умеренный (о климате и т. п.)
inland sea — внутреннее море
desert — пустыня
imposing—требующий, предписывающий; внушительный
to cause — послужить причиной/поводом для чего-л.;
to develop — развивать(ся)
to settle — поселить(ся), обосноваться, селиться
to fly over (flew, flown) — развеваться над
knightly — рыцарский
paradise — рай, райское местечко
to rule — править, управлять
pearl — жемчужина
peninsula — полуостров
to arrive in — прибыть, приехать
to be involved in — быть вовлеченным в, заниматься чем-либо
whaling — охота на китов; китобойный промысел
fur trapping — добыча пушнины, охота на пушного зверя
attempt — попытка; проба; опыт
priest — священник
Christianity — христианство
loyal — лояльный, верный, преданный
willing — добровольный; готовый (сделать что-л.); охотно делающий что-л.
to fail — не сбываться, обманывать ожидания, не удаваться; потерпеть неудачу;
to forbid (forbade, forbidden) — запрещать; не позволять; препятствовать
to be considered — считать, полагать ‘
pure — чистый, настоящий , restriction — ограничение, сужение
to drive smb. from — изгнать, вытеснить
to fight — сражаться, воевать
to cease — переставать (делать что-л.), прекращать(ся); приостанавливать, положить конец,
threat — угроза
stead — место (место, которое замещается другим лицом, вещью и т. п.); земельный участок
overriding tie — связующее звено
to hasten — спешить, торопиться, делать (что-либо в спешке
the Gold Rush — золотая лихорадка
in earnest — по-настоящему
prior to — раньше, прежде, до
hostile — враждебный, неприязненный, недружелюбный
the Sierra Nevada — горы Сьерра-Невада
to penetrate — проникать внутрь, проходить сквозь, проходить
tip — тонкий конец; кончик
to get off — сходить, вставать с (о транспорте)
isthmus — перешеек
to head north — направиться на север
disease — болезнь
railroad = railway
to offer — предлагать
eventually — в конечном счете, в итоге, в конце концов; со временем
breadbasket — житница (хлебная корзина)
mild — умеренный (о погоде, климате и т. п.); безветренный, тихий, спокойный, ясный
to grow (past grew, p.p. grown) — выращивать, культивировать; расти, вырастать
majority — большинство
separate — отдельный; обособленный

Калифорния является наиболее населенным штатом США и третьим по величине после Аляски и Техаса.

Ее также прозвали Золотым Штатом, а девиз калифорнийцев «Эврика!» означает «Я нашел!». И что бы вы ни искали, вы определенно найдете это в Калифорнии.

В штате говорят более чем на 200 языках. Люди, приезжающие сюда со всех уголков земного шара делают Калифорнию одним из самых терпимых, свободным от предрассудков и открытых обществ на планете. Приветствуя людей, жители Калифорнии также приветствуют их культуру, образ жизни, язык и религию,

и все эти разные культуры создают удивительную музыку, искусство, танцы, историю и праздники, не говоря уже о кухне.

Южная Калифорния является поистине Меккой для тех, кто обожает путешествия, отдых на свежем воздухе, музыку, искусство и прочие развлечения. В действительности, практически все, что вы можете себе представить, можно найти в Южной Калифорнии.

В Калифорнии есть много мест, которые стоит увидеть. Мост Золотые Ворота в Сан-Франциско — один из величайших мостов в мире.

Калифорнийский Государственный Железнодорожный музей в Сакраменто является главной старейшей достопримечательностью столицы штата. Среди прочих экспонатов в музее представлено более 24 локомотивов и железнодорожных составов.

Автомобильный музей Петерсена в Лос-Анджелесе является иконой города, чья уникальность и история неразрывно связана с автомобильной промышленностью.

Озеро Тахо является крупнейшим в мире хранилищем пресной воды.

Йосемитский национальный парк является одним из самых красивых природных уголков на планете. На его территории расположены 3 из 10 существующих водопадов, величайший гранитный монолит на планете, а также одни из самых больших в мире деревьев.

Множество знаменитостей жили или живут в Калифорнии. Среди них актриса и посол Ширли Темпл, сценарист Сидни Ховард, режиссер Джордж Лукас, американский президент Ричард Никсон, теннисистки сестры Уильямс и многие другие.

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California is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by land area, after Alaska and Texas.

