Peak District or The Peak, dissected plateau, c.30 mi (50 km) long and 22 mi (35 km) wide, Derbyshire, central England, forming the southern extremity of the Pennines. Kinderscout (2,088 ft/636 m) is the highest peak. Dovedale and Wyedale are the region's major valleys. Peak District has many caves including Peak Cavern and Speedwell. Peak District National Park (c.500 sq mi/1,295 sq km) was established in 1951.

Lake District, region of mountains and lakes, c.30 mi (50 km) in diameter, NW England. It includes the Cumbrian Mts. and part of the Furness peninsula. The district comprises 15 lakes, among them Ullswater, Windermere, Derwentwater, and Bassenthwaite; several beautiful falls; and some of England's highest peaks—Scafell Pike (3,210 ft/978 m), Scafell, and Helvellyn. Many of the region's valleys were deforested following Roman and Norse invasions. Numerous ancient relics remain, such as the stone circle near Keswick and the ruins of old castles and churches. This scenic district is a favorite resort of artists and writers. William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Robert Southey were known as the Lake Poets. Herwick sheep, native to the region, are raised. Tourism is a major source of income. The Forestry Commission has actively planted pine trees in the district. Lake District National Park (c.80,000 acres/32,375 hectares) was established in 1951.

Laguna District [Span.,=lake], irrigated area in E Durango and W Coahuila states, N central Mexico. Originally a 900,000-acre (364,200-hectare) tract, consisting of large estates, the land was reapportioned (1936) under President Lázaro Cárdenas and distributed to Mexican farmers on the ejido system. It was a successful experiment in agrarian reform until 1952, when a severe drought scorched more than half the district, turning 200,000 acres (80,940 hectares) of wheat and cotton fields into a dust bowl and obliging the government to take emergency measures to avert a famine. Settlement has continued there, but on a greatly reduced scale; water for irrigation comes from wells and from dams on the Nazas and Aguanaval rivers.

District of Columbia, University of the, at Washington, D.C.; coeducational; land-grant and federally supported; est. 1976 with the merger of three existing colleges; predominantly African American. It comprises the Georgia-Harvard Street campus, with a school of education; the Mount Vernon Square campus, with a school of business and public management; and the Van Ness campus, with programs in liberal and fine arts, life sciences, physical science, and engineering and technology.

District of Columbia, federal district (2000 pop. 572,059, a 5.7% decrease in population since the 1990 census), 69 sq mi (179 sq km), on the east bank of the Potomac River, coextensive with the city of Washington, D.C. (the capital of the United States). The District was established by congressional acts of 1790 and 1791 and selected by George Washington. It was originally a 10-mi (16.1-km) square (100 sq mi/259 sq km), with Maryland and Virginia granting land on each side of the river, including the town of Georgetown and the county of Alexandria respectively. The "Federal City" was laid out at its center. Alexandria county was returned to Virginia in 1847. The city continued to grow on the east bank of the river and in 1878, when Georgetown became a part of Washington (although it continued to operate as a separate city until 1895), the city of Washington and the District of Columbia became one and the same. Although "Washington" is the name known throughout the world, the city is more commonly called "the District" by its own residents.

Columbia, District of: see Washington, D.C.

Mountainous region, administrative county of Cumbria, northwestern England. Roughly coextensive with Lake District National Park, the country's largest, it occupies an area of 866 sq mi (2,243 sq km). It contains numerous lakes, including Windermere (England's largest), Grasmere, and Coniston Water, as well as England's highest mountains, the loftiest being Scafell Pike, which rises to 3,210 ft (978 m). The district was home to several English poets, including William Wordsworth, Robert Southey, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who celebrated its landscape. It became a national park in 1951.

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City (pop., 2000: 572,059), capital of the U.S. It is coextensive with the District of Columbia. Situated at the navigational head of the Potomac River, between Maryland and Virginia, it has an area of 69 sq mi (179 sq km). The site was chosen by George Washington in 1790 as a political compromise that satisfied both Northern and Southern states. Designed by Pierre-Charles L'Enfant, it is one of the few cities in the world planned expressly as a national capital. The federal government occupied it in 1800. British troops burned the city (1814) during the War of 1812. With the annexation of Georgetown in 1878, the city became coterminous with the District of Columbia. Significant buildings include the Capitol, White House, and Library of Congress. The Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, and Vietnam Veterans Memorial are among the most famous of the city's more than 300 memorials and statues. The Smithsonian Institution is in Washington, as are numerous other cultural and educational institutions and foreign embassies. The economy is based on national and international political activities, scientific research, and tourism.

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