History of Mexican Americans in Texas facts for kids
Indigenous peoples lived in the area now known as Texas long before Spanish explorers arrived in the area. However, once Spaniards arrived and claimed the area for Spain, a process known as mestizaje occurred, in which Spaniards and Native Americans had mestizo children who had both Spanish and indigenous blood. Texas was ruled by Spain as part of its New Spain territory from 1520, when Spaniards first arrived in Mexico in 1520, until Texas won independence from Mexico in 1836, which led to the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo (1848). In 1830, the Mexican population fell to 20 percent and in 1840 down to 10 percent. When Spanish rule in Texas ended, Mexicans in Texas numbered 5,000. In 1850 over 14,000 Texas residents had Mexican origin.
In the 2020 Census, 33.3% of Texans identified as "Mexican, Mexican Am., or Chicano".
Media
La Prensa was a daily Spanish language newspaper published in San Antonio. It was started in 1913 by Ignacio E. Lozano and covered the Mexican Revolution and other stories from Mexico. It was closed in 1963. El Bejarano (San Antonio) was a Spanish language newspaper published in San Antonio. It was started in 1855 and became a platform for Mexican and Mexican American activism.
Notable persons
- Plácido Benavides
- José Antonio Burciaga
- José María Jesús Carbajal
- Patricia de la Garza De León
- Martín De León
- Luis Jiménez
- Rafael Manchola
- Octavio Medellín
- George I. Sánchez
- Edgar Valdez Villarreal
- Judith Zaffirini
- Selena
- Gloria Anzaldúa
Geography
Hispanics of Mexican descent dominate southern, south-central, and western Texas and form a significant portion of the residents in the cities of Dallas, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. The Hispanic population contributes to Texas having a younger population than the American average, because Hispanic births have outnumbered non-Hispanic white births since the early 1990s. In 2007, for the first time since the early nineteenth century, Hispanics accounted for more than half of all births (50.2%), while non-Hispanic whites accounted for just 34%.
