Monterey County is located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. The county seat is Salinas. The beautiful coastline, including Big Sur, California Highway and 17 Mile Drive on the Monterey Peninsula has made the county world famous. The economy is primarily based upon tourism and agriculture. The County was created in 1850 and derived its name from Monterey Bay. The Spanish words monte and rey, which means "Hill" and "King". The county has a total area of 3,771 miČ, 88% of it is land and 12% of it is water. As of 2000, there were 401,762 people, 121,236 households, and 87,896 families residing in the county.