This partial list of city nicknames in California compiles the aliases, sobriquets, mottos and slogans that cities in California are known by (or have been known by historically), officially and unofficially, to locals, outsiders or their tourism boards or chambers of commerce. City nicknames can help in establishing a civic identity, helping outsiders recognize a community or attracting people to a community because of its nickname; promote civic pride; and build community unity. [1] Nicknames and slogans that successfully create a new community "ideology or myth" [2] are also believed to have economic value. [1] Their economic value is difficult to measure, [1] but there are anecdotal reports of cities that have achieved substantial economic benefits by "branding" themselves by adopting new slogans. [2]
Some unofficial nicknames are positive, while others are derisive. The unofficial nicknames listed here have been in use for a long time or have gained wide currency.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the U.S. state of California:
When cannabis began to emerge as a booming business in the state several years ago, Needles seized the opportunity. Marijuana has been a lifeline for the town. . . . At the Wagon Wheel, the city's oldest restaurant, a souvenir shop displays license plates with the city's unofficial nickname — Weedles —and glasses adorned with marijuana leaves and pot puns.
In 1926, at the urging of the Chamber of Commerce, the city changed its nickname from the Palm City to the Poinsettia City, a title to which the city clings today.