View source for Demographics of California

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2013}}
{{Infobox place demographics|place=[[California]]|image_size=350|caption=Population pyramid of California in 2019|size_of_population=38,940,231 (2023)<ref name="CaliforniaDecline2023" />|image=File:California population pyramid in 2019.svg}}

[[California]] is the most populous [[U.S. state]], with an estimated population of 38.9 million as of 2023.<ref name="CaliforniaDecline2023"/> The state has people from a wide variety of [[Ethnicity|ethnic]], [[Race (human categorization)|racial]], [[Nationality|national]], and [[Religion|religious]] backgrounds.

==Population==
{{US Census population
| 1850 = 92597
| 1860 = 379994
| 1870 = 560247
| 1880 = 864694
| 1890 = 1213398
| 1900 = 1485053
| 1910 = 2377549
| 1920 = 3426861
| 1930 = 5677251
| 1940 = 6907387
| 1950 = 10586223
| 1960 = 15717204
| 1970 = 19953134
| 1980 = 23667902
| 1990 = 29760021
| 2000 = 33871648
| 2010 = 37253956
| 2020 = 39538223
| estyear = 2024
| estimate = 39431263
| footnote = Sources: 1790–1990, 2000, 2010, 2020, 2023<ref name="dof.ca.gov">{{cite web |title=California Grew By 356,000 Residents in 2013 |url=http://www.dof.ca.gov/research/demographic/reports/estimates/e-1/documents/E-1_2014_Press_Release.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502002520/http://www.dof.ca.gov/research/demographic/reports/estimates/e-1/documents/E-1_2014_Press_Release.pdf |archive-date=May 2, 2014 |access-date=September 26, 2016}}</ref><ref name="census_1790_1990">{{cite web |date=August 20, 1993 |title=1990 Census of Population and Housing, Unit Counts, United States, 1990 CPH-2-1 |url=https://www.census.gov/prod/cen1990/cph2/cph-2-1-1.pdf |access-date=January 1, 2012 |website=Population and Housing Unit Counts, Population Estimates 1790–1990, pages 26–27 |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]], U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration}}</ref><ref name="Census2020">{{cite web |title=Population, Population Change, and Estimated Components of Population Change: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2020 (NST-EST2020-alldata) |url=http://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/technical-docamentation/research/evaluation-estimates.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222173239/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/technical-documentation/research/evaluation-estimates.html |archive-date=December 22, 2020 |access-date=April 26, 2021 |website=census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref><ref name=CaliforniaDecline2023>{{cite web |url=https://dof.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/352/Forecasting/Demographics/Documents/E-1_2023PressRelease.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230504055214/https://dof.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/352/Forecasting/Demographics/Documents/E-1_2023PressRelease.pdf |archive-date=May 4, 2023 |url-status=live |title=May 2023 Population Estimates Press Release |date=May 1, 2023 |work=[[California Department of Finance]] |access-date=August 22, 2023}}</ref>{{break}}Chart does not include Indigenous population figures.{{break}}Studies indicate that the Native American{{break}}population in California in 1850 was close to 150,000{{break}}before declining to 15,000 by 1900.<ref name="americanindiantah1">{{cite web |title=American Indian Civics Project: Indians of Northern California: A Case Study of Federal, State, and Vigilante Intervention, 1850–1860 |url=http://americanindiantah.com/lesson_plans/ml_indians_in_northern_california.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120317041607/http://americanindiantah.com/lesson_plans/ml_indians_in_northern_california.html |archive-date=March 17, 2012 |access-date=March 21, 2012 |publisher=Americanindiantah.com}}</ref>
}}

California is the most populated sub-national entity in North America. If it were an independent country, California would rank 38th in population in the world. Until recently, it had a larger population than [[Canada]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Canada tops California in people but not profits |author=James Langton |agency=National Bank Financial |url=https://www.advisor.ca/economy/economic-indicators/canada-tops-california-in-people-but-not-profits/ |date=19 June 2023 |access-date=21 October 2024}}</ref>  Its population is one third larger than that of the next most populous state, [[Texas]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/statab/ranks/rank01.html|title=Statistical Abstract of the United States|website=Census.gov|access-date=October 7, 2017}}</ref> California surpassed [[New York (state)|New York]] to become the most populous state in 1962.<ref name="Pat Brown Bio">{{Cite web |title = Governor Edmund G. "Pat" Brown of California |publisher = California State Library |date = November 28, 2005 |url = http://www.californiagovernors.ca.gov/h/biography/governor_32.html |access-date = January 29, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060218214814/http://www.californiagovernors.ca.gov/h/biography/governor_32.html |archive-date = February 18, 2006 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> California's population growth has slowed dramatically in the 21st century.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/04/california-population-growth.html|title=California's population growth is slowing dramatically in the 21st century, study finds|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=2012-04-24|access-date=2013-06-06}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ocregister.com/californias-population-growth-hits-80-year-low|title=California's population growth hits 80-year low|date=2019-12-23|website=The Mercury News|language=en-US|access-date=2020-03-21}}</ref> In 2010, the state's five most populous counties were [[Los Angeles County|Los Angeles]], [[San Diego County|San Diego]], [[Orange County, California|Orange]], [[Riverside County|Riverside]], and [[San Bernardino County|San Bernardino]], with Riverside County having the largest percentage increase in population.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogs.csac.counties.org/index.php/2010/12/california-county-population-shows-little-growth/ |title=California County Population Shows Little Growth |author=Erin Treadwell |date=9 December 2010 |website=csas.counties.org |publisher=California State Association of Counties |access-date=6 June 2013}}</ref> The [[List of California urban areas|largest metro areas in California]], as of 2010, are [[Los Angeles metropolitan area|Los Angeles]], the [[San Francisco Bay Area]], San Diego, the [[Inland Empire]], and [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2012/03/27/2012-6903/qualifying-urban-areas-for-the-2010-census |title=Qualifying Urban Areas for the 2010 Census |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=27 March 2012 |website=Federal Register |publisher=United States Government |access-date=13 November 2013}}</ref> From 2006 until 2016, the state lost a net population of about 1 million people from emigration to other states,<ref>{{cite news |last=Riquier |first=Andrea |date=6 May 2018 |title=With no letup in home prices, the California exodus surges |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/with-no-letup-in-home-prices-the-california-exodus-surges-2018-05-03 |work=MarketWatch |location=New York |access-date=6 May 2018 }}<br />{{cite report |author=Brian Uhler |author2=Justin Garosi |date=21 February 2018 |title=California Losing Residents Via Domestic Migration |url=http://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/265 |publisher=State of California |access-date=6 May 2018 }}</ref> yet the population of the state continued to grow due to immigration from overseas and more births than deaths.<ref>{{cite news |last=Reese |first=Phillip |title=Roughly 5 million people left California in the last decade. See where they went. |url=http://www.sacbee.com/site-services/databases/article32679753.html |work= Sacramento Bee |access-date=6 May 2018 }}</ref>

As of 2006, California had an estimated population of 37,172,015, more than 12 percent of the US population. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 1,557,112 people (i.e., 2,781,539 births minus 1,224,427 deaths) and an increase due to net migration of 751,419 people. Immigration resulted in a net increase of 1,415,879 people, and migration from within the US resulted in a net decrease of 564,100 people. California is the 13th fastest-growing state. As of 2023, the total fertility rate was 1.52 which is on par with Canada.<ref>[https://www.ppic.org/blog/californias-plunging-birth-rates/#:~:text=Moreover%2C%20California%E2%80%99s%20total%20fertility%20rate%20%28the%20number%20of,at%20its%20current%20level%20%28immigratio California's Plunging Birth Rates] [[Public Policy Institute of California]] Retrieved March 21, 2023.</ref>

[[File:California population density 2020.png|thumb|left|280px|Population density in [[2020 United States census|2020]]]]

