During the past decade, Phoenix has grown larger than a number of major cities in the nation, along the way passing San Antonio, Dallas and Detroit as well as San Diego.

All it took to pass those other cites was the highest growth rate of the nation's 15 largest cities. From 1990 to 2000, Phoenix added 337,642 residents to its rolls, a growth rate of 34.3%. The population of Phoenix now stands at 1,321,045.

The population in Maricopa County, which encompasses most of the cities in the Valley, grew even more dramatically during the '90s. The county added 950,048 residents for a growth rate of 44.8%.

Just about one out of every three people that moved into the Valley took up residence in Phoenix, but the rest moved to the surrounding suburbs.

Metropolitan Phoenix is now surrounded by eight cities with populations of 100,000 or more. The largest cities in the Valley are: Mesa (396,000), Glendale (218,000), Scottsdale (202,000), Chandler (176,000), Tempe (158,000), Gilbert (109,000) and Peoria (108,000).

Gilbert was the nation's fastest growing city of 100,000 or more residents during the '90s. Officially a town, Gilbert grew from just more than 29,000 at the start of the '90s to 109,697 in 2000, a grow rate of 276%.

In all, Arizona had five of the nation's 20 fastest-growing cities of 100,000 or more residents. Peoria, with a growth rate of 114% is fifth on the list; Chandler with a growth rate of 95%; is seventh, Scottsdale, growth rate of 56%, is 13th; and Glendale, growth rate 48%, is 17th.