Ancestry in the United States*
All figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau Report issued in June 2004
The Census Bureau defines ancestry as a person's ethnic origin, racial heritage, descent, or "roots," which may reflect their place of birth, place of birth of parents or ancestors, and ethnic identities that have evolved within the United States.
sort by: alphabetical | total population | fastest-growing | largest increase
| 1990 | 2000 | Change, 1990 to 2000 |
| Ancestry | Number | Percent | Number | Percent | Number | Percent |
| | | | | | |
| Total population | 248,709,873 | 100.0 | 281,421,906 | 100.0 | 32,712,033 | 13.2 |
| | | | | | |
| African * | 245,845 | 0.1 | 1,183,316 | 0.4 | 937,471 | 381.3 |
| African American *1,2 | 23,750,256 | 9.5 | 24,903,412 | 8.8 | 1,153,156 | 4.9 |
| Albanian | 47,710 | - | 113,661 | - | 65,951 | 138.2 |
| American * | 12,395,999 | 5.0 | 20,188,305 | 7.2 | 7,792,306 | 62.9 |
| American Indian * | 8,689,344 | 3.5 | 7,876,568 | 2.8 | -812,776 | -9.4 |
| Arab * | 127,364 | 0.1 | 205,822 | 0.1 | 78,458 | 61.6 |
| Armenian | 308,096 | 0.1 | 385,488 | 0.1 | 77,392 | 25.1 |
| Asian * | 107,172 | - | 238,960 | 0.1 | 131,788 | 123.0 |
| Asian Indian | 569,338 | 0.2 | 1,546,703 | 0.5 | 977,365 | 171.7 |
| Austrian | 864,783 | 0.3 | 730,336 | 0.3 | -134,447 | -15.5 |
| Belgian | 380,403 | 0.2 | 348,531 | 0.1 | -31,872 | -8.4 |
| Brazilian | 65,875 | - | 181,076 | 0.1 | 115,201 | 174.9 |
| British | 1,119,140 | 0.4 | 1,085,718 | 0.4 | -33,422 | -3.0 |
| Cambodian 2 | 134,955 | 0.1 | 197,093 | 0.1 | 62,138 | 46.0 |
| Canadian | 549,990 | 0.2 | 638,548 | 0.2 | 88,558 | 16.1 |
| Chinese | 1,505,229 | 0.6 | 2,271,562 | 0.8 | 766,333 | 50.9 |
| Colombian | 351,717 | 0.1 | 583,986 | 0.2 | 232,269 | 66.0 |
| Croatian 1 | 544,270 | 0.2 | 374,241 | 0.1 | -170,029 | -31.2 |
| Cuban | 859,739 | 0.3 | 1,097,594 | 0.4 | 237,855 | 27.7 |
| Czech | 1,296,369 | 0.5 | 1,258,452 | 0.4 | -37,917 | -2.9 |
| Czechoslovakian | 315,285 | 0.1 | 441,403 | 0.2 | 126,118 | 40.0 |
| Danish | 1,634,648 | 0.7 | 1,430,897 | 0.5 | -203,751 | -12.5 |
| Dominican 1,2 | 505,690 | 0.2 | 908,531 | 0.3 | 402,841 | 79.7 |
| Dutch | 6,226,339 | 2.5 | 4,541,770 | 1.6 | -1,684,569 | -27.1 |
| Ecuadorian1 | 197,374 | 0.1 | 322,965 | 0.1 | 125,591 | 63.6 |
| Egyptian | 78,574 | - | 142,832 | 0.1 | 64,258 | 81.8 |
| English | 32,651,788 | 13.1 | 24,509,692 | 8.7 | -8,142,096 | -24.9 |
| European * | 466,718 | 0.2 | 1,968,696 | 0.7 | 1,501,978 | 321.8 |
| Filipino | 1,450,512 | 0.6 | 2,116,478 | 0.8 | 665,966 | 45.9 |
| Finnish | 658,854 | 0.3 | 623,559 | 0.2 | -35,295 | -5.4 |
| French | 10,320,656 | 4.1 | 8,309,666 | 3.0 | -2,010,990 | -19.5 |
