Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, County Population Estimates by Demographic Characteristics - Age, Sex, Race, and Hispanic Origin; updated annually for states and counties. http://www.census.gov/popest/counties/asrh/. 2000 Census of Population and Housing for places; updated every 10 years. http://factfinder.census.gov.
Definition:
The concept of race as used by the Census Bureau reflects self-identification by people according to the race or races with which they most closely identify. These categories are socio-political constructs and should not be interpreted as being scientific or anthropological in nature. Furthermore, the race categories include both racial and national-origin groups.
The racial classifications used by the Census Bureau adhere to the October 30,1997, Federal Register Notice entitled,"Revisions to the Standards for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity" issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The OMB requires five minimum categories (White, Black or African America, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander) for race. The race categories are described below with a sixth category, "Some other race," added with OMB approval.In addition to the five race groups, the OMB also states that respondents should be offered the option of selecting one or more races.
White. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "White" or report entries such as Irish, German, Italian, Lebanese, Near Easterner, Arab, or Polish.
Black or African American. A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "Black, African Am., or Negro,"or provide written entries such as African American, Afro American, Kenyan, Nigerian, or Haitian.
American Indian and Alaska Native. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintain tribal affiliation or community attachment.
Asian. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam. It includes "Asian Indian," "Chinese," "Filipino," "Korean," "Japanese," "Vietnamese," and "Other Asian."
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands. It includes people who indicate their race as "Native Hawaiian," "Guamanian or Chamorro," "Samoan," and "Other Pacific Islander."
Some other race. Includes all other responses not included in the "White", "Black or African American", "American Indian and Alaska Native", "Asian" and "Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander" race categories described above. Respondents providing write-in entries such as multiracial, mixed, interracial, or a Hispanic/Latino group (for example, Mexican, Puerto Rican, or Cuban) in the "Some other race" write-in space are included in this category. Estimates for years after 2000 reflect an allocation of this category among the other categories.
Two or more races. People may have chosen to provide two or more races either by checking two or more race response check boxes, by providing multiple write-in responses, or by some combination of check boxes and write-in responses.
Comparability. The data on race in Census 2000 are not directly comparable to those collected in previous censuses because of the introduction of recording of persons of two or more races. The data on race in the estimates subsequent to 2000 differ from Census 2000 figures in that respondents reporting "some other race" have been allocated to the other five categories.
The concept of race is separate from the concept of Hispanic origin. Percentages for the various race categories add to 100 percent, and should not be combined with the percent Hispanic. NonHispanic White alone are individuals who responded "No, not Spanish/Hispanic/Latino" and who reported "White" as their only entry in the race question. Tallies that show race categories for Hispanics and non-Hispanics separately are also available.
Scope and Methodology:
The 2000 data on race were derived from answers to the question on race that was asked of all people in Census 2000.
Estimates for states and counties for years after 2000 are developed using a cohort-component method whereby each component of population change - births, deaths, domestic migration, and international migration - is estimated separately for each birth cohort by sex, race, and Hispanic origin.
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