National Geographic

CUBA``````REP.``````DOMINICAN``````FLORIDAOHIOPENNSYLVANIA``````N.C.``````S.C.GEORGIAW. VA.``````VIRGINIA``````MD.``````D.C.``````N.J.``````NEW YORK``````VT.``````MAINE``````N.H.``````MASS.``````R.I.``````DEL.``````CONN.``````PUERTORICO (U.S.)``````2,573,000``````4,770,000 Latinos``````Miami``````New York``````San Juan2,207,000Expanding LatinidadThe Spanish word “Latinidad,” which loosely translatesas “Latino-ness,” is a term that strives to encompassthe shared cultural identity of millions of Latinoswho are of different races and national origins andwho live in the United States. According to the U.S.census, the terms “Latino” and “Hispanic” representthe 57.4 million who hail from a host of countriessouth of the U.S. border and in the Caribbean, aswell as Spain. Latinos officially became the largestU.S. minority in 2000. Since then their Latinidad hascontinued to thrive in urban and rural areas.``````Diverse originsMany Latinos prefer toidentify with the place oftheir family’s origin, ratherthan with terms such as“Latino” or “Hispanic.”``````RILEY D. CHAMPINE, NGM STAFF. SOURCES: PEW RESEARCH CENTER; U.S. CENSUS BUREAU;INTEGRATED PUBLIC USE MICRODATA SERIES, NATIONAL HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM, UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA``````demographics and culture of rural areas nation-wide. And big cities such as Miami, New York,Houston, Chicago, and Los Angeles are nowhome to millions of Latinos who reflect a broadeconomic spectrum and, as in Wilder, are takingon leadership roles in their communities.``````I GREW UP as the son of Guatemalan immigrantsin Los Angeles, which now has a Latino plurality.Like people in Wilder, L.A. residents of Latinodescent pepper Spanish into their speech, even ifEnglish is their native tongue. They make comfortfood from beans and corn masa; they go to church``````to praise Dios, and they call their daughters mija(a portmanteau of mi hija, my daughter).Latinos in Los Angeles vote too, electingpro-immigrant representatives and helpingmake California (a state that once elected RonaldReagan governor) among the most pro- Democratof the 50 states. The mayor of Los Angeles andthe leaders of both houses of the state legislatureare of Latin American descent.Over the decades I’ve seen traditions suchas Cinco de Mayo spread across the country toheartland towns such as Garden City, Kansas;Lexington, Nebraska; and Wilder, Idaho.``````New York’s metropolitanarea is 24% Latino. PuertoRicans and Dominicansmake up 27% and 21% ofthe Latino population,respectively.``````Miami is 43% Latino;nearly half are ofCuban origin, andmany arrived aspolitical refugees.``````EACH SQUARE REPRESENTS100,000 PEOPLE.``````Non-U.S. citizens``````Foreign-born U.S. citizens``````Native-born U.S. citizens``````Mexico``````El Salvador``````DominicanRepublic``````Guatemala``````Cuba``````PuertoRico (U.S.)``````Colombia``````Peru Nicaragua Venezuela``````All others``````Honduras Spain``````Ecuador``````63% of Latinosidentify withorigin fromMexico.``````1,914,000``````1,413,000``````2,171,000``````36,203,000 total``````5,506,000``````2,205,000``````1,091,000``````612,000 413,000 359,000``````3,051,000``````974,000 782,000``````695,000``````LATINO POPULATIONIN 2016 METROPOLITANSTATISTICAL AREAS``````-10%``````-1-5``````+1``````+5``````+10% or more``````PERCENTAGEPOINT CHANGEIN LATINO SHAREOF POPULATION,2000–2016``````This U.S. territory is99% Latino. All peopleborn in Puerto Rico areU.S. citizens.``````2,500,000 or more1,000,000–2,499,999500,000–999,999100,000–499,999``````LARGEST LATINOPOPULATIONS