Northern California
Northern California, sometimes abbreviated NorCal, refers to the northern portion of the
U.S. state of
California. Definitions of what areas constitute "Northern California" vary considerably. The term may refer to all of California north of the ten counties of
Southern California, though some use the term to describe anything from
San Luis Obispo County or the
Transverse Ranges northward. Additionally, a distinction is sometimes made between Northern California (being north of
Santa Cruz County) and
Central California (stretching from Santa Cruz County to San Luis Obispo County), though many residents of rural far Northern California define their region as encompassing only those areas to the north of the
San Francisco Bay Area and
Sacramento metropolitan area. This definition becomes problematic for inland regions; the
Central Valley is a distinct region in itself distinct from coastal California, though in Northern vs Central California divisions, the
Sacramento Valley is placed in Northern California and the
San Joaquin Valley is placed in Central California. Division of the
Sierra Nevada and
Eastern California regions into Northern, Central, and Southern California is even more problematic.
The region is highly diverse, but can be generally characterized by its beautiful
coastline, redwood forests,
Mediterranean to warm
Temperate climate, and low population density (apart from the
San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento area, if those are being included). It is also a land of
wine country, high mountains (the
Sierra Nevada, the southern
Cascade Range, and the
Klamath Mountains), lakes, and windswept sagebrush
steppe, in the northeast portion of the state.
Northern California's largest
metropolitan area is the
San Francisco Bay Area which includes the cities of
San Francisco,
San Jose,
Oakland, and their many
suburbs. The California state capital,
Sacramento, is also in Northern California. Other cities in the region include
Redding at the northern end of the Central Valley, and
Eureka on the northern coast.
There is a great deal of rivalry between Northern and Southern California, and Northern Californians are often quick to distinguish the culture and geography of their region from stereotypes about "California" that are based mainly on media depictions of
Southern California, particularly
Los Angeles. Politically, there has been a great deal of tension about water rights issues involved in projects such as the
California Aqueduct and
Los Angeles Aqueduct (which export water from north to south), as well as the perceived dominance of Southern California in state politics due to the disproportionately large population of the Southern California counties. There have been proposals to divide the State of California into two or more states, however, these proposals have lacked any strong political support. Just before
World War II, however, some parts of extreme Northern California unsuccessfully sought secession from California, to be incorporated as the
State of Jefferson. Another common, albeit colloquial, definition of where this mythical division lies is where "the Dodger fans stop and the Giants fans start". This is in reference to the heated rivalry between two of the state's professional baseball teams the
Los Angeles Dodgers and the
San Francisco Giants.
*
San Francisco Bay Area**
North Bay (
Marin,
Sonoma,
Solano, and
Napa counties)
**
East Bay -
Oakland,
Berkeley, and other cities
**
South Bay - roughly equivalent to
Santa Clara Valley**
The Peninsula -
San Francisco and
San Mateo County**
Silicon Valley includes portions of the South Bay and the Peninsula
*
Wine Country includes
Napa,
Sonoma,
Mendocino and
Lake counties
*
Redwood Empire*
Salinas Valley, including
Salinas and
Greenfield*
Monterey, including
Pacific Grove and
Carmel*
Santa Cruz*
Gold Country within
Amador,
Butte,
Calaveras,
El Dorado,
Mariposa,
Nevada,
Placer,
Sacramento, and
Tuolumne counties
*
Shasta Cascade*
Emerald Triangle*
Sacramento Valley*
San Joaquin Valley, with the exception of
Kern County*
Humboldt County including
Eureka,
Arcata, and
McKinleyville*
Academy of Art University*
California State University, Chico*
California State University, East Bay (formerly California State University, Hayward)
*
California State University, Monterey Bay*
California State University, Sacramento*
College of the Redwoods*
Empire College*
Golden Gate University*
Holy Names University*
Humboldt State University*
John F. Kennedy University*
Mills College*
Saint Mary's College of California*
San Francisco State University*
San José State University*
Santa Clara University*
Santa Rosa Junior College*
Sonoma State University*
Stanford University*
University of California, Berkeley*
University of California, Davis*
University of California, Merced*
University of California, San Francisco*
University of California, Santa Cruz*
University of San Francisco*
University of the PacificNorthern California is also home to a number of
seminaries including
Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary,
Fuller Theological Seminary (see also
Fuller Northern California), and Western Seminary, each with campuses in the San Francisco Bay Area and/or Sacramento.
*
Cascadia*
SoCal
