The "West Coast", "Western Seaboard", or "Pacific Coast" are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean and can also be included in the "West Coast". The U.S. Census groups the five states of California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii together as the Pacific region.[1]
As of 2008, the estimated population of the West Coast (the Census Bureau's Pacific Region) was approximately 49 million (47 million if only California, Oregon and Washington are included).[2]
The West Coast is sometimes simply referred to as "the Coast", an older term thought to have arisen in the Northeastern United States.[citation needed] The term "Left Coast" is sometimes used, a form of word-play relating the region's position on the left of a conventionally displayed map of the United States to its reputation for being more politically left-wing than some other parts of the United States.[3][4][5]
Major coastal cities on the West Coast include Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Anchorage, Honolulu, and Long Beach. Major non-coastal cities in West Coast states include Las Vegas, San Jose, Oakland, Sacramento, Fresno, and Portland.
The history of the West Coast includes the arrival of the first humans some 10,000 years ago, and the presence of Spanish, British, Mexican, Russian and American explorers and settlers.
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