Its nickname is the Golden state and its motto is «Eureka!» which means «I have found it.» Whatever it is you’re looking for, you can surely find it here.

More than 200 different languages are spoken in California. The arrival of people from every corner of the globe makes the state one of the most tolerant, cosmopolitan and open-minded societies on the planet. By welcoming people, Californians also welcome their culture, lifestyle, language and religion and all these different cultures create an undeniable variety of music, art, dance, histories and celebrations — not to mention cuisine.

Southern California is a Mecca for those who enjoy travel, outdoor activities, music, art and a variety of other entertainment. In fact, most of what you can imagine can be found in Southern California.

There’s a lot to see in California. The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco is one of the most famous bridges around the world.

California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento is the largest old attraction in Sacramento. It exhibits almost two dozen locomotives and railroad cars, among other attractions.

Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles is an icon for Los Angeles, a city whose identity and history is so together with the popularity of the automobile.

Lake Tahoe is one of the world’s best magnificent bodies of fresh water.

Yosemite National Park is one of the most beautiful natural places on the planet. It has 3 of the 10 tallest waterfalls on earth, the biggest granite monolith anywhere, and some of the world’s largest trees.

Lots of famous people lived or live in California. Among them are: Shirley Temple Black, an actress and an ambassador, Sidney Howard, a playwright, George Lucas, a filmmaker, U. S. president Richard M. Nixon, tennis players Serena and Venus Williams and many others.

California, most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W).

Facts and Figures

Area, 158,693 sq mi (411,015 sq km). Pop. (2000) 33,871,648, a 13.8% increase since the 1990 census. Capital, Sacramento. Largest city, Los Angeles. Statehood, Sept. 9, 1850 (31st state). Highest pt., Mt. Whitney, 14,491 ft (4,417 m); lowest pt., Death Valley, 282 ft (86 m) below sea level. Nickname, Golden State. Motto, Eureka [I Have Found It]. State bird, California valley quail. State flower, golden poppy. State tree, California redwood. Abbr., Calif.; CA

Geography

Ranking third among the U.S. states in area, California has a diverse topography and climate. A series of low mountains known as the Coast Ranges extends along the 1,200-mi (1,930-km) coast. The region from Point Arena, N of San Francisco, to the southern part of the state is subject to tremors and sometimes to severe earthquakes caused by tectonic stress along the San Andreas fault . The Coast Ranges receive heavy rainfall in the north, where the giant cathedrallike redwood forests prevail, but the climate of these mountains is considerably drier in S California, and S of the Golden Gate no major rivers reach the ocean. Behind the coastal ranges in central California lies the great Central Valley , a long alluvial valley drained by the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. In the southeast lie vast wastelands, notably the Mojave Desert , site of Joshua Tree National Park.

Rising as an almost impenetrable granite barrier E of the Central Valley is the Sierra Nevada range, which includes Mt. Whitney , Kings Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park , and Yosemite National Park . The Cascade Range , the northern continuation of the Sierra Nevada, includes Lassen Volcanic National Park . Lying E of the S Sierra Nevada is Death Valley National Park. The drier portions of the state especially are subject periodically to large, wind-driven fires; in certain hilly areas sometimes devastating mudslides occur, particularly in the rainy season after large fires.

Sacramento is the state capital. The largest cities are Los Angeles , San Diego , San Jose , San Francisco , Long Beach , Oakland , and Sacramento.

Economy

California has an enormously productive economy, which for a nation would be one of the ten largest in the world. Although agriculture is gradually yielding to industry as the core of the state’s economy, California leads the nation in the production of fruits and vegetables, including carrots, lettuce, onions, broccoli, tomatoes, strawberries, and almonds. The state’s most valuable crops are grapes, cotton, flowers, and oranges; dairy products, however, contribute the single largest share of farm income, and California is again the national leader in this sector. The state also produces the major share of U.S. domestic wine. California’s farms are highly productive as a result of good soil, a long growing season, and the use of modern agricultural methods. Irrigation is critical, especially in the San Joaquin Valley and Imperial Valley. The gathering and packing of crops is done largely by seasonal migrant labor, primarily Mexicans. Fishing is another important industry.

