Demographics of Texas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	212,592		–
1860	604,215		184.2%
1870	818,579		35.5%
1880	1,591,749		94.5%
1890	2,235,527		40.4%
1900	3,048,710		36.4%
1910	3,896,542		27.8%
1920	4,663,228		19.7%
1930	5,824,715		24.9%
1940	6,414,824		10.1%
1950	7,711,194		20.2%
1960	9,579,677		24.2%
1970	11,196,730		16.9%
1980	14,229,191		27.1%
1990	16,986,510		19.4%
2000	20,851,820		22.8%

The center of population of Texas is located in Bell County, in the town of Holland [1].

As of 2005, the state has an estimated population of 22.8 million—an increase of 388,419 (1.7%) from the prior year and an increase of 2 million (9.6%) since the year 2000. In all three subcategories—natural (births less deaths), net immigration, and net migration—Texas has seen an increase in population. The natural increase since the last census was 1,155,182 people (1,948,398 births minus 793,216 deaths), immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 663,161 people, and migration within the country produced a net increase of 218,722 people. The state passed New York in the 1990s to become the second-largest U.S. state in population (after California).

As of 2004, the state has 3.5 million foreign-born residents (15.6% of the state population), of which an estimated 1.2 million are illegal immigrants (illegal immigrants account for more than one-third of the foreign-born population in Texas and 5.4% of the total state population^{[citation needed]}).

Census data reports 7.8% of Texas's population as under 5 years old, 28.2% under 18, and 9.9% over 64 years. Females made up 50.4% of the population.

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, 68.76% of the population aged 5 and over speak only English at home, while 27.00% speak Spanish. Other languages spoken include Vietnamese by 0.63%, Chinese (including Mandarin, Cantonese, and Taiwanese) by 0.48%, German (including Texas German) by 0.42%, and French (including Cajun French) by 0.32% [2].

[edit] Race and ethnic origins

The largest reported ancestry groups in Texas include: Mexican (25.3%), German (10.9%), African American (10.5%), English (7.2%), and Scotch-Irish (7.2%). Descendants from some of these ancestry groups is underreported.

Much of east, central, and north Texas is inhabited by Texans of White Protestant heritage, primarily descended from ancestors from Great Britain and Ireland. Much of central and southeast-central Texas is inhabited by Texans of German descent. African Americans, who historically made up one-third of the state population, are concentrated in those parts of East Texas where the cotton plantation culture was most prominent prior to the American Civil War, as well as in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston metropolitan areas.

Other population groups in Texas also exhibit great diversity. Frontier Texas saw settlements of Germans, particularly in Fredericksburg and New Braunfels. After the European revolutions of 1848, German, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Czech and French immigration grew, and continued until World War I. The influence of the diverse immigrants from Europe survives in the names of towns, styles of architecture, genres of music, and varieties of cuisine. Lavaca County is predominantly Czech.

More than one-third of Texas residents are of Hispanic origin and may be of any racial group. Some are recent arrivals from Mexico, Central America, or South America, while others, known as Tejanos in English, have ancestors who have lived in Texas since before Texan independence, or at least for several generations. Tejanos are the largest ancestral group in southern Duval County. The Hispanic population in Texas is increasing as more illegal immigrants from certain Latin American countries—primarily from Mexico—look for work in Texas. The state has the second-largest Hispanic population in the United States—California has the largest Hispanic population. Numerically, Hispanics dominate south, south-central, and west Texas and are a significant part of the residents in the cities of Dallas and Houston. This influx of immigrants is partially responsible for Texas having a population younger than the union average.

In recent years, the Asian American population in Texas has grown, especially in Houston and in Dallas. People with ancestry from Vietnam, India, China, the Philippines, Korea, and Japan make up the largest Asian American groups in Texas.