Silicon Valley

The term Silicon Valley was coined by Ralph Vaerst, a successful Central California entrepreneur. Its first published use is credited to Don Hoefler, a friend of Vaerst's, who used the phrase as the title of a series of articles in the weekly trade newspaper Electronic News. The series, entitled "Silicon Valley in the USA," began in the paper's issue dated January 11, 1971. Valley refers to the Santa Clara Valley, located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay, while Silicon refers to the high concentration of companies involved in the semiconductor (silicon is used to create most semiconductors commercially) and computer industries that were concentrated in the area. These firms slowly replaced the orchards which gave the area its initial nickname, the Valley of Heart's Delight.

1 Origin of the term
2 History
3 Social roots of information technology revolution
3.1 Roots in radio and military technology
3.2 Stanford Industrial Park
3.3 Silicon transistor and birth of the Silicon Valley
3.4 Law firms
3.5 Venture capital firms
3.6 The rise of software
3.7 Internet bubble
4 Economy
4.1 Notable companies
4.2 Notable government facilities
5 Universities and colleges
6 Cities
7 The Silicon Valley of India
8 PHT in Belarus
9 References