Much of the state’s industrial production depends on the processing of farm produce and upon such local resources as petroleum, natural gas, lumber, cement, and sand and gravel. Since World War II, however, manufacturing, notably of electronic equipment, computers, machinery, transportation equipment, and metal products, has increased enormously. Defense industries, a base of the economy especially in S California, have declined following the end of the cold war, a serious blow to the state. But many high-tech companies and small low-tech, often low-wage, companies remain in S California, in what is said to be the largest manufacturing belt in the United States. Farther north, «Silicon Valley,» between Palo Alto and San Jose, so called because it is the nation’s leading producer of semiconductors, is also a focus of software development.

California continues to be a major U.S. center for motion-picture, television film, and related entertainment industries, especially in Hollywood and Burbank . Tourism also is an important source of income. Disneyland, Sea World, and other theme parks draw millions of visitors each year, as do San Francisco with its numerous attractions and several entertainment-dominated Los Angeles-area communities. California also abounds in natural beauty, seen especially in its many national parks and forests—home to such attractions as Yosemite Falls and giant sequoia trees—and along miles of Pacific beaches.

One of the state’s most acute problems is its appetite for water. The once fertile Owens valley is now arid, its waters tapped by Los Angeles 175 mi (282 km) away. In the lush Imperial Valley , irrigation is controlled by the All-American Canal , which draws from the Colorado River. In the Central Valley the water problem is one of poor distribution, an imbalance lessened by the vast Central Valley project . Cutbacks in federally funded water projects in the 1970s and 80s led many California cities to begin buying water from areas with a surplus, but political problems associated with water sharing continue. California’s failure to develop a long-term plan to end surplus withdrawals from the Colorado led the federal government to stop the release of surplus water to the state in 2003.

Government, Politics, and Higher Education

The state’s first constitution was adopted in 1849. The present constitution, dating from 1879, is noted for its provisions for public initiative and referendum—which have led at times to difficulties in governance—and for recall of public officials. The state’s executive branch is headed by a governor elected for a four-year term. California’s bicameral legislature has a senate with 40 members and an assembly with 80 members. The state elects 2 senators and 52 representatives to the U.S. Congress and has 54 electoral votes. In the 1980s and 1990s, California elected Republican governors—George Deukemejian (1982, 1986) and Pete Wilson (1990, 1994)— before the Democrat Gray Davis was elected in 1998 (and reelected in 2002). In 2003, Davis was recalled and Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected to succeed him. In 1992, California became the first state to simultaneously elect two women to the U.S. Senate—Democrats Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein.

Among the state’s more prominent institutions of higher learning are the Univ. of California , with nine campuses; the California State University System , with 23 campuses; Occidental College and the Univ. of Southern California , at Los Angeles; Stanford Univ. , at Stanford; the California Institute of Technology , at Pasadena; Mills College , at Oakland; and the Claremont Colleges , at Claremont. After a period from the 1960s through the 1970s when the state’s well-financed public institutions were the envy of the nation, California’s colleges have been forced to retrench by tax-cutting initiatives.

History

European Exploration and Colonization

The first voyage (1542) to Alta California (Upper California), as the region north of Baja California (Lower California) came to be known, was commanded by the Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo , who explored San Diego Bay and the area farther north along the coast. In 1579 an English expedition headed by Sir Francis Drake landed near Point Reyes, N of San Francisco, and claimed the region for Queen Elizabeth I. In 1602, Sebastian Vizcaino , another Spaniard, explored the coast and Monterey Bay.

Colonization was slow, but finally in 1769 Gaspar de Portola , governor of the Californias, led an expedition up the Pacific coast and established a colony on San Diego Bay. The following year he explored the area around Monterey Bay and later returned to establish a presidio there. Soon afterward Monterey became the capital of Alta California. Accompanying Portola’s expedition was Father Junipero Serra , a Franciscan missionary who founded a mission at San Diego. Franciscans later founded several missions that extended as far N as Sonoma, N of San Francisco. The missionaries sought to Christianize the Native Americans but also forced them to work as manual laborers, helping to build the missions into vital agricultural communities (see Mission Indians ). Cattle raising was of primary importance, and hides and tallow were exported. The missions have been preserved and are now open to visitors.

