Hispanic and Latino Nevadans are residents of the state of Nevada who are of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 28.3% of the state's population.[1]

History

Main article: History of Nevada

Francisco Garcés was the first European in the area. He explored the present-day Nevada in the 1770s.[2] Nevada was annexed as a part of the Spanish Empire in the northwestern territory of New Spain. As part of Las Californias, the area of Nevada belonged to the Commandancy General of the Provincias Internas in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. However, no Hispanics migrated to Nevada. Nevada became a part of Alta California (Upper California) province in 1804 when the Californias were split. With the Mexican War of Independence won in 1821, the province of Alta California became a territory—not a state—of Mexico, due to the small population. As when Nevada was Spanish, the territory remained unattractive to Mexicans, and no Mexicans settled there.

Rafael Rivera was the first non-Native American to encounter the modern-day Las Vegas Valley, in 1829,[3][4][5][6] while Antonio Armijo traveled along the Spanish Trail to Los Angeles, California in 1829. He led a troop of 60 men.[7][4] As a result of the Mexican–American War and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico permanently lost Alta California in 1848. Unlike present-day California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, Nevada had no Hispanic population when it joined the US. The new areas acquired by the United States continued to be administered as territories. As part of the Mexican Cession (1848) and the subsequent California Gold Rush that used Emigrant Trails through the area, the state's area evolved first as part of the Utah Territory, then the Nevada Territory (March 2, 1861; named for the Sierra Nevada).[8] Since its incorporation into the US, Nevada has absorbed a lot of Hispanic migration, mainly from Mexico. In fact, all Hispanics who migrated to Nevada until 1960 were of Mexican origin. From 1960, many Cubans fleeing the Castro regime and many East Coast Hispanics, mainly of Puerto Rican origin, have migrated to Nevada. Many of the first Cuban newcomers had worked at Cuba's casinos and migrated to Las Vegas to continue working in that profession.[9] Subsequently, Hispanics from other countries also migrated to Nevada, although most of the immigrants remained Mexicans, who migrated to improve their social conditions and provide better education for their children. Between 1990 and 2010 the growth of the Hispanic population accelerated. Thereafter, growth slowed down.[10][11]

Demographics

Hispanics of any race made 26.5% of the population.[12] In 1970, non-Hispanic whites made up 88% of the state's population.[13]

The principal ancestry of Nevada's residents in 2009 has been surveyed to be the following:[14]

Nevada also has a sizable Basque ancestry population. In Douglas, Mineral and Pershing counties, a plurality of residents are of Mexican ancestry, with Clark County (Las Vegas) alone being home to over 200,000 Mexican Americans. Las Vegas is home to rapid-growing ethnic communities, including Spaniards. According to the 2000 US Census, 16.19% of Nevada's population aged 5 and older speak Spanish at home.[15] Las Vegas was a major destination for immigrants from Hispanic America seeking employment in the gaming and hospitality industries during the 1990s and first decade of the 21st century, but farming and construction are the biggest employers of immigrant labor.

According to the 2010 census, Hispanics are majority in Jackpot (55.6%) and West Wendover (61.7%), and are the main (though not the majority) ethnic or racial group in Sunrise Manor (48.5%[16]) and Winchester (44.6%[17]).

Hispanic ancestries

(self-identified ethnicity, not by birthplace)
Ancestry by origin (2019 surveys)[18] Population %
Argentine 3,564
Bolivian 1,125
Chilean 2,222
Colombian 6,526
Costa Rican 2,974
Cuban 36,041
Dominican 5,234
Ecuadorian 1,291
Guatemalan 23,410
Honduran 4,634
Mexican 677,268
Nicaraguan 5,038
Panamanian 1,353
Paraguayan 68
Peruvian 10,159
Puerto Rican 30,968
Salvadoran 40,576
"Spanish" 7,892
"Spaniard" 12,227
"Spanish American" 316
Uruguayan 516
Venezuelan 4,661
All other 20,808
Total 900,599
Ancestry by region Number (2010 Census)[19][20] % [19][20]
Mexican 540,978 20.0%
Caribbean 44,569 1.7%
Central America 55,937 2.1%
South America 19,056 0.7%
Other Hispanic 55,961 2.1%
Total

