MARLINS CITY

Miami is a city located in southeast Florida in Miami-Dade County on the Miami River, between the Florida Everglades and the Atlantic Ocean, in the United States. The name "Miami" comes from a Native American word for "sweet water". The area was a concentration of water because the Miami River is essentially a funnel for water from the Everglades to the Atlantic Ocean. Native Americans are known to have settled in the Miami region for about 10,000 years. Its most noteworthy early inhabitants were the Tequesta people, who controlled an empire covering most of South Florida. Although Ponce de Leon attempted to settle the area in the early 1500s, his men could not defend the territory against the natives, so they kept to the more sparsely populated north. For most of the colonial period, Miami was only briefly visited by traveling Europeans when it was visited at all. According to the 2000 census, Miami has a population of 362,470.By the year 2010 the population in the City is projected to rise to 390,191.Since its incorporation in 1896, the City has grown tremendously. transforming it into one of the world’s renowned centers where people can work, live and play while enjoying a high quality of life. It was officially incorporated as a city on July 28, 1896, and it had a population of just over 300. Although the city itself is not large in area or population, many consider it a world city. The metropolis known as Greater Miami comprises many small surrounding towns, cities, and unincorporated areas. Together they make Miami-Dade County the most populous county in the state (est. 2000 Census 2,253,362). Municipalities in the conurbations include Miami Beach, Bal Harbor, North Bay Village, Sunny Isles, North Miami Beach, Aventura, North Miami, Opa-Locka, Carol City, Miami Lakes, Hialeah, Medley, Miami Springs, Westchester, West Miami, Kendall, Pinecrest, Key Biscayne, Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, Islandia, Sweetwater, Homestead, and Miami Shores. A more exhaustive list appears under Miami-Dade County, Florida. Miami is known for it's diverse culture and ethnicities as well as the largest municipality in Miami-Dade County. Miami which is known as the Gateway to Latin America attracts a tremendous amount of foreign born people, resulting in a large Latin American population that includes Cubans, Nicaraguans, Colombians, Venezuelans, Puerto Ricans, Argentineans, Ecuadorians, Brazilians, Dominicans, Haitians and Mexicans. According to the 2000 U.S. census, the City has a 60 percent Hispanic population , a 22.3 percent African-American population and a 11.9 percent White/other population. The City of Miami is governed by Mayor Manny Diaz and 5 City Commissioners which oversee the five districts in the City. Miami is the home of four major professional sport teams; the Florida Marlins (NL) (Pro Player Stadium) a Major League Baseball team, as well as the National Football League (NFL) team the Miami Dolphins (play at Pro Player Stadium), the National Basketball Association (NBA) team the Miami Heat (play at American Airlines Arena) and the National Hockey League team the Florida Panthers (NHL), who play at Office Depot Center, which is in neighboring Broward County, Florida. The Miami Fusion, a defunct Major League Soccer team played at Lockhart Stadium, also in Broward. Miami also had a Women National Basketball Association (WNBA) team, which is now defunct. The Miami Sol joined the Women's National Basketball Association in 2000. They played their games at American Airlines Arena. The team folded after the 2002 season because of financial problems. Miami is also the site of the Orange Bowl, an annual collegiate football championship played at Pro Player Stadium. The city has hosted the Super Bowl several times. There are also two well-known but largely disused sporting venues in Miami: Miami Arena and the Orange Bowl Stadium. Miami has also been used as a theme for several movies which includes 2 Fast 2 Furious, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (Jim Carrey), All About the Benjamins (Ice Cube), Any Given Sunday (Al Pacino), Bad Boys I & II (Will Smith & Martin Lawrence), Big Trouble and The Birdcage (Robin Williams). Recognized worldwide as an international hub, Miami successfully hosted the 4th annual Latin Grammy Awards show, the visit of the Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, the celebration of the Free Trade of the Americas Conference , FTAA and most recently, the MTV Music Video Awards and the Source Hip-Hop Music Awards.