The [[center of population]] of California is located at {{Coord|35.463595|N|119.325359|W|display=inline}} in [[Kern County, California|Kern County]], near the town of [[Shafter, California|Shafter]].<ref>[http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/reference/cenpop2010/CenPop2010_Mean_ST.txt Population and Population Centers by State: 2010]. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 5, 2017.</ref>

No single ethnic group forms a majority of California's population, making the state a [[Majority minority in the United States|minority-majority state]]. Hispanics (of any race) are the largest single ethnic group in the state.<ref>{{Cite web| title = California QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau| publisher = United States Census Bureau| url = https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/RHI705210/06| access-date = July 16, 2016}}</ref> [[Spanish language in California|Spanish]] is the state's second most widely spoken language. Areas with especially large Spanish speaking populations include the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the [[Mexico–United States border|California-Mexico border]] counties of San Diego and [[Imperial County, California|Imperial]], and the [[San Joaquin Valley]]. Nearly 43% of Californian residents speak a language other than English at home, a proportion far higher than any other state.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/43-in-state-speak-other-than-English-at-home-3193867.php|title=43% in state speak other than English at home|website=Articles.sfgate.com|access-date=October 7, 2017|date=2008-09-23}}</ref>

In 2011, there were an estimated 2.6 million [[illegal immigration to the United States|undocumented immigrants]] residing in California.<ref>
Full parameter set in horizontal format.{{cite report|url=http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/report/R_711LHR.pdf|title=Unauthorized Immigrants in California|last1=Hill|first1=Laura E.|last2=Johnson|first2=Hans P|date=July 2011|publisher=Public Policy Institute of California|last3=Ezekiel|first3=David|last4=Hayes|first4=Joseph M.|access-date=26 June 2018|contribution=Silicon Valley Community Foundation}}</ref> California is home to almost 25% of the country's undocumented population, making up 6% of California's residents overall. Two-thirds of California's undocumented population have lived in the state for more than 10 years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ppic.org/main/publication_show.asp?i=818|title=Undocumented Immigrants in California |publisher= Public Policy Institute of California|website=Ppic.org|access-date=October 7, 2017}}</ref>

About 52% of California's [[State school|public school]] students in the 2011–2012 school year identified themselves as Hispanic or Latino and 26% as non-Hispanic Caucasian. The following ethnic groups made up the rest of the statewide public school student body: Asians (11%), African Americans (7%), Native Americans (0.7%), and Pacific Islanders (0.6%). Students of mixed race made up about 2% of the public schools. Hispanics have made up the majority of the state's public schools since 2010. [[Los Angeles Unified School District]], the largest school district in California and second largest in the nation, is 73% Hispanic, 10% African American, 9% non-Hispanic Caucasian, 6% Asian, 0.5% Native American, and 0.4% Pacific Islander.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=California Department of Education|url=http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/Enrollment/EthnicEnr.aspx?cYear=2011-12&cGender=B&cType=ALL&cChoice=StEnrEth2|title=Enrollment by Ethnicity for 2011–12: Statewide Enrollment by Ethnicity (with county data) |access-date=April 21, 2012}}</ref>

In 2020, amid the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], California's population fell for the first time in history, resulting in its first loss of a [[California's congressional districts|congressional seat]].<ref>{{cite news |agency=Associated Press |date=2021-05-07 |title=California's population declines for the first time in state history |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/may/07/california-population-decline-2020 |access-date=2023-08-23 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> The state's population declined again in 2021 and 2022.<ref name=nyt20230503>{{cite news |last=Karlamangla |first=Soumya |date=2023-05-03 |title=The Population of California Declined, Again |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/03/us/california-population-decline.html |access-date=2023-08-23 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The main causes of the decline are: a high [[mortality rate]], a declining [[Birth rate|natality]], a fall in [[Immigration to the United States|international migration]] and emigration to other states.<ref name=nyt20230503/> The latter phenomenon is sometimes called [[California exodus]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Terry|last=Castleman |date=2023-02-15 |title=California's population dropped by 500,000 in two years as exodus continues |url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-02-15/californias-population-has-dropped-by-more-than-half-a-million-in-about-two-years-why |access-date=2023-08-23 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Population loss was noticed in 34 out of 58 counties in the state between January 2020 and July 2022.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |last1=Johnson |first1=Hans |last2=McGhee |first2=Eric |last3=Mejia |first3=Marisol Cuellar |date=January 2023 |title=California's Population |url=https://www.ppic.org/publication/californias-population/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |website=Public Policy Institute of California}}</ref> According to the [[California Department of Finance]], the state's population will stay constant at around 39.5 million until 2060.<ref>{{cite web |date=2023-07-27 |title=California population projected to stagnate through 2060, down from 13.5M growth prediction |url=https://www.ocregister.com/2023/07/26/california-exodus-state-population-projected-to-remain-the-same-through-2060/ |access-date=2023-08-23 |website=Orange County Register |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=2023-07-22 |title=California Looks Into the Future — and Sees Fewer Californians |language=en |work=Bloomberg.com |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-07-22/california-looks-into-the-future-and-sees-fewer-californians |access-date=2023-08-23}}</ref> In 2020–2021, California saw an annual loss of 398,795 people. Between 2021 and 2022, there was a lower loss in population at 113,649 people.<ref name=":0" /> The slowing down of population loss as seen in 2022 would continue into 2023 seeing a loss of 75,423 people making it a 0.2% population loss from the previous year as compared to 2022 having a 0.3% loss in 2023.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Woolfolk |first1=John |last2=Rowan |first2=Harriet |date=December 20, 2023 |title=California's population shrunk in 2023 for the third straight year, but exodus slowed |url=https://www.times-standard.com/2023/12/20/californias-population-shrunk-in-2023-for-the-third-straight-year-but-exodus-slowed/ |access-date=February 20, 2024 |work=Times Standard |type=Digital}}</ref> In the 2024 population estimate from the US Census Bureau the population of California grew by 232,570 people.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=December 19, 2024 |title=Net International Migration Drives Highest U.S. Population Growth in Decades |url=https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2024/population-estimates-international-migration.html |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=United States Census Bureau |publisher=United States Census Bureau |language=en}}</ref>

===Net domestic migration===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Net domestic migration, California<ref name="net domestic migration">{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/geographic-mobility/state-to-state-migration.html|title=State-to-State Migration Flows|website=The United States Census Bureau}}</ref>
!Year
!In-migrants
!Out-migrants
!Net domestic migration
|-
|2010
|444,749
|573,988
|–129,239
|-
|2011
|468,428
|562,343
|–93,915
|-
|2012
|493,641
|566,986
|–73,345
|-
|2013
|485,477
|581,679
|–96,202
|-
|2014
|513,968
|593,308
|–79,340
|-
|2015
|514,477
|643,710
|–129,233
|-
|2016
|514,758
|657,690
|–142,932
|-
|2017
|523,131
|661,026
|–137,895
|-
|2018
|501,023
|691,145
|–190,122
|-
|2019
|480,204
|653,551
|–173,347
|-
|2021
|433,402
|841,065
|–407,663
|-
|2022
|475,803
|817,669
|–341,866
|}

