The Asian Population in the United States: 1980 To 2010

Bashiruddin Ahmed, U.S. Census Bureau
Stella U. Ogunwole, U.S. Census Bureau

The Asian population in the United States played a major role in changing the nation’s racial diversity during the last several decades. The Asian population grew from 3.2 million in 1980 to 10.2 million in 2000, a three–fold increase in only two decades. The Asian population change from 2000 to 2010 was 4.4 million or 43 percent, making it the fastest-growing race group in the United States in the last decade. What were the patterns of Asian population change at the state and county levels? Which detailed Asian group contributed most to the Asian population growth in each decade – Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese? This poster examines the Asian population’s size and growth using decennial census data from 1980 to 2010. It focuses on subnational distributions of the Asian population, as well as its changing demographic characteristics such as age and sex, and homeownership rates.