Demographics of Los Angeles

The 2005-2009 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau recorded Los Angeles' population at 3,796,840 .^[1]

Race, ethnicity, and national origin

The 1990 United States Census and 2000 United States Census official reports finds Non-Hispanic Whites became a minority (less than half) then down to below 40 percent and the 2010 United States Census estimates finds Latinos are approximately half or 47-49% of the city population, compared with 40 percent in 2000 and 30-35 percent in the 1990 census reports.

According to the 2005-2009 American Community Survey and in italics, City and County of Los Angeles population estimates, the racial/ethnic/cultural composition of Los Angeles was as follows:

• White: 50.3% (Non-Hispanic Whites: 29.4%) 50/30-25%.
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 48.5% 46-50-55%.
• Black or African American: 9.8% 8-10/15%.
• Native American: 0.5% 1/2%.
• Asian: 10.7% 10/12-15%.
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.2% 1%.
• Some other race: 25.2% 15-23-30%.
• Two or more races: 2.8% 3-5-10%.

Source: ^[2]

Approximately 59.4% of Los Angeles' residents were born in the United States, and 0.9% were born in Puerto Rico, U.S. territories, or abroad to American parents. In addition, 39.7% of the population were foreign-born. Most foreigners (64.5%) were born in Latin America. A large minority (26.3%) were born in Asia. Smaller numbers were born in Europe (6.5%), Africa (1.5%), Northern America (0.9%), and Oceania (0.3%).^[3]

Hispanic/Latinos

Los Angeles was expected to have a majority (over 50%) or half the population as Latino. The city witnessed a development of a largely Hispanic, esp. Mexican cultural presence from the very beginning (1850's). Mexican-Americans became one of the city's main ethnic groups since the 1910 census, as Mexican immigrants and US-born Mexicans from across the Southwest states came to the booming industrial economy of the L.A. area between 1915 and 1960, peaked in the 1920's and World War II eras (1941-45). The city's original barrios were located in the eastern half of the city and the unincorporated community of East Los Angeles. But the trend of Hispanization began in 1970 though accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s by Latin American immigrants from Mexico and Central America such as Salvadorans, Hondurans and Guatemalans settled in the city's eastern and southern neighborhoods. By the years 2000 and 2010, South Los Angeles became a majority Latino section replaced most previous African-American and Asian-American residents. The city is often disputed have the largest Mexican population outside Mexico and has the largest Spanish-speaking population outside Latin America or Spain. Central American, Cuban, Puerto Rican and South American nationalities are also represented.

Ethnic Enclaves

Main Article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_districts_and_neighborhoods_of_Los_Angeles Districts and Neighborhoods of Los Angeles

Ethnic enclaves like Chinatown, Historic Filipinotown, Koreatown, Little Armenia, Little Ethiopia, Little Bangladesh in Mid-City, Los Angeles, Little Moscow in Hollywood, Little Tokyo, Little Saigons where large Vietnamese American populations reside, Tehrangeles in West Los Angeles and Thai Town provide examples of the polyglot multicultural character of Los Angeles.

Other History Information

Historically, L.A. had some European immigration through the ports of San Pedro, Long Beach and Venice. In the early half of the 20th century, there were Irish, Italian, Greek, Polish, German, Jewish and Armenian neighborhoods in the Bunker Hill section in what is now the Civic Center of Los Angeles and in the Boyle/Lincoln Heights.

In the 1870s, Mormons from Utah were recruited to settle in the Los Angeles basin and contributed to the development of its local economy; and in 1930s thousands of Okies and displaced rural whites from the dust bowl-struck Great Plains and Southern United States settled down in the Arroyo Seco-Elysian Park sections.

But since World War II (1945 onward), the majority of whites/Anglos left these areas relocated to other parts of the city (i.e. the San Fernando Valley and Westwood, Los Angeles), nearby suburbs including Orange County and Simi Valley in Ventura County, as well across Southern California.