===2020 US census===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right;"
|+California – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small>{{nobold|''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.''}}</small>
!rowspan=2|Race / Ethnicity <small>(''NH = Non-Hispanic'')</small>
!colspan=3|Numbers
!colspan=3|%
|-
!2000<ref name=2000CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – California|url=https://data.census.gov/table?q=p004&g=040XX00US06|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
!2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - California|url=https://data.census.gov/table/DECENNIALPLNAT2010.P2?q=p2&g=040XX00US06|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
!{{partial|2020}}<ref name=2020CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - California|url=https://data.census.gov/table?q=p2&g=040XX00US06|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
!2000
!2010
!{{partial|2020}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Non-Hispanic or Latino whites|White]] alone (NH)
|15,816,790
|14,956,253
|style='background: #ffffe6; |13,714,587
|46.70%
|{{percentage|14956253|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|13714587|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Non-Hispanic or Latino African Americans|Black or African American]] alone (NH)
|2,181,926
|2,163,804
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,119,286
|{{percentage|2181926|33871648|2}}
|{{percentage|2163804|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|2119286|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] or [[Alaska Natives|Alaska Native]] alone (NH)
|178,984
|162,250
|style='background: #ffffe6; |156,085
|{{percentage|178984|33871648|2}}
|{{percentage|162250|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|156085|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Asian Americans|Asian]] alone (NH)
|3,648,860
|4,775,070
|style='background: #ffffe6; |5,978,795
|{{percentage|3648860|33871648|2}}
|{{percentage|4775070|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|5978795|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Native Hawaiian]] or [[Pacific Islander Americans|Pacific Islander]] alone (NH)
|103,736
|128,577
|style='background: #ffffe6; |138,167
|{{percentage|103736|33871648|2}}
|{{percentage|128577|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|138167|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Race and ethnicity in the United States census|Other race]] alone (NH)
|71,681
|85,587
|style='background: #ffffe6; |223,929
|{{percentage|71681|33871648|2}}
|{{percentage|85587|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|223929|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Multiracial Americans|Mixed race or Multiracial]] (NH)
|903,115
|968,696
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,627,722
|{{percentage|903115|33871648|2}}
|2.60%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |{{percentage|1627722|39538223|2}}
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|[[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]] (any race)
|10,966,556
|14,013,719
|style='background: #ffffe6; |15,579,652
|{{percentage|10966556|33871648|2}}
|{{percentage|14013719|37253956|2}}
|style='background: #ffffe6; |39.40%
|-
!Total
!33,871,648
!37,253,956
!39,538,223
!100.00%
!100.00%
!100.00%
|}


According to the [[2020 United States census|2020 US census]], California's population was 34.7% [[Non-Hispanic whites|Non-Hispanic White]], 5.4% [[African Americans|Non-Hispanic African American]], 0.4% [[Native Americans in the United States|Non-Hispanic Native American]], 15.1% [[Asian Americans|Non-Hispanic Asian]], 0.4% [[Pacific Islander Americans|Non-Hispanic Pacific Islander]], 4.1% [[Multiracial Americans|Non-Hispanic Multiracial]], and 39.4% [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]] of any race.<ref name=2020CensusP2/> Hispanics are the largest racial/ethnic group in California. Non-Hispanic Whites have decreased from about 76.3% of the state's population in 1970<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0056/tab19.xls|title=Historical Census Statistics on Population Totals By Race, California|website=Census.gov|access-date=October 7, 2017}}</ref> to 33.7% in 2022.<ref name=California-B03002-2022/> California is the second-most racially diverse state in the US, after [[Hawaii]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bureau |first=US Census |title=Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the United States: 2010 Census and 2020 Census |url=https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/racial-and-ethnic-diversity-in-the-united-states-2010-and-2020-census.html |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=Census.gov |language=en}}</ref> The population of minorities (defined as anyone who is not fully non-Hispanic white) in the US accounted for 139.8 million out of 331.5 million residents in 2020, with 25.8 million, or 18.5% of the total minority population, living in California (2020).<ref name=2020CensusUSAP2>{{cite web|title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – United States of America|url=https://data.census.gov/table?q=p2&g=010XX00US|website=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref> While [[New Mexico]] has a higher percentages of Hispanics (47.7%), California has the [[List of U.S. states and territories by race/ethnicity|highest total number of Hispanics of any US state]], at over 15 million.

California has the [[List of U.S. states and territories by race/ethnicity|highest number and second highest percentage of Asian Americans by state]], with 15.5% of the population identifying as Asian alone, and 18.4% identifying as Asian alone or in combination.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Census profile: California |url=https://censusreporter.org/profiles/04000US06-california/ |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=Census Reporter |language=en}}</ref> Only [[Hawaii#Demographics|Hawaii]] has a higher Asian American percentage than California. The highest percent of Asians in California is found in the [[San Francisco Bay Area|San Francisco Bay area]], where they make up 30% of the total population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02011 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02011&geo_ids=33000US488&primary_geo_id=33000US488 |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref>  

The largest named ancestries in California are [[Mexican Americans|Mexican]] (32.5%), [[German Americans|German]] (6.5%), [[British Americans|British]] (6.0%), [[Irish Americans|Irish]] (5.6%), [[Chinese Americans|Chinese]] (4.8%), and [[Filipino Americans|Filipino]] (4.4%).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B03001 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B03001&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06 |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B04006 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B04006&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06 |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02018 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02018&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-05 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> There are over 65 other ethnicities with sizable populations in California, including [[Arabs]], [[Albanians]], [[Armenian Americans|Armenians]], [[Australians]], [[Brazilians]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/brazilian-immigrants-united-states-2017|title=Brazilian Immigrants in the United States|date=August 28, 2019 }}</ref> [[Canadians]], [[Croatian Americans|Croatians]], [[Guatemalan Americans|Guatemalans]], [[Haitians]], [[Persians|Iranians/Persians]], [[Italian Americans|Italians]], [[Japanese Americans|Japanese]], [[Korean Americans|Koreans]], [[Salvadoran Americans|Salvadorans]], [[Somalis]], and [[Vietnamese Americans|Vietnamese]]. Both the Los Angeles and San Francisco metro areas have large numbers of residents with [[African Americans|African-American]], [[British people|British]], [[Central America|Central American]], [[Chinese Americans|Chinese]], [[Filipino Americans|Filipino]], [[French people|French]], [[Italians|Italian]], Iranian/Persian,<ref name="auto1">{{cite web |url=http://italoamericano.org/story/2014-6-24/Italian-Roots |title=Archived copy |website=italoamericano.org |access-date=15 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150327062645/http://italoamericano.org/story/2014-6-24/Italian-Roots |archive-date=27 March 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Germans|German]], [[Mexican Americans|Mexican]], [[Russians|Russian]], [[Scandinavia]]n, and [[Vietnamese Americans|Vietnamese]] ancestry.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Immigrants in California|url=https://www.ppic.org/publication/immigrants-in-california/|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Public Policy Institute of California|language=en-US}}</ref>

California has the [[List of U.S. states and territories by race/ethnicity|largest total population of non-Hispanic white Americans in the US]], totaling over 13.7 million as of the 2020 census, although the share of non-Hispanic whites as a percent of the population, at 34.7%, is the second lowest in the country, after Hawaii. The state has the fifth largest population of African Americans in the US, an estimated 2.1 million residents. California's Asian population is estimated at 7.0 million, almost 30% of the nation's estimated 24 million Asian Americans. California's Native American population of 156,085 is the 4th-largest of any state, behind Oklahoma, Arizona, and New Mexico.<ref name=2020CensusP2/>

Since the [[2000 United States census|2000 US census]], California has been known as the second state in US history (after Hawaii since its statehood in 1959) to become [[Majority minority in the United States|majority minority]] (it has since been joined by Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Maryland, and Georgia), and since 2014, the second state, after [[New Mexico]], to have a Latino plurality (of any race). Some projections have showed the possibility of Latinos becoming a majority in the mid 21st century.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article25940218.html|title=Census: Hispanics overtake Whites to become California's largest ethnic group|first1=Phillip|last1=Reese|first2=Stephen|last2=Magagnini|date=June 30, 2015|newspaper=The Sacramento Bee|access-date=October 7, 2017}}</ref>

