Ethnic groups of the United States facts for kids

Population pyramid by race/ethnicity in 2020

This map shows the most common ethnic groups in each county of the United States

Top ancestries in the United States

The United States is home to many different kinds of people. It has a very diverse population, meaning people come from many different races and ethnic backgrounds. The U.S. government counts race and ethnicity separately.

The most recent U.S. census (a count of the population) recognizes five main racial groups:

• White
• Black
• Native American/Alaska Native
• Asian
• Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander

It also counts people who belong to two or more of these racial groups.

Besides race, the U.S. also looks at ethnicity. The census asks about people's "ancestry" or "origins." One important ethnic group is Hispanic or Latino. This group is the largest minority group in the nation.

White Americans are the largest group in most parts of the U.S. and in almost every state, except Hawaii. They make up the biggest part of the population in the Midwest. The South has the smallest share of White Americans.

Many African Americans (55%) live in the Southern U.S. Most other official groups, like Hispanic and Latino Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans, live in the Western U.S.

The five inhabited U.S. territories each have a main ethnic group:

• American Samoa has many Pacific Islanders.
• Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are mostly Asian and Pacific Islander.
• Puerto Rico is mostly Hispanic/Latino.
• The U.S. Virgin Islands are mostly African American.

White and European Americans

White Americans of one race (or alone) from 1960 to 2020

White and European Americans make up the largest part of the U.S. population. The United States Census Bureau defines "White people" as those whose families came from Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

This group includes both non-Hispanic White people and White Hispanic or Latino people. White Hispanic people are mostly White Mexican Americans and White Cuban Americans.

As of 2019, White Americans are the largest group in 49 out of 50 states and in Puerto Rico. They are not the majority in Hawaii, District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The percentage of non-Hispanic White people in the U.S. has been going down since the mid-1900s. This is partly because of changes in immigration laws, like the Hart–Celler Act of 1965. Experts think that non-Hispanic White people might be less than 50% of the U.S. population by 2043. However, White Americans overall (including White Hispanic people) are expected to remain the majority.

Many Americans have mixed ancestries. In the 2000 U.S. census, people could choose more than one racial group for the first time. Still, most people chose only one. In 2000, the largest self-reported ancestry groups were German Americans (17%) and Irish Americans (12%). Both groups came to the U.S. in large numbers in the mid-1800s. This was due to events like the Great Famine in Ireland and a failed revolution in Germany.

Some people with English or British backgrounds chose "American" as their ancestry in the 2000 census. This was because their families had been in the U.S. for a very long time. This made "American" ancestry seem to grow a lot in the 1990s.

Most French Americans are descendants of early French settlers. Many White Hispanic people come from Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Salvadoran backgrounds.

Many White Americans also have roots in Eastern and Southern Europe. This includes people of Russian, Polish, Italian, and Greek descent.

People from the Middle East and North Africa, like Arabs, Turks, Iranians, and Armenians, are counted as White in the U.S. census. This is because of a court case from 1909. However, many of these groups do not see themselves as White.

Middle Eastern and North African Americans

There are about 9–10 million Middle Eastern Americans in the U.S. This group includes both Arab and non-Arab Americans. They make up about 0.6% of the total U.S. population. However, other groups estimate the number to be closer to 3.6 million. This is because the census asks about ancestry, which can make it hard to count them accurately.

Most Middle Eastern Americans live in just 10 states. Nearly a third live in California, New York, and Michigan. California has the most Middle Eastern Americans. However, Michigan has the highest percentage of its population from the Middle East. For example, Dearborn, Michigan has a very large Middle Eastern American community.

The U.S. Census Bureau is still deciding how to classify people from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Currently, they are counted as White. But many people from these areas do not identify as White. After 9/11, some groups faced discrimination. In 2014, the Census Bureau said it would create a new MENA ethnic category. This would separate them from the "White" group. Experts felt that the "White" label no longer fit their identity.

Countries of origin for Arab Americans include Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Syria, and Yemen. The new MENA category might also include groups like Armenian, Afghan, Iranian, and Georgian Americans.

Hispanic and Latino Americans

Hispanic and Latino Americans are a large group in the U.S. In 2018, there were 59.8 million people, making up 18.3% of the total U.S. population. This group includes people who have full or partial Hispanic or Latino backgrounds. They usually come from Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America. However, they can be of any race.