In 1776, Juan Bautista de Anza founded San Francisco, where he established a military outpost. The early colonists, called the Californios, lived a pastoral life and for the most part were not interfered with by the central government of New Spain (as the Spanish empire in the Americas was called) or later (1820s) by that of Mexico. The Californios did, however, become involved in local politics, as when Juan Bautista Alvarado led a revolt (1836) and made himself governor of Alta California, a position he later persuaded the Mexicans to let him keep. Under Mexican rule the missions were secularized (1833-34) and the Native Americans released from their servitude. The degradation of Native American peoples, which continued under Mexican rule and after U.S. settlers came to the area, was described by Helen Hunt Jackson in her novel Ramona (1884). Many mission lands were subsequently given to Californios, who established the great ranchos, vast cattle-raising estates. Colonization of California remained largely Mexican until the 1840s.

Russian and U.S. Settlement

Russian fur traders had penetrated south to the California coast and established Fort Ross, north of San Francisco, in 1812. Jedediah Strong Smith and other trappers made the first U.S. overland trip to the area in 1826, but U.S. settlement did not become significant until the 1840s. In 1839, Swiss-born John Augustus Sutter arrived and established his «kingdom» of New Helvetia on a vast tract in the Sacramento valley. He did much for the overland American immigrants, who began to arrive in large numbers in 1841. Some newcomers met with tragedy, including the Donner Party , which was stranded in the Sierra Nevada after a heavy snowstorm.

Political events in the territory moved swiftly in the next few years. After having briefly asserted the independence of California in 1836, the Californios drove out the last Mexican governor in 1845. Under the influence of the American explorer John C. Fremont , U.S. settlers set up (1846) a republic at Sonoma under their unique Bear Flag. The news of war between the United States and Mexico (1846-48) reached California soon afterward. On July 7, 1846, Commodore John D. Sloat captured Monterey, the capital, and claimed California for the United States. The Californios in the north worked with U.S. soldiers, but those in the south resisted U.S. martial law. In 1847, however, U.S. Gen. Stephen W. Kearny defeated the southern Californios. By the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), Mexico formally ceded the territory to the United States.

The Gold Rush

In 1848, the year that California became a part of the United States, another major event in the state’s history occurred: While establishing a sawmill for John Sutter near Coloma, James W. Marshall discovered gold and touched off the California gold rush. The forty-niners, as the gold-rush miners were called, came in droves, spurred by the promise of fabulous riches from the Mother Lode . San Francisco rapidly became a boom city, and its bawdy, lawless coastal area, which became known as the Barbary Coast, gave rise to the vigilantes, extralegal community groups formed to suppress civil disorder. American writers such as Bret Harte and Mark Twain have recorded the local color as well as the violence and human tragedies of the roaring mining camps.

Statehood and Immigration

With the gold rush came a huge increase in population and a pressing need for civil government. In 1849, Californians sought statehood and, after heated debate in the U.S. Congress arising out of the slavery issue, California entered the Union as a free, nonslavery state by the Compromise of 1850. San Jose became the capital. Monterey, Vallejo, and Benicia each served as the capital before it was moved to Sacramento in 1854. In 1853, Congress authorized the survey of a railroad route to link California with the eastern seaboard, but the transcontinental railroad was not completed until 1869. In the meantime communication and transportation depended upon ships, the stagecoach, the pony express, and the telegraph.

Chinese laborers were imported in great numbers to work on railroad construction. The Burlingame Treaty of 1868 provided, among other things, for unrestricted Chinese immigration. That was at first enthusiastically endorsed by Californians; but after a slump in the state’s shaky economy, the white settlers viewed the influx of the lower-paid Chinese laborers as an economic threat. Ensuing bitterness and friction led to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

A railroad-rate war (1884) and a boom in real estate (1885) fostered a new wave of overland immigration. Cattle raising on the ranchos gave way to increased grain production. Vineyards were planted by 1861, and the first trainload of oranges was shipped from Los Angeles in 1886.

Industrialization and Increased Settlement

By the turn of the century the discovery of oil, industrialization resulting from the increase of hydroelectric power, and expanding agricultural development attracted more settlers. Los Angeles grew rapidly in this period and, in population, soon surpassed San Francisco, which suffered greatly after the great earthquake and fire of 1906. Improvements in urban transportation stimulated the growth of both Los Angeles and San Francisco; the advent of the cable car and the electric railway made possible the development of previously inaccessible areas.