===2022 American Community Survey one-year estimates===
{| class="cx-linter-tag"
| valign="top" |
{{Pie chart
 | thumb   = left
 | caption = Racial Makeup of California (2022)<ref name=California-B03002-2022>{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=B03002&g=040XX00US06&y=2022&tid=ACSDT5Y2022.B03002&hidePreview=true|title=B03002 HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE - California - 2022 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates|date=July 1, 2022|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=May 28, 2021}}</ref>
 | label1 = White alone
 | value1 = 38.88 | color2=#36A
 | label2 = Black alone
 | value2 = 5.44 | color1=#6A5
 | label3 = Native American alone
 | value3 = 1.29 | color3=#FF33AC
 | label4 = Asian alone
 | value4 = 15.51 | color4=#1A9
 | label5 = Pacific Islander alone
 | value5 = 0.41 | color5=#E17720
 | label6 = Some other race
 | value6 = 19.47 | color6=#F0FF00
 | label7 = Multiracial
 | value7 = 19.00 | color7=#64ECDF
 }}
| valign="top" |
{{Pie chart
 | thumb   = right
 | caption = Racial Makeup of California treating Hispanics as a Racial Category (2022)<ref name=California-B03002-2022/><br />''NH=Non-Hispanic''
 | label1 = White NH
 | value1 = 33.72 | color2=#36A
 | label2 = Black NH
 | value2 = 5.19 | color1=#6A5
 | label3 = Native American NH
 | value3 = 0.26 | color3=#FF33AC
 | label4 = Asian NH
 | value4 = 15.27 | color4=#1A9
 | label5 = Pacific Islander NH
 | value5 = 0.35 | color5=#E17720
 | label6 = Other race NH
 | value6 = 0.64 | color6=#F0FF00
 | label7 = Multiracial NH
 | value7 = 4.26 | color7=#64ECDF
 | label8 = Hispanic Any Race
 | value8 = 40.31 | color8=#9400D3
 }}
| valign="top" |
{{Pie chart
 | thumb   =left
 | caption = Racial Makeup of Hispanics in California (2022)<ref name=California-B03002-2022/>
 | label1 = White alone
 | value1 = 12.81 | color2=#36A
 | label2 = Black alone
 | value2 = 0.61 | color1=#6A5
 | label3 = Native American alone
 | value3 = 2.55 | color3=#FF33AC
 | label4 = Asian alone
 | value4 = 0.61 | color4=#1A9
 | label5 = Pacific Islander alone
 | value5 = 0.15 | color5=#E17720
 | label6 = Other race alone
 | value6 = 46.69 | color6=#F0FF00 
 | label7 = Multiracial
 | value7 = 36.57 | color7=#64ECDF
 }}
|}
[[File:Ancestry-california-by county-2000.png|thumb|Most common ancestry in each county in 2000]]

According to 2022 US Census Bureau one-year estimates, California's population by race (where Hispanics are allocated to the individual racial categories) was 38.9% [[White Americans|White]], 15.5% [[Asian Americans|Asian]], 19.5% Other Race, 5.4% Black or [[African Americans|African American]], 1.3% [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] or [[Alaskan Native]], 0.4% [[Pacific Islander Americans|Pacific Islander]], and 19.0% [[Multiracial Americans|Mixed race or Multiracial]].<ref name=California-B03002-2022/>

If Hispanics are treated as if a separate race and removed from the racial categories, the breakout is 33.7% Non-Hispanic White, 15.3% Non-Hispanic Asian, 0.6% Non-Hispanic Other Race, 5.2% Non-Hispanic Black, 0.3% Non-Hispanic Native American or Alaskan Native, 0.4% Non-Hispanic Pacific Islander, 4.1% Non-Hispanic Multiracial, and 40.3% [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic-Latino]] (of any race).<ref name=California-B03002-2022/>

Latinos in California primarily identify as Other Race (46.7%) or Multiracial (36.6%), making up the vast majority of individuals in the state who identify as 'some other race'. Smaller amounts of Hispanics identify as white (12.8%), American Indian and Alaskan Native (2.6%), Asian (0.6%), or Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (0.2%).<ref name=California-B03002-2022/> 
{{sort under}}
{| class="wikitable sortable sort-under-center collapsible"
!Racial or Ethnic  group 
!1850<ref name="census2">{{cite web |title=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 |url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0056/twps0056.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725044857/http://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0056/twps0056.html |archive-date=July 25, 2008 |access-date=August 2, 2014 |publisher=Census.gov}}</ref>
!1860<ref name="census2" />
!1870<ref name="census2" />
!1880<ref name="census2" />
!1890<ref name="census2" />
!1900<ref name="census2" />
!1910<ref name="census2" /><ref name=":72">{{Cite book |last1=Cobas |first1=José A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J4V7DwAAQBAJ&dq=Hispanic+and+Mexican+population+in+Arizona,+1880&pg=PT50 |title=Latino Peoples in the New America: Racialization and Resistance |last2=Feagin |first2=Joe R. |last3=Delgado |first3=Daniel J. |last4=Chávez |first4=Maria |date=2018-12-07 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-75363-3 |language=en}}</ref>
!1920<ref name="census2" /><ref name=":72" />
!1930<ref name="census2" /><ref name=":72" />
!1940<ref name="census2" /><ref name=":72" />
!1950<ref name="census2" /><ref name=":72" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Persons of Spanish Surname, 1950 |url=https://usa.ipums.org/usa/resources/voliii/pubdocs/1950/Population/41601756v4p3ch08.pdf |website=Census Bureau}}</ref>
!1960<ref name="census2" /><ref name=":72" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Persons of Spanish Surname, 1960 |url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1960/population-volume-2/41927938v2p1a-1ech04.pdf |website=US Census Bureau}}</ref>
!1970<ref name="census2" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Persons of Spanish Origin, 1970 Census |url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1970/pc-2-1c/42043782v2p1a1cch7.pdf |website=US Census Bureau}}</ref>
!1980<ref name="census2" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Persons of Spanish Origin by State: 1980 Supplementary Report |url=https://assets.nhgis.org/original-data/modern-census/1980PL_80-S1-7.pdf |website=US Census Bureau}}</ref>
!1990<ref name="census2" />
!2000
!2010<ref>{{cite web |author=2010 Census Data |title=2010 Census Data |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.2010.html |access-date=August 2, 2014 |publisher=Census.gov}}</ref>
!2020<ref>{{cite web |date=August 12, 2021 |title=Race and Ethnicity in the United States: 2010 Census and 2020 Census |url=https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/race-and-ethnicity-in-the-united-state-2010-and-2020-census.html |website=United States Census Bureau}}</ref>
|-
|[[White Americans|White]]
|99.0%
|85.0%
|89.1%
|88.7%
|91.6%
|94.5%
|95.0%
|95.3%
|95.3%
|95.5%
|93.7%
|92.0%
|89.0%
|76.2%
|69.0%
|59.5%
|57.6%
|41.2%
|-
|[[African Americans|Black]]
|1.0%
|1.1%
|0.8%
|0.7%
|0.9%
|0.7%
|0.9%
|1.1%
|1.4%
|1.8%
|4.4%
|5.6%
|7.0%
|7.7%
|7.4%
|6.7%
|6.2%
|5.7%
|-
|[[Asian Americans|Asian]]
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |9.2%
| rowspan="2" |8.8%
| rowspan="2" |8.7%
| rowspan="2" |6.1%
| rowspan="2" |3.8%
| rowspan="2" |3.4%
| rowspan="2" |3.1%
| rowspan="2" |3.0%
| rowspan="2" |2.4%
| rowspan="2" |1.7%
| rowspan="2" |2.0%
| rowspan="2" |2.8%
| rowspan="2" |5.3%
| rowspan="2" |9.6%
|10.9%
|13.0%
|15.5%
|-
|[[Pacific Islander Americans|Pacific Islander]]
|0.3%
|0.4%
|0.4%
|-
|[[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]]
|'''{{efn|Although Native Americans were not enumerated in the 1850 census, studies indicate that 150,000 Native Americans lived in the territory of California around 1850, making up a majority of the population at the time. However, this number would decline by over 80% in the following decade due to genocide, war, and diseases brought on by the population influx during the Gold Rush|name=}}'''
|4.7%'''{{efn|Only represents the off-reservation Indian population. The total number of Native Americans in California in 1860 is estimated at 30,000, making up nearly 10% of the total population.|name=}}'''
|1.3%'''{{efn|Only represents the off-reservation Indian population. The total number of Native Americans in California in 1870 is estimated at roughly 30,000, making up approximately 5% of the total population.|name=}}'''
|1.9%'''{{efn|Only represents the off-reservation Indian population. The total number of Native Americans in California in 1880 is estimated at 20,385, making up 2.4% of the total population.|name=}}'''
|1.4%'''{{efn|1890 was the first census year to include a count of the entire Native American population in the state, at 16,624, a nearly 90% decline from the estimated 150,000 Native Americans living in the state in 1850. |name=}}'''
|1.0%
|0.7%
|0.5%
|0.3%
|0.3%
|0.2%
|0.2%
|0.5%
|0.9%
|0.8%
|1.0%
|1.0%
|1.6%
|-
|[[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Other race]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|0.7%
|10.0%
|13.2%
|16.8%
|17.0%
|21.2%
|-
|[[Multiracial Americans|Multiracial]]
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|4.7%
|4.9%
|14.6%
|-
|'''Hispanic (of any race)'''
|'''–'''
|'''–'''
|'''–'''
|'''–'''
|'''–'''
|'''–'''
|'''2.1%'''{{efn|name=mexican|Estimate based only on population classified as 'Mexican'}}
|'''3.7%'''{{efn|name=mexican}}
|'''6.8%'''{{efn|Estimate based only on population classified as 'Mexican' in the 1930 census. Mexican was only counted as a separate race in 1930, with Mexicans being classified as white in later censuses from 1940-1970.|name=}}
|'''6.0%'''{{efn|Estimate based on "white persons of Spanish mother tongue." The vast majority of Hispanics in the US were classified as white in the 1940 Census. |name=}}
|'''7.2%'''{{efn|Estimate based on census report of "white persons of Spanish surname." The vast majority of Hispanics were classified as white in the 1950 census|name=}}
|'''9.1%'''{{efn|Estimate based on census report of "white persons of Spanish surname." The vast majority of Hispanics were classified as white in the 1960 census|name=}}
|'''13.7%'''{{efn|First census to include Hispanics of all races as a distinct category|name=}}
|'''19.2%'''
|'''25.8%'''
|'''32.4%'''
|'''37.6%'''
|'''39.4%'''
|-
|''[[Non-Hispanic whites|Non-Hispanic White]]''
|
|
|
|
|
|
|''92.9%''
|''91.6%''
|''88.5%''
|''89.5%''
|''86.5%''
|''82.9%''
|''77.5%''
|''66.7%''
|''57.2%''
|''46.7%''
|''40.1%''
|''34.7%''
|-
|''Black (NH)''
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|''6.8%''
|''7.5%''
|''7.0%''
|''6.4%''
|''5.8%''
|''5.4%''
|-
|''Asian (NH)''
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |–
| rowspan="2" |''2.7%''
| rowspan="2" |''5.0%''
| rowspan="2" |''9.1%''
|''10.8%''
|''12.8%''
|''15.2%''
|-
|''Pacific Islander (NH)''
|''0.3%''
|''0.4%''
|''0.4%''
|-
|''Native American (NH)''
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|''0.4%''
|''0.7%''
|''0.6%''
|''0.5%''
|''0.4%''
|''0.4%''
|-
|''Other (NH)''
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|''0.6%''
|''1.0%''
|''0.2%''
|''0.2%''
|''0.2%''
|''0.6%''
|-
|''Multiracial (NH)''
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|–
|''2.7%''
|''2.6%''
|''4.1%''
|-
|'''Total Population'''
|92,597'''{{efn|This number does not include the Indigenous population at the time. Studies indicate that a further 150,000 Native Americans lived in the territory of California around 1850, with this number declining by over 80% in the following decade. |name=}}'''
|379,994
|560,247
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|}