Historic Hispanic/Latino population (1900-2020)

Nevada Nevada Number of people of Mexican Origin (1900-1930)
and of Hispanic/Latino Origin (1940-2020) in Nevada[10][21][11][a] 		+% of Population of Mexican Origin (1900-1930)
and of Hispanic/Latino Origin (1940-2020) in Nevada
1900 N/A N/A
1910 900 1.1%
1920 1,393 1.8%
1930 3,369 3.7%
1940 3,046 2.8%
1950 N/A N/A
1960 11,411 4%[22]
1970 27,142 (15% sample) 5.6%
1980 53,879 6.7%
1990 124,419 10.4%
2000 393,970 19.7%
2010 716,501 26.5%
2020 890,257 28.7%

Politics

Hispanics and Latinos in Nevada remains a strongly Democratic constituency, as the party habitually wins the Latino vote nationally. In 2020, Democratic nominee Joe Biden carried 61% of Latinos in Nevada, according to exit polls by Eddison Research, while Republican Donald Trump won 35%.[23]

References

  1. ^ "Nevada QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau". Quickfacts.census.gov. 2011. Archived from the original on July 31, 2014. Retrieved January 22, 2014.
  2. ^ "Explorers and Settlers in Nevada" (PDF). Washoe County School District. p. 2. Retrieved 2010-05-20.
  3. ^ Lake, Richard (December 17, 2008). "Road Warrior Q&A: Foliage removed for widening". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Ponce, Victor Miguel. "Las Vegas, how did Las Vegas get its name, groundwater depletion". San Diego State University. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  5. ^ "History of Las Vegas". Las Vegas Online Entertainment Guide. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  6. ^ Land, Barbara; Land, Myrick (March 1, 2004). A Short History of Las Vegas. University of Nevada Press. p. 4. ISBN 978-0874176438. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  7. ^ "FAQs/History". Clark County, Nevada. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
  8. ^ "Online Etymology Dictionary". Retrieved 2010-05-20.
  9. ^ Bowers, Michael W. (2021). "The Sagebrush State: Nevada's History, Government, and Politics" (6th ed.). University of Nevada Press. ISBN 9781647790271.
  10. ^ a b Campbell Gibson; Kay Jung. "Historical Census Statistics on Population Totals By Race, 1790 to 1990, and By Hispanic Origin, 1970 to 1990, For The United States, Regions, Divisions, and States". United States Census Bureau. p. 77. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-08-12. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
  11. ^ a b "The Hispanic Population: 2010" (PDF). US Census Bureau. Retrieved 2015-07-30.
  12. ^ "Nevada QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau". Quickfacts.census.gov. Archived from the original on July 31, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  13. ^ "Nevada – Race and Hispanic Origin: 1860 to 1990". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on December 24, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  14. ^ Nevada – Selected Social Characteristics in the United States, 2009 American Community Survey 1-year Estimates, U.S. Census Bureau, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2011.
  15. ^ "Language Map Data Center". Mla.org. July 17, 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
  16. ^ 2010 census report for Sunrise Manor
  17. ^ 2010 census report for Winchester, Nevada
  18. ^ "HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGIN BY SPECIFIC ORIGIN: 2019 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. 2019.
  19. ^ a b US Census Bureau: "Redistricting Data, First Look at Local 2010 Census Results" Archived 2013-10-20 at the Wayback Machine
  20. ^ a b US Census Bureau, Systems Support Division. "Population by Race and Hispanic or Latino Origin for the United States: 1990 and 2000 (PHC-T-1)". Census.gov. Archived from the original on 20 January 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  21. ^ "The Hispanic Population: 2000" (PDF). US Census Bureau. Retrieved 2015-07-30.
  22. ^ Jens Manuel Krogstad; Mark Hugo Lopez (June 10, 2014). "For three states, share of Hispanic population returns to the past". Pew Research Center.
  23. ^ "Nevada 2020 President exit polls". www.cnn.com. Retrieved 2022-08-31.
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