Atlanta (IPA: /ˌætˈlɛ̃n.nə/ or /ˌɛtˈlɛ̃n.nə/) is the capital and the most populous city of the State of Georgia, and the central city of the ninth most populous metropolitan area in the United States. It is the county seat of Fulton County, although a portion of the city extends into DeKalb County. According to the July 2005 census estimate, the city has a population of 470,688 and a metropolitan population of 4,917,717. As of July 1, 2005, Atlanta’s combined statistical area (CSA) is estimated to have a population of 5,249,121.
A major city in its own right, Atlanta is considered a poster child for cities world wide experiencing rapid urban sprawl, economic development and growth. In the last decade, the Atlanta metropolitan area added over 1,150,000 residents – the fourth-largest gain in absolute numbers of any metropolitan area in the United States. Atlanta is recognized as one of the driving forces of the “New South,” and has in recent years, along with Houston, Miami and Dallas, undergone a transition from a city of regional commerce to a city of international influence.
During the Civil Rights Movement, Atlanta stood apart from Southern cities that supported segregation, and became known as the “City Too Busy to Hate.” The city’s progressive civil rights record made it increasingly popular as a relocation destination for African Americans, and the city’s population became majority-black by 1972. African Americans soon became the dominant political force in the city; since 1974, all of the mayors of Atlanta have been African-American, as well as the majority of the city’s fire chiefs, police chiefs, and other high-profile government officials. White flight occurred in the city in the 1970s and 1980s; the city’s population dropped by more than 100,000 from 1970 to 1990. That trend has reversed itself, however, and with accelerating gentrification, the black majority has dropped from 69 percent in 1980 to 54 percent in 2005.
Common nicknames for the city include A Town, The A-T-L (derived from its IATA airport code), the Big Peach, and Hotlanta.
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[...] The region where Atlanta and its suburbs were built was originally Creek and Cherokee Native American territory. The Creek land in the eastern part of the metro area (including Decatur) was opened to white settlement in 1823. In 1835, leaders of the Cherokee nation ceded their land to the government in exchange for land out west under the Treaty of New Echota, an act that eventually led to the Trail of Tears. [...]
[...] Atlanta has a humid subtropical climate, (Cfa) according to the Köppen classification, with hot, humid summers and mild winters by the standards of the United States. [...]
[...] According to a 2000 daytime population estimate by the Census Bureau,[18] over 250,000 more people commute to Atlanta on any given workday, boosting the city’s estimated daytime population at the time to 676,431. This is an increase of 62.4 percent over Atlanta’s resident population – the second-largest daytime population swing in America among cities with more than 250,000 residents. [...]
[...] For several decades, Atlanta had been among the most violent cities in North America but in recent years the city has reduced violent crime considerably. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s annual Uniform Crime Report, Atlanta recorded 90 homicides in 2005, down from 111 in 2004. Violent crime in 2005 was the lowest since 1969.[19] [...]