===White Americans===
{{Main|White Americans|White Americans in California}}

====European Americans====
{{Main|European Americans}}
[[File:052607-008-3StP-facing-SMP.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Pedestrians walking on the [[Third Street Promenade]] in Santa Monica.]]

California has the largest population of [[European Americans]] of any state, with around 15 million people identifying as white alone, and 13 million as non-Hispanic white.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B03002 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B03002&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> Excluding the ~1 million white Californians who identify as Iranian/Persian, Arab, or Armenian,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B04006 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B04006&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-06-01 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> the population of European descent (alone) in the state can be estimated at around 14 million.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02001 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02001&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-06-01 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> The largest European ancestries reported in California are German, English, and Irish, as of 2023. The state is home to significant populations of numerous other European ethnic groups. In 2000, California had more [[Bulgarian Americans]], [[Romanian Americans]] and [[Hungarian Americans]] than any other US state. Los Angeles and San Francisco have large [[Russian Americans|Russian American]] and [[Ukrainian Americans|Ukrainian American]] populations; and a long history of [[German Americans|German]], [[Irish Americans|Irish]], [[Italian Americans|Italian]], [[British Americans|British]], and [[Polish Americans|Polish]] communities established by immigrants in the late 19th century. There are also many [[English Americans]], [[Irish Americans]], and [[French Americans]] whose ancestors were the original 49ers, also known as the [[California gold rush]] immigrants.

California has over one million residents each who can trace their ancestry directly to [[Spanish Americans|Spain]] or [[Portuguese Americans|Portugal]], not including over ten million more with indirect Spanish or Portuguese roots from [[Latin America]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Portuguese in California, Regional Oral History Office|url=https://bancroft.berkeley.edu/ROHO/projects/portuguese/|access-date=2021-09-08|website=bancroft.berkeley.edu}}</ref>  Significant Portuguese and Spanish communities can be found along coastal parts of the state such as San Diego, [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]], [[Camarillo, California|Camarillo]], [[Santa Clara Valley]] (including [[Cupertino, California|Cupertino]], [[Gilroy, California|Gilroy]] and [[San Jose, California|San Jose]]), [[Salinas Valley]], [[Santa Maria Valley]], and [[San Joaquin Valley]]. A small wave of [[Danish Americans]], [[Dutch Americans]] and [[Swedish Americans]] immigrants founded towns like [[Lathrop, California|Lathrop]] near Stockton, [[Artesia, California|Artesia]] near Los Angeles, [[Kingsburg, California|Kingsburg]] south of Fresno, [[Solvang, California|Solvang]] north of Santa Barbara in the late 1800s and the private community of [[Sveadal]] located 15 miles south of [[San Jose, California|San Jose]] and populated entirely by members of the Swedish American Patriotic League.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sveadal.org/SAPL/Welcome.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515093203/http://www.sveadal.org/SAPL/Welcome.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 15, 2009|title=the Swedish American Patriotic league|date=May 15, 2009|access-date=November 7, 2017}}</ref> Small colonies of early 19th-century [[Russia]]n settlement under the [[Russian American Company]] are in [[Fort Ross, California|Fort Ross]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fortross.org/|title=Fort Ross, California|website=Fortross.org|access-date=October 7, 2017}}</ref> [[Calistoga, California|Calistoga]] and the [[Russian River (California)|Russian River]] Valley in [[Sonoma County, California|Sonoma]] and [[Napa County, California|Napa]] counties. California also has the third largest [[Greek Americans|Greek American]] population in the United States, behind [[New York (State)|New York]] and [[Massachusetts]]. The Los Angeles Harbor area of [[San Pedro, California|San Pedro]] has a sizeable [[Croatian Americans|Croatian American]] population. Small [[Amish]]/[[Mennonites|Mennonite]] colonies exist in an area bordered by the towns Oakdale, Riverbank and Ripon near [[Modesto, California|Modesto]] and in Reedley, Sanger and Orange Cove near Fresno in the [[San Joaquin Valley]]; and in the outer [[Salinas Valley]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://amishamerica.com/california-amish-community/|title=A California Amish Community|website=amishamerica.com|date=May 23, 2007 |access-date=October 7, 2017}}</ref>