The Census Bureau explains "Hispanic or Latino origin" as a person's heritage, nationality, or country of birth. This includes people who identify as "Mexican," "Puerto Rican," "Cuban," or "other Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino."

In 2019, the largest Hispanic American ancestry groups were:

• Mexican (37.2 million)
• Puerto Rican (5.83 million)
• Cuban (2.38 million)
• Salvadoran (2.31 million)

The Hispanic and Latino population has grown a lot since 2000. It is the main reason for the U.S. population growth. Mexicans make up the largest part of this group. The U.S. also has many people from the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Colombia, and other Central and South American countries.

More Hispanic Americans are getting college educations. In 2015, 40% of Hispanic Americans aged 25 and older had some college experience. This was up from 30% in 2000.

California has the largest number of Latinos. In 2019, 15.56 million lived there. Puerto Rico has the highest percentage of Hispanic/Latino people (98.9%).

This population is young and growing quickly. This is due to both immigration and higher birth rates. The Census Bureau thinks that by 2050, one-quarter of the U.S. population will be Hispanic or Latino.

African Americans

African Americans, also called Black Americans, are U.S. citizens with African family roots. This group includes people whose ancestors were brought to the U.S. as enslaved people. It also includes people who have recently moved from countries in the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa.

In 2010, there were 42 million Black and African Americans in the U.S. This included people of mixed races. They made up 13% of the total U.S. population. African Americans are the third largest group in the United States, after White Americans and Hispanic or Latino Americans.

Most African Americans (55%) live in the South. The U.S. Virgin Islands has the highest percentage of African Americans (76% in 2010).

Most African Americans are direct descendants of people from West Africa. These people were brought to the U.S. and enslaved. The first West Africans arrived in Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. At first, they were treated as servants. But this slowly changed into a system of slavery based on race.

All the early American colonies had slavery. In the North, enslaved people were often household servants. In the South, they worked on large farms called plantations. By the start of the American Revolutionary War, one-fifth of the total population was enslaved.

Slavery ended in the northern states by 1804. But it continued in the southern states until the end of the American Civil War. After the war, the Thirteenth Amendment officially ended slavery.

After the war, African Americans gained some rights. But later, Jim Crow laws took away many of these rights. These laws kept Black people separate and unequal. The Civil Rights Movement in the 20th century fought against these laws. This led to important laws like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Most recent immigrants from Africa do not identify as "African-American." This term usually refers to Black people whose families have been in the U.S. since the time of slavery. African immigrants usually identify with their own specific ethnic groups. However, African immigrants and African Americans often work together in business and professional fields.

Recent African immigrants to the U.S. come from countries like Jamaica, Haiti, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, and Somalia.

Asian Americans

Asian Americans are another important minority group. In 2019, there were 19.36 million Asian Americans. They made up 5.9% of the U.S. population.

In 2019, 6.12 million Asian Americans lived in California. Hawaii has the highest percentage of Asian Americans. About 532,300 Asians live in Hawaii, making up 37.6% of the islands' people.

Asian Americans were first mainly in Hawaii and the West Coast. But now, they live all over the country. Many live and work in big cities like New York City, Chicago, Boston, and Houston. There are also many Asians in the Pacific U.S. territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Filipinos have been in the areas that became the U.S. since the 1500s. In 1763, Filipinos started a small town in Louisiana. The first Japanese person to live in the U.S. for a long time arrived in 1841.

Large numbers of Asians started coming to the U.S. in the 1800s. This first big wave included mostly Chinese and Japanese workers. It also included Korean and South Asian immigrants. Many also came from the Philippines, which was a U.S. colony from 1898 to 1946.

Laws in the U.S. made it very hard for Asians to immigrate until the 1940s. After the U.S. changed its immigration laws in the 1940s to 1960s, a much larger wave of Asian immigrants began.

Today, the largest Asian American groups are:

• Chinese Americans
• Filipino Americans
• Indian Americans
• Vietnamese Americans
• Korean Americans
• Japanese Americans

Not all Asian Americans came directly from their home countries to the U.S. For example, many people from Guyana (a South American country) live in the U.S., and most of them are of Indian descent.

