Sun Belt
445569
226101207
2008-07-16T20:47:43Z
MattieTK
434929
Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/72.153.29.222|72.153.29.222]] to last version by Okiefromokla (using [[WP:HG|Huggle]])
{{Citations missing|date=August 2007}}
[[Image:Map of USA highlighting Sun Belt.png|right|framed|The Sun Belt, highlighted in red]]
{{otheruses4|the region of the United States|the American [[athletic conference]]|Sun Belt Conference}}
The '''Sun Belt''' is a region of the [[United States]] generally considered to stretch across [[Southern United States|the South]] and [[Southwest United States|Southwest]] (the geographic southern United States). Another rough boundary of the region is the 37th to 38th parallels, north latitude — southward. The Sun Belt has seen substantial population growth in recent decades, partly fueled by a surge in retiring [[baby boomers]] who migrate domestically, as well as the influx of immigrants, both legal and [[illegal immigration|illegal]]. Also, over the past several decades, air conditioning has made it easier for people to deal with the oppressive heat that grips the region during the summertime.
[[Alabama]], [[Arizona]], [[California]], [[Florida]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[Louisiana]], [[Mississippi]], [[Nevada]], [[New Mexico]], [[South Carolina]], and [[Texas]] are commonly thought to belong to the Sun Belt. Some consider parts of [[Arkansas]], [[Colorado]], [[North Carolina]] and [[Tennessee]] to be Sun Belt states, although their climates are slightly more "wintery" than the other states in the group. The [[Bible Belt]] occupies much of the same geography as the Sun Belt, with the exception of the southwest. The two terms are sometimes used interchangeably. Important cities in the Sun Belt include:
* [[Atlanta]]
* [[Albuquerque, New Mexico|Albuquerque]]
* [[Anaheim, California|Anaheim]]
* [[Austin, Texas|Austin]]
* [[Baton Rouge, Louisiana|Baton Rouge]]
* [[Brownsville, Texas|Brownsville]]
* [[Carson City, Nevada|Carson City]]
* [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]]
* [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]]
* [[Columbia, South Carolina|Columbia]]
* [[Corpus Christi, Texas|Corpus Christi]]
* [[Dallas, Texas|Dallas]]
* [[Denton, Texas|Denton]]
* [[El Paso, Texas|El Paso]]
* [[Fort Worth, Texas|Ft. Worth]]
* [[Fresno, California|Fresno]]
* [[Greenville, South Carolina| Greenville]]
* [[Houston, Texas|Houston]]
* [[Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]]
* [[Las Vegas, Nevada|Las Vegas]]
* [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]]
* [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]]
* [[Mesa, Arizona|Mesa]]
* [[Miami, Florida|Miami]]
* [[Mobile, Alabama|Mobile]]
* [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]]
* [[Oakland, California|Oakland]]
* [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]]
* [[Pensacola, Florida|Pensacola]]
* [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]]
* [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]]
* [[Reno, Nevada|Reno]]
* [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]]
* [[San Antonio, Texas|San Antonio]]
* [[San Clemente, California|San Clemente]]
* [[San Diego, California|San Diego]]
* [[San Francisco, California|San Francisco]]
* [[San Jose, California|San Jose]]
* [[Santa Fe, New Mexico|Santa Fe]]
* [[Sarasota, Florida|Sarasota]]
* [[St. George, UT|St. George]]
* [[Tampa, Florida|Tampa]]-[[Saint Petersburg, Florida|St. Petersburg]]
* [[Temecula, California|Temecula]]
* [[Tucson, Arizona|Tucson]]
* [[West Palm Beach]]
* [[Yuma, Arizona|Yuma]]
Author and political analyst [[Kevin Phillips (political commentator)|Kevin Phillips]] claims to have coined the term "to describe the oil, military, aerospace and retirement country stretching from Florida to California" in his 1969 book ''The Emerging Republican Majority''.<ref>"How the GOP Became God's Own Party", the [[Washington Post]], April 2, 2006</ref>
==See also==
*[[Economy of the United States]]
*[[Silicon Valley]]
*[[Rust Belt]]
==More information==
*http://www.answers.com/topic/sun-belt?cat=travel
{{U.S. Belt regions}}
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{US-geo-stub}}
[[de:Sun Belt]]
[[es:Sun Belt]]
[[fr:Sun Belt]]
[[nl:Sunbelt]]
[[ja:サンベルト]]
[[pt:Cinturão do sol]]
[[sv:Sun Belt]]
[[vi:Vành đai Mặt trời]]