The former Tongva/Fernandeño (Native American) village in this area was called Wixánga, which comes from the word wixár (or "thorn" or "prickle" in English) in the Fernandeño dialect of the Tongva language.

[1] Hence, Wixánga meant something like "place/canyon of the thorns" in English, in reference to the abundant prickly pear cacti naturally found in the area.

East of Sunland was Rancho San Rafael, a large land grant to José María Verdugo by the Spanish Crown.

[5] The 2000 U.S. census counted 75,848 residents in the 9.42-square-mile Sun Valley neighborhood—or 8,048 people per square mile, about an average population density for the city.

Mexico (54.5%) and El Salvador (11.9%) were the most common places of birth for the 51.9% of the residents who were born abroad—a high percentage for Los Angeles.

939, an outsider art environment that pays homage to the pioneer upbringing of its creator, John Ehn (1897–1981), was situated in Sun Valley.

It represented the life work of the self-taught artist who wished to pass on a sense of the Old West, derived from personal experiences, myths, and tall tales.

The artwork was moved from the original site in Sun Valley, CA, and relocated to Pierce College in Woodland Hills.

[26] One of every ten of Sun Valley residents aged 25 and older had earned a four-year degree by 2000, a low percentage for both the city and the county.