The coastal states of California, Oregon and Washington are commonly referred to as the
West Coast.
First humans moved in from
east Asia at the end of the last Ice Age at least 15k years ago.
They may have come on foot via the
Bering land bridge,
but probably they showed up much earlier in small boats, skirting along the sea ice edges and living from the abundant resources
of the sea.
The more adventurous moved on to colonize the rest of the mid and south Americas. The ones that stayed diversified
over the ages and developed different habits and languages.
Europeans arrived at San Diego Bay in 1542, but settlements only
occurred late in the 18th century; Spanish in the south, Russians and Brits in the north.
After the victory in the
Mexican-American
War California became part of the USA in 1848, in the same timeframe Oregon and Washington also joined the USA.
Today the
West Coast has a demographic diverse population with strong Hispanic influences in the south and Asian to the north.
Its
inhabitants are in general liberal leaning and care for the environment.