| French Canadian 1,2 | 2,167,127 | 0.9 | 2,349,684 | 0.8 | 182,557 | 8.4 |
| German 1 | 57,947,171 | 23.3 | 42,841,569 | 15.2 | -15,105,602 | -26.1 |
| Greek | 1,110,292 | 0.4 | 1,153,295 | 0.4 | 43,003 | 3.9 |
| Guatemalan | 241,559 | 0.1 | 463,502 | 0.2 | 221,943 | 91.9 |
| Guyanese | 81,665 | - | 162,425 | 0.1 | 80,760 | 98.9 |
| Haitian 1,2 | 289,521 | 0.1 | 548,199 | 0.2 | 258,678 | 89.3 |
| Hawaiian | 256,081 | 0.1 | 334,858 | 0.1 | 78,777 | 30.8 |
| Hispanic * | 1,113,259 | 0.4 | 2,451,109 | 0.9 | 1,337,850 | 120.2 |
| Hmong | 84,823 | - | 140,528 | - | 55,705 | 65.7 |
| Honduran | 116,635 | - | 266,848 | 0.1 | 150,213 | 128.8 |
| Hungarian | 1,582,302 | 0.6 | 1,398,702 | 0.5 | -183,600 | -11.6 |
| Iranian | 235,521 | 0.1 | 338,266 | 0.1 | 102,745 | 43.6 |
| Irish1 | 38,735,539 | 15.6 | 30,524,799 | 10.8 | -8,210,740 | -21.2 |
| Israeli | 81,677 | - | 106,839 | - | 25,162 | 30.8 |
| Italian 1,2 | 14,664,189 | 5.9 | 15,638,348 | 5.6 | 974,159 | 6.6 |
| Jamaican 1,2 | 435,024 | 0.2 | 736,513 | 0.3 | 301,489 | 69.3 |
| Japanese | 1,004,622 | 0.4 | 1,103,325 | 0.4 | 98,703 | 9.8 |
| Korean 1,2 | 836,987 | 0.3 | 1,190,353 | 0.4 | 353,366 | 42.2 |
| Laotian | 146,947 | 0.1 | 179,866 | 0.1 | 32,919 | 22.4 |
| Latin American * | 43,521 | - | 250,052 | 0.1 | 206,531 | 474.6 |
| Lebanese 1,2 | 394,180 | 0.2 | 440,279 | 0.2 | 46,099 | 11.7 |
| Lithuanian | 811,865 | 0.3 | 659,992 | 0.2 | -151,873 | -18.7 |
| Mexican 1,2 | 11,580,038 | 4.7 | 18,382,291 | 6.5 | 6,802,253 | 58.7 |
| Nicaraguan | 177,077 | 0.1 | 230,358 | 0.1 | 53,281 | 30.1 |
| Nigerian 1,2 | 91,499 | - | 164,691 | 0.1 | 73,192 | 80.0 |
| Northern European * | 65,993 | - | 163,657 | 0.1 | 97,664 | 148.0 |
| Norwegian 2 | 3,869,395 | 1.6 | 4,477,725 | 1.6 | 608,330 | 15.7 |
| Pakistani | 99,974 | - | 253,193 | 0.1 | 153,219 | 153.3 |
| Panamanian | 88,649 | - | 119,497 | - | 30,848 | 34.8 |
| Pennsylvania German | 305,841 | 0.1 | 255,807 | 0.1 | -50,034 | -16.4 |
| Peruvian | 161,866 | 0.1 | 292,991 | 0.1 | 131,125 | 81.0 |
| Polish 1,2 | 9,366,051 | 3.8 | 8,977,235 | 3.2 | -388,816 | -4.2 |
| Portuguese | 1,148,857 | 0.5 | 1,173,691 | 0.4 | 24,834 | 2.2 |
| Puerto Rican | 1,955,323 | 0.8 | 2,652,598 | 0.9 | 697,275 | 35.7 |
| Romanian | 365,531 | 0.1 | 367,278 | 0.1 | 1,747 | (NS) |
| Russian | 2,951,373 | 1.2 | 2,652,214 | 0.9 | -299,159 | -10.1 |
| Salvadoran | 499,153 | 0.2 | 802,743 | 0.3 | 303,590 | 60.8 |
| Scandinavian | 678,880 | 0.3 | 425,099 | 0.2 | -253,781 | -37.4 |
| Scotch-Irish | 5,617,773 | 2.3 | 4,319,232 | 1.5 | -1,298,541 | -23.1 |
| Scottish | 5,393,581 | 2.2 | 4,890,581 | 1.7 | -503,000 | -9.3 |
| Serbian | 116,795 | - | 140,337 | - | 235,422 | 0.2 |
