San Joaquin Valley | |
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Valle de San Joaquín (Spanish) | |
San Joaquin Valley | |
![]() A map of the counties encompassing the San Joaquin Valley ecoregion | |
Geography | |
Location | California, United States |
Population centers | Stockton, Tulare, Porterville, Modesto, Turlock, Merced, Fresno, Visalia, Bakersfield, Clovis, Hanford, Madera, Tracy, Lodi, Galt, Manteca and Ceres. |
Borders on | Sierra Nevada (east), Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta (north), Coast Range, San Francisco Bay (west), Tehachapi Mountains (south) |
Coordinates | 36°37′44″N 120°11′06″W / 36.62889°N 120.18500°W |
Traversed by | Interstate 5, State Route 99 |
Rivers | San Joaquin River |
The San Joaquin Valley (/ˌsæn hwɑːˈkiːn/ SAN whah-KEEN; Spanish: Valle de San Joaquín) is the southern half of California's Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket,[1] the San Joaquin Valley is an important source of food, producing a significant part of California's agricultural output.
San Joaquin Valley draws from eight counties of Northern and one of Southern California, including all of San Joaquin and Kings counties, most of Stanislaus, Merced, and Fresno counties, and parts of Madera and Tulare counties, along with a majority of Kern County in Southern California.[2] Although the valley is predominantly rural, it has three densely populated urban centers: Stockton/Modesto, Fresno/Visalia, and Bakersfield.[3]
Eight counties comprise the San Joaquin Valley, including all of Kings County, most of Fresno, Kern, Merced, and Stanislaus counties, and portions of Madera, San Luis Obispo, Tulare counties