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RACE
The data on race, which was asked of all people, were derived from answers to long-form
questionnaire Item 6 and short-form questionnaire Item 8. 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). These standards govern the
categories used to collect and present federal data on race and ethnicity. The OMB requires five
minimum categories (White, Black or African American, American Indian or 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.
If an individual did not provide a race response, the race or races of the householder or other
household members were assigned using specific rules of precedence of household relationship.
For example, if race was missing for a natural-born child in the household, then either the race or
races of the householder, another natural-born child, or the spouse of the householder were
assigned. If race was not reported for anyone in the household, the race or races of a householder
in a previously processed household were assigned. This procedure is a variation of the general
imputation procedures described in Accuracy of the Data.
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 or 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. It includes people who classified themselves as described below.
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U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000
American Indian. This category includes people who indicated their race as American Indian,
entered the name of an Indian tribe, or reported such entries as Canadian Indian, French American
Indian, or Spanish American Indian.
American Indian tribe. Respondents who identified themselves as American Indian were asked
to report their enrolled or principal tribe. Therefore, tribal data in tabulations reflect the written
entries reported on the questionnaires. Some of the entries (for example, Iroquois, Sioux,
Colorado River, and Flathead) represent nations or reservations. The information on tribe is
based on self-identification and therefore does not reflect any designation of federally or
state-recognized tribe. Information on American Indian tribes is presented in summary files. The
information for Census 2000 is derived from the American Indian Tribal Classification List for
the 1990 census that was updated based on a December 1997, Federal Register Notice, entitled
Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible to Receive Service From the United States Bureau of
Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, issued by the Office of
Management and Budget.
Alaska Native. This category includes written responses of Eskimos, Aleuts, and Alaska Indians as
well as entries such as Arctic Slope, Inupiat, Yupik, Alutiiq, Egegik, and Pribilovian. The Alaska
tribes are the Alaskan Athabascan, Tlingit, and Haida. The information for Census 2000 is based
on the American Indian Tribal Classification List for the 1990 census, which was expanded to list
the individual Alaska Native Villages when provided as a written response for race.
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.
Asian Indian. This category includes people who indicated their race as Asian Indian or
identified themselves as Bengalese, Bharat, Dravidian, East Indian, or Goanese.
Chinese. This category includes people who indicate their race as Chinese or who identify
themselves as Cantonese, or Chinese American. In some census tabulations, written entries of
Taiwanese are included with Chinese while in others they are shown separately.
Filipino. This category includes people who indicate their race as Filipino or who report entries
such as Philipino, Philipine, or Filipino American.
Japanese. This category includes people who indicate their race as Japanese or who report
entries such as Nipponese or Japanese American.
Korean. This category includes people who indicate their race as Korean or who provide a
response of Korean American.
Vietnamese. This category includes people who indicate their race as Vietnamese or who
provide a response of Vietnamese American.
Cambodian. This category includes people who provide a response such as Cambodian or
Cambodia.
Hmong. This category includes people who provide a response such as Hmong, Laohmong, or
Mong.
Laotian. This category includes people who provide a response such as Laotian, Laos, or Lao.
Thai. This category includes people who provide a response such as Thai, Thailand, or Siamese.
Other Asian. This category includes people who provide a response of Bangladeshi; Bhutanese;
Burmese; Indochinese; Indonesian; Iwo Jiman; Madagascar; Malaysian; Maldivian; Nepalese;
Okinawan; Pakistani; Singaporean; Sri Lankan; or Other Asian, specified and Other Asian, not
specified.
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U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000
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.
Native Hawaiian. This category includes people who indicate their race as Native Hawaiian or
who identify themselves as Part Hawaiian or Hawaiian.
Guamanian or Chamorro. This category includes people who indicate their race as such,
including written entries of Guam or Chamorro.
Samoan. This category includes people who indicate their race as Samoan or who identify
themselves as American Samoan or Western Samoan.
Other Pacific Islander. This category includes people who provide a write-in response of a Pacific
Islander group such as Carolinian; Chuukese (Trukese); Fijian; Kosraean; Melanesian; Micronesian;
Northern Mariana Islander; Palauan; Papua New Guinean; Pohnpeian; Polynesian; Solomon
Islander; Tahitian; Tokelauan; Tongan; Yapese; or Other Pacific Islander, specified and Other Pacific
Islander, not specified.
Some other race. This category includes all other responses not included in the White, Black
or African American, American Indian or 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.
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. The race response categories shown on the
questionnaire are collapsed into the five minimum races identified by the OMB, and the Census
Bureau Some other race category. For data product purposes, Two or more races refers to
combinations of two or more of the following race categories:
1. White
2. Black or African American
3. American Indian and Alaska Native
4. Asian
5. Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
6. Some other race
There are 57 possible combinations (see below) involving the race categories shown above. Thus,
according to this approach, a response of White and Asian was tallied as two or more races,
while a response of Japanese and Chinese was not because Japanese and Chinese are both
Asian responses. Tabulations of responses involving reporting of two or more races within the
American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, or Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
categories are available in other data products.
