6 Interesting Facts About the Hispanic Population

6 Interesting Facts About the Hispanic Population Facts and figures about the Hispanic American population reveal it is not only the largest ethnic minority group in the United States but also one of the most complex. Individuals of any race (black, white, Native American) identify as Latino. Hispanics in the U.S. trace their roots to a variety of continents, speak a variety of languages and practice a variety of customs. As the Latino population grows, the American public’s knowledge about Hispanics grows as well. In this effort, the U.S. Census Bureau compiled statistics about Latinos in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month that shed light on where Latinos are concentrated in the United States, how much the Latino population has grown and the strides Latinos have made in sectors such as business. Latinos face challenges as well; they remain underrepresented in higher education and suffer from high rates of poverty. As Latinos gain more resources and opportunities, expect them to excel. Population Boom With 52 million Americans identifying as Hispanic, Latinos make up 16.7% of the U.S. population. From 2010 to 2011 alone, the number of Hispanics in the country jumped by 1.3 million, a 2.5% increase. By 2050, the Hispanic population is expected to reach 132.8 million, or 30% of the projected U.S. population at that time. The Hispanic population in the U.S. in 2010 was the largest in the world outside of Mexico, which has a population of 112 million. Mexican Americans are the largest Latino group in the U.S., making up 63% of Hispanics in the nation. Next in line are Puerto Ricans, who make up 9.2% of the Hispanic population, and Cubans, who make up 3.5% of Hispanics. Hispanic Concentration in the U.S. Where are Hispanics concentrated in the country? More than 50% of Latinos call three states (California, Florida, and Texas) home. But New Mexico stands out as the state with the largest proportion  of Hispanics,  making  up 46.7% of the state. Eight states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, and Texas) have Hispanic populations of at least 1 million. Los Angeles County boasts the highest number of Latinos, with 4.7 million Hispanics. Eighty-two of the country’s 3,143 counties were majority-Hispanic. Flourishing in Business From 2002 to 2007, the number of Hispanic-owned businesses in 2007 jumped by 43.6% to 2.3 million. During that time frame, they grossed $350.7 billion, which represents a 58% jump between 2002 and 2007. The state of New Mexico leads the nation in Hispanic-owned businesses. There, 23.7% of businesses are Hispanic-owned. Next in line is Florida, where 22.4% of businesses are Hispanic-owned, and Texas, where 20.7% are. Challenges in Education Latinos have advances to make in education. In 2010, just 62.2% of Hispanics aged 25 and up had a high school diploma. In contrast, from 2006 to 2010, 85% of Americans aged 25 and up had graduated from high school. In 2010, only 13% of Hispanics had obtained at least a bachelor’s degree. More than double that proportion of Americans generally (27.9%) had obtained a bachelor’s degree or a graduate degree. In 2010, only 6.2% of college students were Latino. That same year just more than a million Hispanics held advanced degrees. Overcoming Poverty Hispanics were the ethnic group said to be hardest hit by the economic recession that kicked off in 2007. From 2009 to 2010, the poverty rate for Latinos actually increased to 26.6% from 25.3%. The national poverty rate in 2010 was 15.3%. Moreover, the median household income for Latinos in 2010 was just $37,759. In contrast, the median household income for the nation between 2006 and 2010 was $51,914. The good news for Latinos is that the amount of Hispanics without health insurance appears to be declining. In 2009, 31.6% of Hispanics lacked health insurance. In 2010, that figure dropped to 30.7%. Spanish Speakers Spanish speakers make up 12.8% (37 million) of the U.S. population. In 1990, 17.3 million Spanish speakers lived in the U.S. But make no mistake. Speaking Spanish doesn’t mean one isn’t fluent in English. More than half of the country’s Spanish speakers say they speak English â€Å"very well.† Most Hispanics in the U.S. (75.1%) spoke Spanish at home in 2010.