The city of Malibu is a 27-mile (43.5 km) strip of Pacific coastline; a beachfront community famous for its warm, sandy beaches, and for being the home of countless movie stars and others associated with the Southern California entertainment industries. Most Malibu residents live within a few hundred yards of Pacific Coast Highway (California State Route 1), which traverses the city; the city is also bounded (more or less) by Topanga Canyon to the east, the Santa Monica Mountains to the north, the Pacific Ocean to the south, and Ventura County to the west. Its beaches include Surfrider Beach, Zuma Beach, Malibu State Beach and Topanga State Beach; its neighboring parks include Malibu Creek State Park and the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.
Malibu was a part of the territory of the Chumash Nation of Native Americans. They named it "Humaliwo" or "the surf sounds loudly." The city's current name derives from this, as the "Hu" syllable isn't stressed.
Carbon Beach, Paradise Cove, Escondido Beach, Surfrider Beach, Broad Beach, Pirate's Cove, Westward Beach, Zuma Beach, and Trancas are places along the coast in Malibu. Point Dume forms the northern end of the Santa Monica Bay, and Point Dume Headlands Park affords a vista of stretching to the Palos Verdes Peninsula and Santa Catalina Island. Directly below the park, on the western side of the point, is Pirates Cove, named for rumrunners during prohibition who liked the secluded beach for offloading their cargo. On the eastern side of the point is "Little Dume", an excellent and little-known surf spot which is accessible only by an unmarked trail below Wildlife Drive.
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District serves Malibu.
Malibu High School provides secondary public education. Pepperdine University, an independent college, is outside Malibu city limits, north of the Malibu Colony. Malibu is also served by Santa Monica College, a community college in the neighboring city of Santa Monica.
Malibu's local news television station, TV-26 broadcasts to over 15,000 viewers in the surounding area. Broadcast from Pepperdine University, TV-26 is a complete source of local Malibu news featuring community stories, weather and surfing conditions and updates on Malibu events. Malibu has two local newspapers, The Malibu Times, founded in 1946, and Malibu Surfside News.