Two or More Races (57 Possible Specified Combinations)
1. White; Black or African American
2. White; American Indian and Alaska Native
3. White; Asian
4. White; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
5. White; Some other race
6. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native
7. Black or African American; Asian
8. Black or African American; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
9. Black or African American; Some other race
10. American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian
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U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000
Two or More Races (57 Possible Specified Combinations)Con.
11. American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
12. American Indian and Alaska Native; Some other race
13. Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
14. Asian; Some other race
15. Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
16. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native
17. White; Black or African American; Asian
18. White; Black or African American; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
19. White; Black or African American; Some other race
20. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian
21. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
22. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Some other race
23. White; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
24. White; Asian; Some other race
25. White; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
26. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian
27. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and Other
Pacific Islander
28. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Some other race
29. Black or African American; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
30. Black or African American; Asian; Some other race
31. Black or African American; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
32. American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
33. American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Some other race
34. American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other
race
35. Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
36. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian
37. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander
38. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Some other race
39. White; Black or African American; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
40. White; Black or African American; Asian; Some other race
41. White; Black or African American; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other
race
42. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
43. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Some other race
44. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some
other race
45. White; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
46. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander
47. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Some other race
48. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and Other
Pacific Islander; Some other race
49. Black or African American; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other
race
50. American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some
other race
51. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native
Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
52. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Some other
race
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U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000
Two or More Races (57 Possible Specified Combinations)Con.
53. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
54. White; Black or African American; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some
other race
55. White; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific
Islander; Some other race
56. Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
57. White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native
Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race
Given the many possible ways of displaying data on two or more races, data products will provide
varying levels of detail. The most common presentation shows a single line indicating Two or
more races. Some data products provide totals of all 57 possible combinations of two or more
races, as well as subtotals of people reporting a specific number of races, such as people
reporting two races, people reporting three races, and so on.
In other presentations on race, data are shown for the total number of people who reported one
of the six categories alone or in combination with one or more other race categories. For example,
the category, Asian alone or in combination with one or more other races includes people who
reported Asian alone and people who reported Asian in combination with White, Black or African
American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and Some other race. This number,
therefore, represents the maximum number of people who reported as Asian in the question on
race. When this data presentation is used, the individual race categories will add to more than the
total population because people may be included in more than one category.
Coding of race write-in responses. Census 2000 included an automated review, computer
edit, and coding operation on a 100-percent basis for the write-in responses to the race question,
similar to that used in the 1990 census. There were two types of coding operations: (1) automated
coding where a write-in response was automatically coded if it matched a write-in response
already contained in a database known as the master file, and (2) expert coding which took
place when a write-in response did not match an entry already on the master file, and was sent to
expert clerical coders familiar with the subject matter. During 100-percent processing of Census
2000 questionnaires, subject-matter specialists reviewed and coded written entries from four
response categories on the race item: American Indian or Alaska Native, Other Asian, Other Pacific
Islander, and Some other race. The Other Asian and Other Pacific Islander response categories
shared the same write-in area on the questionnaire. Write-in responses such as Laotian or Thai,
and Guamanian or Tongan were reviewed, coded, and tabulated as Other Asian and Other
Pacific Islander, respectively, in the census. All tribal entries were coded as either American Indian
or as Alaska Native.
Comparability. The data on race in Census 2000 are not directly comparable to those collected
in previous censuses. The October 1997 revised standards issued by the OMB led to changes in
the question on race for Census 2000. The Census 2000 Dress Rehearsal data were the first to
reflect these changes. First, respondents were allowed to select more than one category for race.
Second, the sequence of the questions on race and Hispanic origin changed. In 1990, the question
on race (Item 4) preceded the question on Hispanic origin (Item 7) with two intervening questions.
For Census 2000, the question on race immediately follows the question on Hispanic origin.
Third, there were terminology changes to the response categories, such as spelling out
American instead of Amer. for the American Indian or Alaska Native category; and adding
Native to the Hawaiian response category. The 1990 category, Other race, was renamed Some
other race. Other differences that may affect comparability involve the individual categories on
the Census 2000 questionnaire. The 1990 category, Asian and Pacific Islander, was separated
into two categories, Asian and Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander for Census 2000.
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U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000
Accordingly, on the Census 2000 questionnaire, there were seven Asian categories and four
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander categories. The two residual categories, Other Asian
and Other Pacific Islander, replaced the 1990 single category Other API. The 1990 categories,
American Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut, were combined into American Indian and Alaska
Native. American Indians and Alaska Natives can report one or more tribes.
As in 1980 and 1990, people who reported a Hispanic or Latino ethnicity in the question on race
and did not mark a specific race category were classified in the Some other race category
(Other in 1980 and Other race in 1990). They commonly provided a write-in entry such as
Mexican, Puerto Rican, or Latino. In the 1970 census, most of these responses were included in
the White category. In addition, some ethnic entries that in 1990 may have been coded as White
or Black are now shown in the Some other race group.
For Puerto Rico, separate questions on race and Hispanic origin were included on their Census
2000 questionnaire; identical to the questions used in the United States. The 1950 census was the
last census to include these questions on the Puerto Rico questionnaire.
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