Languages

According to the 2006-2008 American Community Survey, the linguistic composition was as follows:

• Population 5 years and over: 3,473,790

• English only: 40.2% (1,397,555)

• Language other than English: 59.8% (2,076,235)
• Speak English less than "very well": 30.5% (1,058,358)

• Spanish: 43.6% (1,513,106)
• Speak English less than "very well": 23.2% (806,252)

• Other Indo-European languages: 7.0% (242,461)
• Speak English less than "very well": 2.8% (98,907)

• Asian languages and Pacific Islander languages: 7.9% (275,109)
• Speak English less than "very well": 4.0% (140,058)

• Other languages: 1.3% (45,559)
• Speak English less than "very well": 0.4% (13,141)

Source: ^[4]

Households and educational attainment

According to the 2006-2008 American Community Survey, the types of households was as follows:

• Total households: 1,275,534

• Family households: 61.1% (778,991)
• With own children under 18 years: 30.9% (394,253)

• Married-couple family: 39.1% (498,998)
• With own children under 18 years: 19.6% (250,054)

• Male householder, no wife present, family: 6.9% (88,600)
• With own children under 18 years: 3.0% (38,239)

• Female householder, no husband present, family: 15.0% (191,393)
• With own children under 18 years: 8.3% (105,960)

• Non-family households: 38.9% (496,543)
• Householder living alone: 30.2% (385,843)
• 65 years and over: 8.0% (102,016)

• Households with one or more people under 18 years: 34.6% (441,723)
• Households with one or more people 65 years and over: 21.1% (268,624)

• Average household size: 2.87
• Average family size: 3.67

According to the same survey, the educational status of residents over 25 years was as follows:

• Population 25 years and over: 2,407,775

• Less than 9th grade: 15.9% (383,385)
• 9th to 12th grade, no diploma: 11.1% (267,833)
• High school graduate: 21.1% (509,021)
• Some college, no degree: 16.7% (402,973)
• Associate's degree: 5.9% (141,764)
• Bachelor's degree: 19.2% (462,701)
• Graduate or professional degree: 10.0% (240,098)

• Percent high school graduate or higher: 73.0%
• Percent bachelor's degree or higher: 29.2%

Source: ^[5]

Income and poverty

According to the 2006-2008 American Community Survey, the income status of residents was as follows:

• Median household income: $48,610
• Mean household income: $76,557

• Median family income: $53,008
• Mean family income: $83,965

• Median non-family income: $38,227
• Mean non-family income: $61,155

According to the same survey, the poverty status of residents was as follows:

• All families: 15.6%
• Married-couple families: 10.2%
• Families with female householder, no husband present: 30.1%

• All people: 18.9%
• Under 18 years: 27.8%
• 18 years and over: 16.0%
• 18 to 64 years: 16.5%
• 65 years and over: 12.9%

Source: ^[6]

Employment

According to the 2006-2008 American Community Survey, the employment status of residents was as follows:

• Population 16 years and over: 2,923,315

• In labor force: 65.8% (1,924,833)
• Civilian labor force: 65.8% (1,923,236)
• Employed: 61.3% (1,792,596)
• Unemployed: 4.5% (130,640)
• Armed Forces: 0.1% (1,597)
• Not in labor force: 34.2% (998,482)

Source: ^[7]

References

1. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=ChangeGeoContext&geo_id=16000US0644000&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US06%7C05000US06037&_street=&_county=los+angeles&_cityTown=los+angeles&_state=04000US06&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=010&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=ACS_2009_5YR_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=
2. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=ChangeGeoContext&geo_id=16000US0644000&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US06%7C05000US06037&_street=&_county=los+angeles&_cityTown=los+angeles&_state=04000US06&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=010&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=ACS_2009_5YR_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=
3. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=16000US0644000&-qr_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_DP3YR2&-ds_name=&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false
4. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=16000US0644000&-qr_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_DP3YR2&-ds_name=&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false
5. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=16000US0644000&-qr_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_DP3YR2&-ds_name=&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false
6. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-qr_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_DP3YR3&-geo_id=16000US0644000&-ds_name=&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false
7. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-qr_name=ACS_2008_3YR_G00_DP3YR3&-geo_id=16000US0644000&-ds_name=&-_lang=en&-redoLog=false