Census Bureau: CT is One of Seven States Where Puerto Rican is Largest Hispanic Population

Connecticut is one of seven states in the nation where the largest Hispanic group in the population is of Puerto Rican heritage; the others are Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, New York and Hawaii.  In Maryland and Washington, D.C., the Salvadoran population is the largest Hispanic group; in Rhode Island it is the Dominican population; in Florida it is the Cuban population.

In the remaining 40 states, the largest Hispanic or Latino group is the population of Mexican heritage.

The data, released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau, was developed as part of the 2020 U.S. Census.

Nationwide, eight Hispanic groups reached a population of a million or more in the United States in 2020, including the Colombian and Honduran populations that reached that milestone for the first time in census history, according to newly released detailed 2020 Census data.

The Venezuelan population experienced the fastest growth among Hispanic groups, increasing 181.5% since 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau reported. Across the U.S., the eight detailed groups with populations of 1 million or more in 2020 were: Mexican (35.9 million); Puerto Rican (5.6 million), Salvadoran (2.3 million); Cuban and Dominican (each at 2.2 million); Guatemalan (1.7 million); Colombian (1.3 million); and Honduran (1.1 million).

In Connecticut, 46.3% of the Hispanic population is of Puerto Rican heritage – a total of 288,344 people according to the Census Bureau data.   That is the highest percentage among the seven states where Puerto Ricans make up the largest percentage of Hispanics.  Pennsylvania is next highest at 43.5%.

The largest Hispanic groups in Connecticut, after those of Puerto Rican heritage, are Mexican (59,453), Dominican (50,224), Ecuadorian (36,072), Guatemalan (26,660), Colombian (25,570), and Peruvian (20,955).

The U.S. Hispanic (or Latino) population reached 62.1 million in the 2020 Census, increasing by over 11.6 million since the 2010 Census. The newly released data provides counts for 30 detailed groups, such as Guatemalan, and four regional groups, such as South American, for the nation’s Hispanic population.

In 2020, the Mexican population reached 35.9 million, 58% of the nation’s overall Hispanic population, down from 63% in 2010. The Mexican population was three times larger than the Caribbean Hispanic population, the largest regional group at 16.2% and which includes the Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican and Other Caribbean Hispanic populations, based on census responses.