As industrious Japanese farmers acquired valuable land and a virtual monopoly of California’s truck-farming operations, the issue of Asian immigration again arose. The bitter struggle for the exclusion of Asians plagued international relations, and in 1913 the California Alien Land Act was passed despite President Woodrow Wilson’s attempts to block it. The act provided that persons ineligible for U.S. citizenship could not own agricultural land in California.

Successive waves of settlers arrived in California, attracted by a new real-estate boom in the 1920s and by the promise of work in the 1930s. The influx during the 1930s of displaced farm workers, depicted by John Steinbeck in his novel The Grapes of Wrath, caused profound dislocation in the state’s economy. During World War II the Japanese in California were removed from their homes and placed in relocation centers. Industry in California expanded rapidly during the war; the production of ships and aircraft attracted many workers who later settled in the state.

Growing Pains and Natural Disasters

Prosperity and rapid population growth continued after the war. Many African Americans who came during World War II to work in the war industries settled in California. By the 1960s they constituted a sizable minority in the state, and racial tensions reached a climax. In 1964, California voters approved an initiative measure, Proposition 14, allowing racial discrimination in the sale or rental of housing in the state, a measure later declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1965 riots broke out in Watts, a predominantly black section of Los Angeles, touching off a wave of riots across the United States. Also in the 1960s migrant farm workers in California formed a union and struck many growers to obtain better pay and working conditions. Unrest also occurred in the state’s universities, especially the Univ. of California at Berkeley, where student demonstrations and protests in 1964 provoked disorders.

Republicans have generally played a more dominant role than Democrats in California politics during the 20th cent. From the end of World War II through the mid-1990s alone, five of the seven governors were Republicans, starting with Earl Warren (1943-53). Ronald Reagan , a former movie actor and a leading conservative Republican, was elected governor in 1966 and reelected in 1970; he later served two terms as U.S president. The two Democrats were liberals Edmund G. (Pat) Brown (1959-67) and his son Jerry Brown (1975-83). In the late 1970s, Californians staged a «tax revolt» that attracted national attention, passing legislation to cut property taxes.

During the 1970s and 80s California continued to grow rapidly, with a major shift of population to the state’s interior. The metropolitan areas of Riverside-San Bernardino, Modesto, Stockton, Bakersfield, and Sacramento were among the fastest growing in the nation during the 1980s. Much of the state’s population growth was a result of largely illegal immigration from Mexico; there was also a heavy infux of immigrants from China, the Philippines, and SE Asia.

Population growth and immigration contributed to growing economic pressures, as did cuts in federal defense spending; meanwhile, social tensions also increased. In Apr., 1992, four white Los Angeles police officers were acquitted of brutality charges after they had been videotaped beating a black motorist; the verdict touched off riots in South-Central Los Angeles and other neighborhoods, resulting in 58 deaths, thousands of arrests, and approximately $1 billion in property damage.

In addition to periodic heavy flooding and brushfires, earthquakes have caused widespread damage in California. In Oct., 1989, a major earthquake killed about 60 people and injured thousands in Santa Cruz and the San Francisco Bay area. In Jan., 1994, an earthquake hit the Northridge area of N Los Angeles, killing some 60 people and causing at least $13 billion in damage.

In a backlash against illegal immigration, California voters in 1994 approved Proposition 187, an initiative barring the state from providing most services—including welfare, education, and nonemergency medical care—to illegal immigrants. Federal courts found much of Proposition 187 unconstitutional; the appeal of their rulings was dropped in 1999, at a time when the state’s economy had rebounded and a Democratic administration was in Sacramento.

In late 2000, California began experiencing an electricity crisis as insufficient generating capacity and increasing short-term wholesale prices for power squeezed the state’s two largest public utilities, who, under the «deregulation» plan they had agreed to in the early 1990s, were not allowed to pass along their increased costs. As the state worked to come up with both short-term and long-time solutions to the situation, consumers experienced sporadic blackouts and faced large rate hikes under the terms of a bailout plan. The crisis was severe enough that it was expected to slow the state’s economic growth. Evidence subsequently emerged of both price gouging and market manipulation by a number of energy companies.

The economic downturn in the early 2000s resulted in enormous budget shortfalls for California’s state government, and made Governor Gray Davis increasingly unpopular. A recall petition financed mainly by a Republican congressman who withdrew from the subsequent election led to a vote (Oct., 2003) that removed Davis from office. The actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, was elected to succeed him.