The most important Italian community in California is in [[North Beach, San Francisco|North Beach District]] at [[San Francisco]]. 60% of Italian Americans in California are from northern Italy.<ref name="bancroft.berkeley.edu">{{cite web|url=https://bancroft.berkeley.edu/collections/italianamericans/|title=Italian Americans in California: Introduction|access-date=November 22, 2020|archive-date=October 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019172206/https://bancroft.berkeley.edu/collections/italianamericans/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Others numerous groups are from Tuscany and Sicily.<ref name="bancroft.berkeley.edu"/>
Many Italians also live in [[San Diego]], with [[Little Italy (San Diego)|Little Italy]] having San Diego's largest Italian population.

There is also a large [[Dutch Americans|Dutch]] community in California.<ref>{{cite book|title=Culturally Diverse Counseling: Theory and Practice|page=370}}</ref> The Dutch settled in Redlands, Ontario, Ripon, and Bellflower.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=GthAd5yLMjEC&dq=dutch+american+community+in+california&pg=PA74|title= The Dutch American Identity: Staging Memory and Ethnicity in Community Celebrations|isbn= 9781604975659|last1= Schoone-Jongen|first1= Terence|year= 2008|publisher= Cambria Press}}</ref>

====Middle Eastern Americans====
{{Main|Middle Eastern Americans}}

California has the largest populations of [[Arab Americans|Arab-Americans]], [[Iranian Americans]], and [[Armenian Americans|Armenian-Americans]] in the US, with these groups collectively numbering over 1 million in the state.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B03002 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B03002&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref>

[[Little Arabia]] is an [[ethnic enclave]] in [[Orange County, California]],<ref>Brown, Aldrin (25 October 2001) "Anaheim's Muslim community sees spike in suspected hate crimes" ''The Orange County Register'' p. 1</ref> the center for Orange County's [[Arab Americans]], who number more than 24,000 (as of 2000).<ref>Flaccus, Gillian (10 October 2006) "Anaheim city council race heats up as GOP leader accuses candidate of pro-Hezbollah activities" from ''The Associated Press''</ref> It is sometimes referred to as "Little Gaza" which was a play on the original designation of this area as the "Garza Island."<ref>Associated Press (13 September 2004) "News briefs from around Southern California: Anaheim City Officials are Investigating Complaints"</ref><ref name="Grub">Arellano, Gustavo (2 November 2006) "Grub Guide" ''OC Weekly'' (Anaheim, CA)</ref> Little Arabia grew significantly in the 1990s with the arrival of immigrants from the [[Middle East]], and is the home to thousands of Arab Americans predominantly hailing from Egypt, Syria, Palestine, and Yemen.<ref>Carter, Chelsea J. (16 March 2002) "Arabs, Jews in U.S. express frustration over conflict" ''The New Mexican'' (Santa Fe, NM) p. D-1, D-3, from ''The Associated Press''</ref>

More than 500,000 [[Iranian Americans]] live throughout Southern California, including about 20% of the population of [[Beverly Hills, California|Beverly Hills]].<ref name="Living in Tehrangeles">{{cite web| url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5459468 | title=Living in Tehrangeles: L.A.'s Iranian Community | first=Renee | last=Montagne|publisher=[[National Public Radio]] | date=2006-06-08|access-date=2006-06-28}}</ref> Iranian American communities also flourish in the [[San Fernando Valley]], Orange County, San Diego, and the San Joaquin Valley. The majority of Iranian Americans immigrated after the [[Pahlavi dynasty]] was [[Iranian Revolution|overthrown in 1979]].

California is also home to many [[Armenian Americans]]; the highest concentration of Americans of Armenian descent is in [[Greater Los Angeles]], where 166,498 people have identified themselves as Armenian in the 2000 US census, comprising over 40% of the 385,488 people who identified Armenian origins in the US at the time. Many of these live in [[Glendale, California|Glendale]] north of Los Angeles, as well as a large community in [[Fresno, California|Fresno]]. The size of the Armenian American population is disputed, however. According to a 1988 news article, California had about 500,000 ethnic Armenians with over half of them living in Greater Los Angeles.<ref>"[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=LA&p_theme=la&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EF5191E679C4A7D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM ARMENIAN PONTIFF BEGINS VISIT TO SOUTHLAND WITH ENCINO STOP]." ''[[Los Angeles Daily News]]''. June 17, 1988. Article ID 8801240266. "About 500000 Armenians live in California – more than half of them in the Los Angeles area."</ref>

More than 1,300,000 [[American Jews|Jewish Americans]] live in California, the majority of whom are [[Ashkenazi Jews]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/california-jewish-history|title=California Jewish History}}</ref> In addition, there are more than 250,000 [[Israeli Americans]] live in the [[Los Angeles Metropolitan Area|Los Angeles]] area, according to the [[Israeli American Council]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Handwerker |first1=Haim |title=How Many Israelis Live in America, Anyway |url=https://www.haaretz.com/jewish/.premium-how-many-israelis-live-in-america-anyway-1.5252590 |access-date=6 October 2020 |agency=Ha'aretz}}</ref> There are also significant Israeli American populations in the [[San Francisco Bay Area|Bay Area]], [[San Francisco]], and [[San Jose, California|San Jose]] areas of Northern California. The largest [[Karaite Judaism|Karaite Jewish]] population outside of [[Karaite Judaism|Israel]] exists in the [[Bay Area]], consisting of several hundreds descendants of refugees from the [[History of the Jews in Egypt|Egyptian Karaite]] community, as well as some recent converts.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Karaite Jews in Egypt, Israel, and the San Francisco Bay Area|journal=Stanford University|url=https://library.stanford.edu/spc/exhibitspublications/past-exhibits/karaite-jews-egypt-israel-and-san-francisco-bay-area |access-date=6 October 2020}}</ref> Their community is centered around the only Karaite synagogue outside the Middle East, [[Congregation B'nai Israel (Daly City, California)|Congregation B'nai Israel]], located in [[Daly City]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Near San Francisco, Karaite Jews keep an ancient movement alive|url=https://www.jta.org/2017/02/23/united-states/near-san-francisco-karaite-jews-keep-an-ancient-movement-alive/amp|access-date=6 October 2020|agency=Jewish Telegraphic Agency|publisher=JTA|archive-date=October 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201015094209/https://www.jta.org/2017/02/23/united-states/near-san-francisco-karaite-jews-keep-an-ancient-movement-alive/amp|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Moroccan Jewish community in California is one of the largest in North America, approximately 10,000 [[Moroccan Jews]] reside in Greater Los Angeles, mostly in [[Pico-Robertson]], [[North Hollywood]], and [[Beverly Hills]]. Many are the descendants of community members who first emigrated to the United States in the aftermath of [[World War II]]. Many others came later in the 20th century from Israel, and beginning in the early 21st century from France due to increasing [[Antisemitism in France|antisemitism]] there.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Boum |first1=Aomar |title=The Mellahs of Los Angeles: A Moroccan Jewish Community in an American Urban Space |url=http://perspectives.ajsnet.org/migration-issue/the-mellahs-of-los-angeles-a-moroccan-jewish-community-in-an-american-urban-space/ |access-date=6 October 2020 |agency=AJS}}</ref> The community has their own synagogues as well as a [[Jewish Community Center|community center]].

