Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
The Hispanic population tends to spread widely in the US, but the Hispanic
community presence is mostly perceptible in the same areas as in the past (see
Figure 4.13). The West is still home to more than 39% of this population, which
now represents 18% of the total population of the region. One-third of Hispanics live
in the South, where they represent 11% of the regional population, and the Northeast
is only home to 27% of the population, representing 6% of the region's population.
A smoothed map showing county-based data illustrates what happens in border
regions. Hispanics are the majority in the population of border counties in Texas, but
also in some counties of southern Florida, New Mexico, Arizona, and southern
California. The Hispanic presence in a large southwestern part of the country where
Hispanics form a very visible majority, but in the vast Northeastern area, there is a
limited Hispanic population outside of New York and Chicago. At the state level,
New Mexico remains the state where Hispanics represent the largest proportion of the
total population; but the largest community - 8.1 million people - lives in California,
and Texas is the second largest Hispanic state in the country (see Figure 4.14).
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Figure 4.14.
States with the largest percentage of Hispanic population in 2000
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Figure 4.15.
Metropolitan areas with the highest percentages of Hispanic population in 2000
