Carmel, village, Monterey County, western California, on Carmel Bay (an inlet of the Pacific Ocean); incorporated 1916. With its scenic location, it is a tourist center and has been a retreat for writers and artists since its founding in 1902. Nearby is Mission San Carlos Borromeo (1771), burial place of Father Junípero Serra, who brought the mission to Carmel. The name of the village is taken from the bay, which was named in 1602 by an expedition of the Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno that included a group of Carmelite monks. Population 4,707 (1980); 4,239 (1990); 4,081 (2000).