Over 50,000 [[Afghan Americans]] are concentrated in the [[East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area)|East Bay]] primarily in [[Alameda County, California|Alameda County]] and its communities of [[Fremont, California|Fremont]] and [[Hayward, California|Hayward]]; Afghans also live throughout the state (esp. Orange and [[Ventura County, California|Ventura Counties]]).

There is also a large population of [[Assyrian people|Assyrian]] descent living in the Central Valley, with large communities in [[Modesto, California|Modesto]], [[Ceres, California|Ceres]], and [[Turlock, California|Turlock]], as well as throughout the Central Coast and the California Desert (i.e. the [[Coachella Valley|Coachella]] and [[Imperial Valley]]s). San Diego has one of the largest concentrations of Chaldean-Assyrian immigrants in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://chaldeanchamber.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=35|title=Chaldean Chamber of Commerce|website=chaldeanchamber.com|access-date=October 7, 2017|archive-date=August 7, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070807035718/http://chaldeanchamber.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=35|url-status=dead}}</ref>

About an estimated 3,000 [[Moroccan Americans]] are living in Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Santa Ana.<ref>{{citation|title=The Moroccan Diaspora in the United States|url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/publications/RAD-Morocco.pdf|access-date=4 July 2021}}</ref>

[[Turkish Americans]] and [[Azerbaijani Americans]] form moderately-sized communities in both Los Angeles and San Francisco. The state also has over 2,000 [[Circassian Americans]] with a little community in [[Anaheim]].

===African Americans===
{{Main|African Americans|African Americans in California}}

California has 2.3 million [[African Americans]] as of 2010, the largest population of black or African Americans of the Western US states,<ref name="censusviewer">{{Cite web|title=California QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau|publisher=United States Census Bureau|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/RHI705210/06|access-date=July 16, 2016}}</ref> and the 5th largest black population in the United States.

African Americans are concentrated in Greater Los Angeles, the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, and Sacramento region.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ppic.org/blog/californias-african-american-community/#:~:text=Today%2C%20California's%20Black%20community%20is,Francisco%20Bay%20Area%2C%20and%20Sacramento.|title=California's African American Community}}</ref>

Most African Americans in California have origins from Southern states like [[Louisiana]], [[Texas]], [[Arkansas]], and [[Oklahoma]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=COVwxEal8VgC&dq=african+americans+in+california+came+from+the+south+louisiana+arkansas&pg=PA76 Keeping a Family Legacy Alive: Unforgotten African Americans]</ref>

California has a number of [[West Indian]] ([[Afro-Caribbean American]]) and African immigrants from countries such as [[Cape Verde]], [[Eritrea]], [[Ethiopia]], [[Ghana]], [[Kenya]], [[Nigeria]], [[Senegal]], [[Somalia]], [[South Africa]], [[Tanzania]], and [[Yemen]] across from the Horn of Africa. Immigrants from these countries have established communities in a number of cities in the state, such as [[Little Ethiopia, Los Angeles|Little Ethiopia]] in [[West Los Angeles]]. In addition to the Ethiopian community in [[Los Angeles]], there is a significant Ethiopian population in [[Oakland]]/[[Berkeley, California|Berkeley]]. [[Nuer people|Nuer]] refugees from [[South Sudan]] have migrated to the [[Sacramento]] area. There are [[Cape Verde]]an communities in [[Solano County, California|Solano County]], the [[Santa Clara Valley]], and the [[San Diego]] area. As of 2019, there are 13,061 [[Jamaicans]] in the state.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/data/state-profiles/state/demographics/CA|title=State Demographics Data - CA|website=migrationpolicy.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2008/03/31/jamaican-culture-making-presence-felt/|title=Jamaican culture making presence felt|date=March 31, 2008}}</ref>

===Native Americans===
{{Main|Native Americans in the United States|Indigenous peoples of California}}

As of 2010, California's [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] population of 362,801 was the most of any state.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2013/12/california-has-nations-largest-native-american-population.html |author= Capitol Alert |publisher=Sacramento Bee |title=Capitol Alert: California has nation's largest Native American population | date= Dec 23, 2013| access-date=February 4, 2015}}</ref> It also has the [[List of federally recognized tribes by state#California|most Native American tribes]], indigenous to the state or not. Many [[Indigenous peoples of California|Californian Indian]] tribes [[California Genocide|became extinct]] in the late 19th century, while most of them have been strongly reduced in population, but there are currently 109 federally recognized tribes indigenous to California, more than any other state.<ref>{{Cite web |title=California Tribal Communities {{!}} Judicial Branch of California |url=https://courts.ca.gov/programs-initiatives/tribalstate-programs/california-tribal-communities#:~:text=There%20are%20currently%20109%20federally,100%20separate%20reservations%20or%20Rancherias. |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=courts.ca.gov}}</ref> Census figures from 2010 place the population of Indigenous Californian tribes collectively at around ~100,000, significantly less than their estimated population of over 300,000 prior to colonization.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes in the United States and Puerto Rico: 2010 (CPH-T-6) |url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/dec/cph-series/cph-t/cph-t-6.html |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=Census.gov |language=en}}</ref> The US census also includes ''Latin American Indians'', especially immigrants who belonged to Indigenous ethnic groups from Mexico, Central America, and South America, as Native Americans. This group makes up the majority of Native Americans in California as of 2023, with over 80% of the state’s 546,942 Native Americans identifying as Hispanic.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B03002 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B03002&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> 

The [[Cherokee Nation]] is the largest tribe in the state with a population of 28,000 in 2025, <ref>https://www.cherokeephoenix.org/news/cherokee-nation-unveils-new-demographic-maps-reflecting-tribal-citizenship-changes/article_07233cac-74ff-11ef-899f-03aeee096136.html</ref> although the number self identified [[Cherokee]] descendants is estimated at 110,000 in the earlier census taken in 2010, and any persons residing in California with any degree of Cherokee descent is estimated at up to 300,000. Their tribal nation is located in the northeast part of [[Oklahoma]], but they live across the state and neighboring states. Cherokees in California are often descendants of [[Dust Bowl]] refugees in the 1930s and 1940s, who migrated from Oklahoma to the state's farming counties and urban areas for jobs. The largest urban American Indian communities are found in Los Angeles/Long Beach, San Francisco/Oakland, Sacramento, and San Diego areas.<ref>{{cite web|title=About Urban Indians {{!}} CCUIH|url=https://ccuih.org/about/about-urban-indians/|access-date=2021-09-08|language=en-US}}</ref>

California also has significant populations of the [[Apache]], [[Chickasaw]], [[Choctaw]], [[Muscogee]], [[Seminole]], [[Tlingit]], [[Hopi]], [[Zuni people|Zuni]], [[Navajo]], [[Blackfoot Confederacy|Blackfeet]], [[Shoshone]], [[Nez Perce]], [[Northern Paiute people|Paiute]], [[Puebloans|Pueblo]], and [[Tohono Oʼodham]], in addition to [[Indigenous peoples of California|Indigenous Californian]] tribes such as the [[Cahuilla]], [[Chumash people|Chumash]], [[Karuk]], [[Yurok]], and [[Yokuts]] tribes. The Cahuilla in the Coachella Valley have profited from real estate land leases, and much of [[Indio, California|Indio]] and [[Palm Springs, California|Palm Springs]] are tribal-owned lands under legal tribal jurisdiction.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archive.desertsun.com/article/20131012/NEWS01/310120044/New-tribal-land-tax-law-causing-alarm-Palm-Springs |last=Newkirk |first=Barrett |title=New tribal land tax law causing alarm in Palm Springs |publisher=The Desert Sun |date=October 13, 2013 |access-date=February 8, 2015 |archive-date=February 9, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150209033246/http://archive.desertsun.com/article/20131012/NEWS01/310120044/New-tribal-land-tax-law-causing-alarm-Palm-Springs |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Asian Americans===
{{Main|Asian Americans|Asian Americans in California}}

California has the largest Asian population in the United States, with Asian Americans numbering 7,176,032 in the state, making up 18.4% of the total population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02011 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02011&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06 |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> The state has a long history of established [[East Asia|East]], [[South Asian Americans|South]], and [[Southeast Asia|Southeast]] [[Asian Americans|Asian American]] communities, including Chinese since the 1850s, Japanese since the 1880s, Indians since the 1890s, and Filipinos for over a century since 1900. A large wave of Asian immigration since 1965, following the [[Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965]] which ended the [[Chinese Exclusion Act|ban on Asian immigration]], brought in more Chinese and Filipinos, along with many Koreans and Southeast Asians after the [[Vietnam War]] ended in the late 1970s. South Asians are currently the fastest-growing group of Asians in the state.

