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Missouri population by Race and Ethnicity
Missouri the 19th largest U.S. state by population has a racially and ethnically diverse population. As of 2020, White (Non-Hispanic) are the largest group in Missouri followed by African Americans.
also read about the Population of Missouri
Ethnic and Racial Percentage
In 2020, the White alone (non-Hispanic) population was the largest racial or ethnic group in Missouri, comprising 75.78% of the total population. It was followed by the Black or African American population whose share was 19,54%.
Two or more races population was the third largest at 5%. Hispanic or Latino is at 4.92% & Asian population at 2.15%.
The ethnic composition of Missouri is as follows
| Race and Origin | Actual Population | Percentage 2020 |
| White alone | 4,663,907 | 75.78% |
| Black or African American alone | 692,774 | 11.26% |
| Two or more races | 307,840 | 5.00% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 303,068 | 4.92% |
| Asian alone | 132,158 | 2.15% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone | 23,496 | 0.38% |
| Some Other Race alone | 22,377 | 0.36% |
| Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander | 9,293 | 0.15% |
| Total | 6,154,913 |
Source: US Census Bureau population estimate 2020
*US Census recognized five racial categories (White, Black or African American, Asian American, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander) as well as people of two or more races. It also classified respondents as "Hispanic or Latino" or "Not Hispanic or Latino", identifying Hispanic and Latino as an ethnicity (not a race), which comprises the largest minority group in the nation.
Ancestry in Missouri
As per Census Studies & estimate German, Irish, English, American, and Italian have made the five largest ancestry groups in Missouri. In 2020, 7.8% of the population considered themselves to be of only American ancestry (regardless of race or ethnicity). Many of these were of Multi-racial, English, or Scotch-Irish descent; however, their families have lived in the state for so long that they choose to identify as having “American” ancestry or do not know their ancestry.
The Largest Ancestry in Missouri is as follows
| # | ANCESTRY | Estimate | Percentage |
| 1 | German | 1,296,177 | 21.1% |
| 2 | Irish | 736,294 | 12.0% |
| 3 | English | 516,551 | 8.4% |
| 4 | American | 476,918 | 7.8% |
| 5 | Italian | 189,877 | 3.1% |
| 6 | French (except Basque) | 164,214 | 2.7% |
| 7 | Scottish | 100,814 | 1.6% |
| 8 | Polish | 97,654 | 1.6% |
| 9 | Dutch | 78,108 | 1.3% |
| 10 | Scotch-Irish | 66,845 | 1.1% |
| 11 | Subsaharan African | 54,003 | 0.9% |
| 12 | Swedish | 51,927 | 0.8% |
| 13 | Norwegian | 47,998 | 0.8% |
| 14 | Welsh | 43,326 | 0.7% |
| 15 | Russian | 27,359 | 0.4% |
| 16 | Czech | 25,548 | 0.4% |
| 17 | Swiss | 23,741 | 0.4% |
| 18 | Arab | 20,966 | 0.3% |
| 19 | Danish | 15,108 | 0.2% |
| 20 | Greek | 13,792 | 0.2% |
| 21 | West Indian | 13,725 | 0.2% |
| 22 | French Canadian | 12,675 | 0.2% |
| 23 | Hungarian | 12,402 | 0.2% |
| 24 | Ukrainian | 8,411 | 0.1% |
| 25 | Lithuanian | 5,931 | 0.1% |
| 26 | Portuguese | 4,290 | 0.1% |
| 27 | Slovak | 3,765 | 0.1% |
also read about Cities and Counties in Missouri
European ancestry in Missouri
Non-Hispanic Whites account for nearly 76% of Missouri’s population. German, Irish, and English Americans have made up three of the largest European ancestry groups in Missouri. As per the Census report, German Americans made up 21.1% of the population and numbered 1,296,177 members.
Irish Americans made up 12.0% of the population and numbered 736,294. English Americans made up 8.4% of the population and numbered 516,551 followed by Italian ancestry at 3.1% of the population and number 189,877.
For other European ancestry percentages please refer table above.
African Americans in Missouri
As of 2020, those of African ancestry accounted for 11.26% of Missouri’s population. African Americans are a substantial part of the population in St. Louis (56.6% of African Americans in the state lived in St. Louis or St. Louis County as of the 2010 census), Kansas City, Boone County, and in the southeastern Bootheel and some parts of the Missouri River Valley, where plantation agriculture was once important. Kansas City is home to large and growing immigrant communities from Sudan, Somalia, and Nigeria.
Hispanics and Latinos in Missouri
Hispanics and Latinos are the third-largest groups in Missouri. Around 5% of Missouri’s Population claims Hispanic or Latin American ethnicity. According to 2010 Census counts, 69% of Hispanics in Missouri list Mexico as their country of origin. This is the largest subgroup of Hispanics in Missouri followed by Puerto Rico at second with 5.8% of the Hispanic population.
The largest concentration of Hispanics is found in Jackson County, which contains a large portion of Kansas City. Nearly a quarter of all Hispanics in the state reside there. St. Louis County, which has the largest total county population at nearly one million persons, has the second-largest number of Hispanics.
Sullivan County has the highest percentage of Hispanic residents (18.6%) among all counties in Missouri, while the Saline, Pettis, and Moniteau County percentages are all above the state average. Additional areas with
large numbers of Hispanic residents include other metropolitan counties in St. Louis and Kansas City regions (Clay, St. Charles, St. Louis City, etc.) and Southwest Missouri, which has several counties with large clusters of Hispanics. McDonald, Jasper, Lawrence, Newton, and Barry counties all have percentages above the state average.
Asian Americans in Missouri
Asian Americans are a minority group in Missouri. Americans of Asian descent formed 2.15% of the population. Its ethnic Asian population has grown rapidly since the late 1990s; the majority are Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Vietnamese, and Korean.
That community grew 37%, far outpacing the region’s overall 1.2% growth rate. The increase is mostly concentrated in St. Louis, St. Charles County, and St. Louis County, where Asians now account for nearly 5% of the county’s 1 million residents.
Multi-Race in Missouri
Multiracial individuals are also visible minorities in Missouri. People identifying as multiracial form 5% of the population, and number around 307,840 people.
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