San Jose, California

San Jose, officially the City of San José , is a cultural, commercial, and political center within <a href="/facts/Silicon_Valley/gdot9J7e">Silicon Valley</a> and the <a href="/facts/San_Francisco_Bay_Area/MG53NJ36">San Francisco Bay Area</a>. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is the most populous city in both the Bay Area and Northern California and the <a href="/facts/List_of_United_States_cities_by_population/rcYY6hsJ">12th-most populous in the United States</a>. Located in the center of the <a href="/facts/Santa_Clara_Valley/zK5cTFce">Santa Clara Valley</a> on the southern shore of <a href="/facts/San_Francisco_Bay/gupuMeaU">San Francisco Bay</a>, San Jose covers an area of 179.97 sq mi (466.1 km2) and is the <a href="/facts/County_seat/ItAWPoWw">county seat</a> of <a href="/facts/Santa_Clara_County%2c_California/0807EbzH">Santa Clara County</a>.
Before the <a href="/facts/Spanish_colonization_of_the_Americas/xuhh924k">arrival of the Spanish</a>, the area around San Jose was long inhabited by the <a href="/facts/Tamyen_people/87byS4kz">Tamien nation</a> of the <a href="/facts/Ohlone/RzeL0pNm">Ohlone</a> people. San Jose was founded on November 29, 1777, as the <a href="/facts/Pueblo/Yf07mDIS">Pueblo</a> de San José de <a href="/facts/Our_Lady_of_Guadalupe/tKnq9aUz">Guadalupe</a>, the first city founded in <a href="/facts/The_Californias/Rt2KWLXg">the Californias</a>. It became a part of <a href="/facts/Mexico/IT5bwhdh">Mexico</a> in 1821 after the <a href="/facts/Mexican_War_of_Independence/B5hfwNnX">Mexican War of Independence</a>. Following the U.S. <a href="/facts/Conquest_of_California/6KJtuGgU">Conquest of California</a> during the <a href="/facts/Mexican%25E2%2580%2593American_War/7ttRIwah">Mexican–American War</a>, the territory <a href="/facts/Mexican_Cession/CfRUs8oX">was ceded</a> to the United States in 1848. After California achieved statehood two years later, San Jose served as the state's first capital. San Jose experienced an economic boom after <a href="/facts/World_War_II/2efV5L1U">World War II</a>, with a rapid population growth and aggressive <a href="/facts/Municipal_annexation/hKtbVh4C">annexation</a> of nearby communities in the 1950s and 1960s. The rapid growth of the technology industry further accelerated the city's transition from an agricultural center to an urbanized metropolitan area, prompting Mayor <a href="/facts/Tom_McEnery/p7sKXhIg">Tom McEnery</a> to adopt San Jose's current motto, "Capital of Silicon Valley," in 1988. Results of the <a href="/facts/1990_United_States_census/uPN5syw5">1990 U.S. census</a> indicated that San Jose had surpassed <a href="/facts/San_Francisco/cb9l7hbC">San Francisco</a> in population. By the turn of the century, San Jose was California's fastest-growing economy. 
Today, San Jose is notable for its <a href="/facts/Innovation/aa7hadLw">innovation</a>, cultural diversity, <a href="/facts/Affluence/IkxfYrFc">affluence</a>, and sunny and mild <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_climate/gGsJAKE5">Mediterranean climate</a>. Major companies including <a href="/facts/Cisco_Systems/ocDgQt6T">Cisco</a>, <a href="/facts/EBay/bDswVAKB">eBay</a>, <a href="/facts/Adobe_Inc./Bj1d5XvJ">Adobe</a>, <a href="/facts/PayPal/tlShukIa">PayPal</a>, <a href="/facts/NetApp/tmNFS1pG">NetApp</a>, <a href="/facts/Cadence_Design_Systems/6pTzpgFc">Cadence</a>, and <a href="/facts/Zoom_Video_Communications/AbJHGBuy">Zoom</a> maintain their headquarters in San Jose. One of the wealthiest major cities in the world, San Jose has the third-highest GDP per capita (after <a href="/facts/Zurich/dXpgq7df">Zurich</a> and <a href="/facts/Oslo/PRJtFYUl">Oslo</a>) and the fifth-most expensive housing market. It is home to one of the world's largest <a href="/facts/Overseas_Vietnamese/9yqe4sae">overseas Vietnamese</a> populations, a Hispanic community that makes up over 30% of the city's residents, historic <a href="/facts/Ethnic_enclave/bvNGBnmW">ethnic enclaves</a> such as <a href="/facts/Japantown%2c_San_Jose/JLVBwMaF">Japantown</a> and <a href="/facts/Little_Portugal%2c_San_Jose/qzk99Smk">Little Portugal</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Gurdwara_Sahib_of_San_Jose/HDErYsm3">largest Sikh Gurdwara</a> outside of India. 
Educational and cultural institutions in San Jose include <a href="/facts/San_Jose_State_University/2WtScLRd">San Jose State University</a>, <a href="/facts/Children%2527s_Discovery_Museum_of_San_Jose/CbpwggkP">Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose</a>, the <a href="/facts/Tech_Interactive/qEmVH6LG">Tech Interactive</a>, the <a href="/facts/San_Jose_Museum_of_Art/URa5NAC2">San Jose Museum of Art</a>, <a href="/facts/Winchester_Mystery_House/rjzVxeqe">Winchester Mystery House</a>, the <a href="/facts/Japanese_American_Museum_of_San_Jose/gBECBxhu">Japanese American Museum of San Jose</a>, <a href="/facts/Movimiento_de_Arte_y_Cultura_Latino_Americana/AJddtScC">Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana</a>, the <a href="/facts/Viet_Museum/6a11jtMC">Viet Museum</a>, <a href="/facts/Rosicrucian_Egyptian_Museum/7eI20U5B">Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum</a>, <a href="/facts/Hayes_Mansion/XKa69d87">Hayes Mansion</a>, <a href="/facts/Lick_Observatory/GjdK0880">Lick Observatory</a>, <a href="/facts/San_Jose_Municipal_Rose_Garden/LBKErfGt">San Jose Municipal Rose Garden</a>, and the <a href="/facts/San_Jose_Center_for_the_Performing_Arts/tKzrA9zC">San Jose Center for the Performing Arts</a>. Two major league sports teams, the <a href="/facts/San_Jose_Earthquakes/ISJnu0eM">San Jose Earthquakes</a> and the <a href="/facts/San_Jose_Sharks/PAjGGPqL">San Jose Sharks</a>, play their home games in San Jose. <a href="/facts/San_Jose_International_Airport/KoE2X9q8">San Jose International Airport</a> is the third-busiest airport in Northern California. <a href="/facts/Santa_Clara_Valley_Transportation_Authority/jVKlaS3I">VTA</a>'s rail and bus networks, together with <a href="/facts/Amtrak/cHtG5Ub3">Amtrak</a>, <a href="/facts/Altamont_Commuter_Express/aWFbyXSj">ACE</a>, <a href="/facts/BART/RmRtTNGn">BART</a>, and <a href="/facts/Caltrain/w00KGC6w">Caltrain</a> services, connect San Jose to the broader region through hubs such as <a href="/facts/San_Jose_Diridon_Station/F61jkMzI">Diridon Station</a>.

San Jose, California open-in-new

San Jose, California