Claim: Silicon Valley is a region in California.

The Santa Clara Valley runs south-southeast from the southern end of San Francisco Bay in Northern California in the United States . The northern , urbanized end of the valley is part of a region locally known as the `` South Bay '' and also part of the electronics , research , and manufacturing area known as Silicon Valley . Most of the Santa Clara Valley is in Santa Clara County , including its county seat , San Jose . The valley , named after the Spanish Mission Santa Clara , was for a time known as the Valley of Heart 's Delight for its high concentration of orchards , flowering trees , and plants . Until the 1960s it was the largest fruit production and packing region in the world with 39 canneries .