Census Bureau Facts for Features
A product of the U.S. Census Bureau's Public Information Office Census Bureau CB99-FF.06 April 22, 1999 Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month: May 1-31 Income and Poverty Asians and Pacific Islanders had the highest median household income among the nation's race groups in 1997 $45,249. However, because Asian and Pacific Islander households were, on average, larger than White households (3.17 people versus 2.58 people), their estimated income per household member was lower ($18,569 compared with $20,093). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-177.html Both the number (1.5 million) and percentage (14.0 percent) of Asian and Pacific Islander individuals who were poor in 1997 were statistically unchanged from the previous year. For Asian and Pacific Islander families, the number and percent who were poor in 1997 were 244,000 and 10.2 percent, respectively. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-177.html Education One of every two Asian and Pacific Islander adults ages 25 to 29 had attained a bachelor's degree or higher in 1997, contributing to that population's high percentage of college graduates. Comparatively, almost 1 in 3 Whites (29 percent), 1 in 7 African Americans (14 percent), and just over 1 in 10 Hispanics (11 percent) in the 25- to 29-year-old age group had at least a bachelor's degree. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-108.html Among all persons ages 25 and over in 1997, Asians and Pacific Islanders had the greatest proportion of college graduates of any racial or ethnic group, at 42 percent. This compared with 25 percent for Whites, 13 percent for African Americans and 10 percent for Hispanics. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-108.html In 1996, non-Hispanic Asians and Pacific Islanders received 12 percent of the doctorate conferred by the nation's colleges and universities. This included 26 percent of those conferred in engineering, 22 percent each in mathematics and computer sciences and 20 percent each in physical sciences (astronomy, physics and chemistry) and biological sciences (biochemistry, botany, microbiology, physiology and zoology). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-226.html Coming to America In 1997, 24 percent, or 6.1 million, of the nation's foreign-born residents were Asians and Pacific Islanders. In addition, six in 10 Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States were foreign-born. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-57.html China (including Hong Kong) and the Philippines were the leading countries of origin after Mexico for the nation's foreign-born residents in 1997, with each contributing 1.1 million. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-57.html Families There were 2.2 million Asian and Pacific Islander families in 1997; of these, eight in 10 were married-couple families. Asian and Pacific Islander families are often large: 20 percent had five or more members, compared with 11 percent for non-Hispanic White families. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-180.html Asian and Pacific Islander children under 18 years of age were more likely to live with both parents (84 percent) than non-Hispanic White children (77 percent) in 1997. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-180.html In 1997, 58 percent of the nation's Asians and Pacific Islanders age 15 and over were married, 33 percent had never married and 4 percent each were divorced and widowed. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-180.html Population Distribution On July 1, 1998, an estimated 10.4 million Asians and Pacific Islanders lived in the United States, up 2.8 million from a total of 7.6 million on July 1, 1990. They comprised 3.8 percent of the total population in 1998, up from 3.0 percent in 1990. http://www.census.gov/population/estimates/nation/intfile3-1.txt Asians and Pacific Islanders had a higher rate of population growth between July 1, 1990 and 1998 than any other race or ethnic group: 37 percent. http://www.census.gov/population/estimates/nation/intfile3-1.txt The nation's Asian and Pacific Islander population is young, with an estimated median age on July 1, 1998, of 31.2 years 4.0 years younger than the median for the U.S. population as a whole. http://www.census.gov/population/estimates/nation/intfile3-1.txt By 2020, according to middle-series population projections, the nation's Asian and Pacific Islander population is expected to reach 19.7 million (6.1 percent of the nation's total population). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb96-36.html In 1997, 55 percent of the nation's Asians and Pacific Islanders lived in the West and 95 percent resided in metro areas (49 percent in suburbs, 46 percent in central cities). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-180.html As of July 1, 1997, according to population estimates: California had more Asians and Pacific Islanders than any other state, 3.8 million. New York was a distant second (952,736), followed by Hawaii (748,748), Texas (523,972) and New Jersey (423,738). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-161.html The states with the highest concentration of Asians and Pacific Islanders were Hawaii (63 percent of the total population), California (12 percent), Washington (6 percent) and New Jersey and New York (5 percent each). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-161.html Los Angeles County, Calif., was the U.S. county with the highest number of Asians and Pacific Islanders (1.2 million). Honolulu County, Hawaii, was second (559,752), followed by Orange County, Calif. (344,330); Santa Clara County (San Jose), Calif. (343,387); and Queens County, N.Y. (317,893). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-161.html Between April 1, 1990, and July 1, 1997, according to population estimates: The number of Asians and Pacific Islanders residing in California jumped by 829,623, the largest increase of any state. Following California's lead were New York, which added 243,609 new Asian and Pacific Islander residents, Texas (192,544), New Jersey (146,714) and Florida (96,674). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-161.html Among counties, Los Angeles County, Calif., was No. 1 in Asian and Pacific Islander population increase, with a gain of more than 190,000. Neighboring Orange County, Calif., was No. 2, with 91,501. Others in the top five were Santa Clara County, Calif. (76,905); Queens County, N.Y. (75,220); and San Diego County, Calif. (73,383). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-161.html Jobs In 1997, among employed persons, ages 16 and over, 38 percent of Asian and Pacific Islander men and 32 percent of women worked in managerial and professional specialty occupations (e.g., engineers, dentists, teachers, lawyers and reporters). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-180.html Languages Between 1980 and 1995, the number of registrations in Japanese courses at U.S. colleges and universities almost quadrupled, from 11,500 to 44,700, while the number in Chinese courses more than doubled, from 11,400 to 26,500. Consequently, Japanese is now the fourth most popular foreign language course in U.S. colleges; Chinese is sixth. Furthermore, 42,300 of the nation's public high school students were enrolled in Japanese classes in fall 1994, up from 6,200 a dozen years earlier. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb98-226.html As of 1992, Chinese was tied with German as the third most common foreign language in which the nation's 17 million small businesses could conduct transactions: 2 percent could conduct them in Chinese. The leading foreign languages were Spanish and French. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/cb97-182.html The preceding facts come from the Current Population Survey, the Statistical Abstract of the United States, population estimates and projections and the Characteristics of Business Owners Survey. The data are subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Previous 1999 Census Bureau Facts for Features: African American History Month (February), Valentine's Day (February 14), Women's History Month (March), Countdown to Census 2000 (April 1) and Secretaries' Day (April 21). Questions or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau's Public Information Office (tel: 301-457-3030; fax: 301-457-3670; e-mail: pio@census.gov).