| Slavic | 76,923 | - | 127,136 | - | 50,213 | 65.3 |
| Slovak 1 | 1,882,897 | 0.8 | 797,764 | 0.3 | -1,085,133 | -57.6 |
| Slovene | 124,437 | 0.1 | 176,691 | 0.1 | 52,254 | 42.0 |
| Spaniard | 360,858 | 0.1 | 299,948 | 0.1 | -60,910 | -16.9 |
| Spanish | 2,024,004 | 0.8 | 2,187,144 | 0.8 | 163,140 | 8.1 |
| Swedish | 4,680,863 | 1.9 | 3,998,310 | 1.4 | -682,553 | -14.6 |
| Swiss | 1,045,492 | 0.4 | 911,502 | 0.3 | -133,990 | -12.8 |
| Syrian | 129,606 | 0.1 | 142,897 | 0.1 | 13,291 | 10.3 |
| Taiwanese 1,2 | 192,973 | 0.1 | 293,568 | 0.1 | 100,595 | 52.1 |
| Thai 1 | 112,117 | - | 146,577 | 0.1 | 34,460 | 30.7 |
| Trinidadian and Tobagonian | 76,270 | - | 164,738 | 0.1 | 88,468 | 116.0 |
| Turkish | 83,850 | - | 117,575 | - | 33,725 | 40.2 |
| Ukrainian 1,2 | 740,723 | 0.3 | 892,922 | 0.3 | 152,199 | 20.5 |
| United States * | 643,561 | 0.3 | 404,328 | 0.1 | -239,233 | -37.2 |
| Vietnamese | 535,825 | 0.2 | 1,029,420 | 0.4 | 493,595 | 92.1 |
| Welsh | 2,033,893 | 0.8 | 1,753,794 | 0.6 | -280,099 | -13.8 |
| West Indian * | 159,167 | 0.1 | 147,222 | 0.1 | -11,945 | -7.5 |
| Western European * | 42,409 | - | 125,300 | - | 82,891 | 195.5 |
| White * | 1,799,711 | 0.7 | 3,834,122 | 1.4 | 2,034,411 | 113.0 |
| Yugoslavian | 257,986 | 0.1 | 328,547 | 0.1 | 70,561 | 27.4 |
| Other ancestries | 3,989,728 | 1.6 | 4,380,380 | 1.6 | 390,652 | 9.8 |
- Rounds to 0.0.
* General response which may encompass several ancestries not listed separately (i.e., African American includes Black and Negro).
NS Not statistically different from zero at the 90-percent confidence level.
1 Included in the list of examples on the census questionnaire in 1990.
2 Included in the list of examples on the census questionnaire in 2000.
Notes: Because of sampling error, the estimates in this table may not be significantly different from one another or from other ancestries not listed in this table.
People who reported two ancestries were included once in each category. The estimates in this table differ slightly in some cases from
the estimates in other data products due to the collapsing schemes used. For example, here German does not include Bavarian. Some
groups correspond to groups identified separately in the race and Hispanic-origin questions. The race item provides the primary source of
data for White, Black, American Indian, Alaska Native, Asian groups, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander groups. The Hispanic-origin question
is the primary identifier for Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and other Hispanic groups.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1990 Census and Census 2000 special tabulations.
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