P316 - USA - Houston, Texas

Houston, Texas, USA

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, the largest city within the state of Texas, and "the energy capital of the world." As of the 2008 U.S. Census estimate, the city has a population of 2.2 million within an area of 600 square miles (1,600 km²). Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area—the sixth-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. with a population over 5.7 million.

Houston was founded on August 30, 1836 by brothers Augustus Chapman Allen and John Kirby Allen on land near the banks of Buffalo Bayou. The city was incorporated on June 5, 1837 and named after then-President of the Republic of Texas—former General Sam Houston—who had commanded at the Battle of San Jacinto, which took place 25 miles (40 km) east of where the city was established. The burgeoning port and railroad industry, combined with oil discovery in 1901, has induced continual surges in the city's population. In the mid-twentieth century, Houston became the home of the Texas Medical Center—the world's largest concentration of healthcare and research institutions—and NASA's Johnson Space Center, where the Mission Control Center is located.

Rated as a beta world city, Houston's economy has a broad industrial base in the energy, manufacturing, aeronautics, transportation, and health care sectors and is a leading center for building oilfield equipment; only New York City is home to more Fortune 500 headquarters in the city limits. Due to Houston's highly diversified industrial sectors, its economy is thriving, inflation is low, and the standard-of-living is relatively high. The Port of Houston ranks first in the United States in international waterborne tonnage handled and second in total cargo tonnage handled. The city has a population from various ethnic and religious backgrounds and a large and growing international community. It is home to many cultural institutions and exhibits—attracting more than 7 million visitors a year to the Houston Museum District. Houston has an active visual and performing arts scene in the Theater District and is one of few U.S. cities that offer year-round resident companies in all major performing arts.

休斯敦（英文：Houston）是美國德克薩斯州的第一大城，全美國第四大城，墨西哥灣沿岸最大的經濟中心。面積達1,440平方公里，市名是以當年德克薩斯共和國總統山姆·休士頓(Sam Houston)命名的。

休士頓是哈里斯縣（全國第三大縣）的縣城。休士頓在密蘇里市的東面，西南部分伸入福遍縣，東北一小部分伸入蒙哥馬利縣。

休士頓創建於1836年，合併於1837年，是美國成長最迅速的大城市之一，也是全美最大的一個沒有規劃法的大城市。

1900年，休士頓有45,000人口，排名美國第85位。2000年美國人口統計指出，城市人口總數達到190萬人（2004年已超過2百萬人）。大休士頓都會區是美國第七大都會區（10個縣，5,180,443人）。

休士頓以其能源（特別是石油）、航空工業和運河聞名世界。休士頓港是世界第六大港口，美國最繁忙的港口，外輪噸位第一，不分國籍則居第二位。財富500強總部僅次於紐約市。休斯敦是德克薩斯醫療中心的所在地，世界最大和最重要的研究和治療機構的集中地。休士頓還是美國27個超過170萬人口的重要大都會地區中生活消費和房價最低的。休士頓被全球化和世界城市研究小組和網絡(GaWC)稱為「全球城市」。

休士頓的官方綽號為「太空城(Space City)」，因為它是約翰遜航空中心的所在地，任務監控中心也設在這裡（因此，「休斯敦」是在月球上說的第一個詞）。許多當地人喜愛稱作「牛沼城」。其他綽號還有「H鎮」、「腳爪城」或「蒙古城」。

休士頓是一個擁有多重文化的城市，許多外來移民的社區在此發展。其美術館區是許多文化機構和展覽的天堂，每年吸引將進七百萬的遊客，在休士頓常能看見活躍的視覺表演藝術。

References sources : wikipedia