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Texas

Demographics

The people of Texas, historically often known as Texians, are now generally referred to as Texans.

As of 2004, the state had a population of 22,490,022. The state has 3,450,500 foreign-born residents (15.6% of the state population), of which an estimated 1.2 million are illegal aliens (illegal aliens account for more than one-third of the foreign-born population in Texas and 5.4% of the total state population). The state's population grew 5.5 million between 1990 and 2004, a growth of 32.4%.

Historical populations
Census
year
Population
1850
212,592
1860
604,215
1870
818,579
1880
1,591,749
1890
2,235,527
1900
3,048,710
1910
3,896,542
1920
4,663,228
1930
5,824,715
1940
6,414,824
1950
7,711,194
1960
9,579,677
1970
11,196,730
1980
14,229,191
1990
16,986,510
2000
20,851,820

 

 

Ethnic origins

More than one-third of Texas residents are of Hispanic origin and may be of any racial groups. Some are recent arrivals from Mexico, Central America, or South America, while others, known as Tejanos, 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. Perhaps numerically Mexican-Texans dominate south, south-central, and west Texas and are a significant part of the work force of cities of Dallas and Houston.

Other population groups in Texas also exhibit great diversity. Frontier Texas saw settlements of Germans, particularly in Fredericksburg and New Braunfels. In fact, the largest family in Texas today is of German descent. 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. Texans of German descent dominate much of central and southeast-central Texas and one county in the area, Lavaca, is predominately Czech.

In recent years, the Asian population in Texas has grown, especially in Houston and in Dallas. People from mainland China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia India, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Pakistan and other countries have settled in Texas.

In August 2005, it was announced by the United States Census that Texas has become the fourth minority-majority state in the nation (after Hawaii, New Mexico, and California). According to the Texas state Data Center, if current trends continue, Hispanics will become a majority in the state by 2030.

 

Demographics of Texas
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
Total
22,490,022
22,103,374
21,723,220
21,334,855
20,851,820
White (Non-Hispanic)
10,986,937
11,049,172
11,094,951
11,138,076
11,190,222
 
49.8%
50.4%
51.1%
51.8%
52.7%
Hispanic (of any race)
7,781,211
7,519,603
7,258,302
6,993,458
6,669,666
 
34.6%
34.0%
33.4%
32.8%
32.0%
Black (Non-Hispanic)
2,535,285
2,500,125
2,463,047
2,426,088
2,378,444
 
11.3%
11.3%
11.3%
11.4%
11.4%
Asian (Non-Hispanic)
695,293
666,261
636,223
604,846
567,526
 
3.1%
3.0%
2.9%
2.8%
2.7%
Native American (Non-Hispanic)
77,662
76,071
74,538
72,762
70,405
 
0.3%
0.3%
0.3%
0.3%
0.3%
Mixed/Other
210,349
203,238
196,159
188,529
178,812
 
0.9%
0.9%
0.9%
0.9%
0.9%

All data comes from the United States Census state population estimates.

The largest reported ancestry groups in Texas include: Mexican (24.3%), African American (11.5%), German (9.9%), American (7.2%), and Irish (7.2%).

Much of east, central, and north Texas is inhabited primarily by Texans of White Anglo Saxon Protestant heritage, primarily descended from the British Isles. African Americans, who historically made up one-third of the state population, are concentrated in those parts of East Texas where the ante-bellum cotton plantation culture was most prominent.

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