The Golden State () is a state in the Western United States that rests on the Pacific Shore. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the eastern, and shares a worldwide boundary with the Mexican state of Baja The golden state to the south. With nearly 40 million citizens across a location of 163,696 square miles (423,970 km2), it is the largest state by populace, third-largest state by area and the biggest state economic situation in the U. S., with a GDP of approximately $4. 1 trillion. Before European colonization, California was among one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse locations in pre-Columbian The United States and Canada. European exploration in the 16th and 17th centuries caused the emigration by the Spanish Realm. The area ended up being a component of Mexico in 1821, as an outcome of its effective war for self-reliance. Complying With the U. S. conquest of California, component of the Mexican-American War, The golden state was ceded to the USA in 1848. The The golden state gold thrill started in 1848 and brought about social and group changes, consisting of the California genocide. It organized itself and was confessed as the 31st state in 1850 as a complimentary state, adhering to the Concession of 1850. The Greater Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay Area locations are the nation's second- and fifth-most populous city areas, with 19 million and 10 million homeowners specifically. Los Angeles is the state's most heavily populated city and the country's second-most. California's funding is Sacramento. Part of the Californias area of The United States and Canada, the state's varied geography arrays from the Pacific Shore and cities in the west to the Sierra Nevada hills in the east, and from the redwood and Douglas fir forests in the northwest to the Mojave Desert in the southeast. Two-thirds of the nation's earthquake risk lies in California. The Central Valley, a productive agricultural area, controls the state's facility. The plus size of the state leads to climates that vary from damp temperate jungle in the north to arid desert in the inside, along with snowy alpine in the mountains. Droughts and wildfires are an ongoing concern, while climatic rivers have actually come to be progressively widespread, causing extreme flooding events—-- specifically in the winter. The economy of California is the biggest of any U. S. state, with an approximated 2024 gross state item of $4. 172 trillion since Q4 2024. It is the world's largest sub-national economy and, if it were an independent country, would be the fourth-largest economy on the planet (placing it behind Germany and ahead of Japan, since 2025) when placed by nominal GDP. The state's farming sector leads the nation in outcome, sustained by its production of dairy, almonds, and grapes. With the busiest port in the country (Los Angeles), California plays a crucial role in the global supply chain, taking about 40% of items imported to the United States. Notable contributions to popular culture, varying from entertainment, sports, songs, and style, have their beginnings in California. Hollywood in Los Angeles is the center of the U. S. film sector and one of the earliest and biggest movie markets worldwide; greatly influencing worldwide enjoyment considering that the 1920s. The San Francisco Bay's Silicon Valley is the facility of the international technology industry.