Native Americans and Alaska Natives

Indigenous peoples of the Americas, especially Native Americans, made up 2.9% of the U.S. population in 2020. This was about 3.7 million people. Another 5.9 million people said they had some American Indian or Alaska Native background.

It can be tricky to define who is Native American. Federally recognized tribes (Native American nations recognized by the U.S. government) and state recognized tribes have their own rules for who can be a member. These rules might include living on a reservation or having family records that show Native American ancestry. Some tribes require members to have a certain percentage of Native American blood.

The U.S. government also has rules for certain programs. For example, to get education benefits, people need to show documented Native American ancestry. However, for the census, people can identify themselves as Native American if they feel they are.

Scientists believe that more than 15 million other Americans might have some Native American ancestry. This includes African Americans and Hispanic Americans (especially those of Mexican heritage).

Native Americans were once thought to be disappearing as a race or culture. But many tribes have worked hard to bring back their traditions and languages. They have also fought to keep control over their own affairs.

In recent years, many tribes have started:

• Language programs to revive traditional languages.
• Tribally controlled colleges and schools on their reservations.
• Gaming casinos on their land to earn money. This money helps with economic development, education, healthcare, and housing for their people.

Today, more than 800,000 to one million people say they have Cherokee ancestry. The second largest tribal group is the Navajo. They live on a large Indian reservation that covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. The third largest group is the Lakota (Sioux) Nation. They have tribes in Minnesota, Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders Americans

Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders numbered about 656,400 in 2019. This was 0.2% of the U.S. population. Many more people identify as having partial Native Hawaiian ancestry. In total, about 829,949 people have full or partial Native Hawaiian ancestry. This group is the smallest minority in the United States.

More than half of Native Hawaiians identify as "full-blooded." But historically, most Native Hawaiians on the islands are believed to have some Asian and European family roots.

Some experts thought that full-blooded Native Hawaiians might disappear by 2025. However, Native Hawaiians are working hard to keep their customs and the Hawaiian language alive. They are creating cultural schools just for Native Hawaiian students.

There are many Pacific Islander people living in three Pacific U.S. territories:

• American Samoa (92.6% Pacific Islander, mostly Samoan, in 2010)
• Guam (49.3% Pacific Islander, mostly Chamorro, in 2010)
• Northern Mariana Islands (34.9% Pacific Islander in 2010)

Out of all U.S. states and territories, American Samoa has the highest percentage of Pacific Islanders.

Two or more races

In 2008, 7.0 million people identified as multiracial Americans. This was 2.3% of the population. These people identified with any mix of races. This includes White, Black or African American, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, or "some other race." The U.S. has a growing movement of people who identify as multiracial.

In the past, laws in the colonies and southern states tried to control race. For example, children born to enslaved mothers were classified as enslaved, no matter who their father was. Laws also banned interracial marriage, especially between White and Black people. But these laws did not stop people from having relationships across racial lines.

Experts say that because of new waves of immigration, Americans have always been a mix of different ethnic groups. Over time, people from different backgrounds have mixed and become more similar. The Civil Rights Movement in the 20th century helped make sure that all minority groups, including multiracial Americans, had their constitutional rights protected.

The largest group of multiracial people are those who are part White. In the 2000 census, many people identified as:

• White/American Indian and Alaskan Native (7,015,017 people)
• White/Black (737,492 people)
• White/Asian (727,197 people)
• White/Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (125,628 people)

Ancestry

The ancestry of people in the United States is very diverse. It includes descendants of people from all over the world. People in the U.S. also have varying amounts of mixed heritage from different ethnic and racial groups.

Some Americans can trace their family history back to just one ethnic group from Europe, Africa, or Asia. These are often first, second, or third-generation Americans. But generally, the longer a family has lived in the United States, the more mixed their heritage tends to be. This is sometimes called a "melting pot" effect.

We can learn about people's ancestry in the U.S. through things like:

• genealogy (studying family history)
• genetics (studying DNA)
• oral and written history
• Looking at old Federal Population Census records

Images for kids

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  The most common ethnic background in each county in the U.S. in 2000.

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  The largest ethnic backgrounds in each county in the U.S. in 2016.

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  The most common ancestry in each U.S. state.

See also

In Spanish: Etnografía de los Estados Unidos para niños