As of the [[2010 United States census|2010 census]] there were a total of 17,941,286 respondents in the United States who claimed to be [[Asian American]] and Asian.<ref name="CAAsian2010">{{cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_SF1_PCT7&prodType=table#tab_map |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212212410/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_SF1_PCT7&prodType=table%23tab_map |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 February 2020 |title=ASIAN ALONE OR IN COMBINATION WITH ONE OR MORE OTHER RACES, AND WITH ONE OR MORE ASIAN CATEGORIES FOR SELECTED GROUPS |work=2010 Census |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=5 January 2012}}</ref> Out of these respondents in the United States,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-02.pdf |title=Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin: 2010 |author=Karen R. Humes |author2=Nicholas A. Jones |author3=Roberto R. Ramirez  |date=March 2011 |work=United States Census Bureau |publisher=United States Department of Commerce |access-date=5 January 2012}}</ref> 30.9% lived in California, with 5,556,592 Asian Americans being counted by the 2010 census.<ref name="FactFinder2-28JAN2013">{{cite web |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_SF2_SF2DP1&prodType=table |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212212931/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_SF2_SF2DP1&prodType=table |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 February 2020 |title=DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 (2010 Census Summary File 2) |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |year=2010 |work=2010 Census |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=28 January 2013}}</ref> This is a 1.5 million growth in population from the 2000 census, making Asian Americans 14.9 percent of the state's population in 2010.<ref>{{cite news |title=California has by far nation's largest Asian-American population |author=Dan Walters |url=http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2012/03/california-has-by-far-nations-largest-asian-american-population.html |newspaper=Sacramento Bee |date=12 March 2012 |access-date=28 January 2013}}</ref> Out of those almost 5.6 million Asian Americans in California there were 1,474,707 [[Filipino Americans|Filipinos]], 1,349,111 [[Chinese Americans|Chinese]], 647,589 [[Vietnamese Americans|Vietnamese]], 590,445 [[Indian Americans|Indians]], 505,225 [[Korean Americans|Koreans]], 428,140 [[Japanese Americans|Japanese]], 109,928 [[Taiwanese Americans|Taiwanese]], 102,317 [[Cambodian Americans|Cambodians]], 91,224 [[Hmong Americans|Hmong]], 69,303 [[Laotian Americans|Laotians]], 67,707 [[Thai Americans|Thais]], 53,474 [[Pakistani Americans|Pakistanis]], 39,506 Borneans, Sumatrans, and [[Indonesian Americans|Indonesians]], 17,978 [[Burmese Americans|Burmese]], 11,929 [[Sri Lankan Americans|Sri Lankans]], 10,494 [[Bangladeshi Americans|Bangladeshis]], 6,231 [[Nepalese Americans|Nepalese]], 5,595 [[Malaysian Americans|Malaysians]], 4,993 [[Mongolian Americans|Mongolians]], 1,513 [[Singaporean Americans|Singaporeans]], 1,377 [[Ryukyuan Americans|Ryukyuans]], and 750 [[Bhutanese Americans|Bhutanese]].<ref name="FactFinder2-28JAN2013" />

====East Asian Americans====
{{Main|East Asian Americans}}

Chinese Americans are numerous in [[San Francisco]], Oakland, the [[East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area)|East Bay]], [[South Bay (San Jose, California)|South Bay]], the [[Central Coast (California)|Central Coast of California]], [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]], [[San Diego]], and the [[San Gabriel Valley]] region of Los Angeles County. The San Francisco Bay Area has a greater concentration of Cantonese-speaking Chinese than any other region in the United States. The Mexican border community of [[Calexico, California]] in addition to [[Mexicali, Baja California|Mexicali]] has large numbers of Chinese Mexican Americans, that is, Mexican Americans of Chinese ancestry. Smaller Chinese communities can also be found in [[San Jacinto, California|San Jacinto Valley]], [[Lake Elsinore, California|Lake Elsinore]], and [[Victorville, California|Victorville]].

Southern California has perhaps the largest Taiwan-born Chinese American community in the US, particularly in the San Gabriel Valley (i.e. [[Walnut, California|Walnut]] and [[Diamond Bar, California|Diamond Bar]]), [[Buena Park, California|Buena Park]], [[Cerritos, California|Cerritos]], [[West Covina, California|West Covina]], [[Irvine, California|Irvine]], communities in the [[South Bay, Los Angeles]] and southern Orange County. Many minority groups from China also live in California, for example, there are [[Tibetan Americans|Tibetan]] and [[Mongolian Americans|Mongolian]] Americans concentrated in San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Orange County, and the Los Angeles/Long Beach area.

Large Korean American communities exist in the [[Koreatown, Los Angeles, California|Koreatown]] area of Los Angeles, the eastern [[San Gabriel Valley]], the [[San Fernando Valley]], Cerritos/Long Beach, [[South Bay, Los Angeles]], northern Orange County and [[San Diego]] area. There is another large Korean American population in the San Francisco Bay Area, and Koreans are growing in number in the suburban [[Inland Empire, California|Inland Empire]] region, in cities such as [[Chino Hills, California|Chino Hills]], [[Corona, California|Corona]], [[Desert Hot Springs, California|Desert Hot Springs]], and [[Loma Linda, California|Loma Linda]] south of [[San Bernardino]]. Since 1990, the Korean American and African American populations relocated westward and northward in the Los Angeles area.

The [[South Bay, Los Angeles|South Bay]] area and [[Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, California|Little Tokyo]] have a large Japanese American community. Japanese Americans, however, are also concentrated in [[San Francisco]] and across the Bay Area, [[San Jose, California|San Jose]], the [[Salinas Valley]] and [[Santa Cruz County, California|Santa Cruz County]]; and smaller communities in the [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]], [[Fresno, California|Fresno]], [[Bakersfield, California|Bakersfield]], [[Anaheim, California|Anaheim]], [[San Diego]], [[San Bernardino, California|San Bernardino]], [[Santa Barbara, California|Santa Barbara]], and [[Stockton, California|Stockton]] areas. Despite the presence of Japanese goods stores, media outlets and restaurants in the state, most "Little Tokyos" and "Japantowns" were evacuated during the forced relocation of Japanese Americans during [[World War II]] (see [[Japanese American Internment]]). As a result, most Japanese Americans in urban areas do not reside in historical Japanese communities.

====South Asian Americans====
{{Main|South Asian Americans}}

California has the largest Indian American population in the US. Many live in the [[Los Angeles Metropolitan Area]], [[San Diego]], and the [[San Francisco Bay Area]]. The Los Angeles suburbs of [[Artesia, California|Artesia]] and [[Cerritos, California|Cerritos]] have large Indian American communities. [[San Jose, California|San Jose]], [[Fremont, California|Fremont]], and other [[Silicon Valley]] cities have many Indian Americans who are employed in the high-tech industry. Many Indian Americans are in [[California Central Valley|Central Valley]] cities such as Stockton, Bakersfield, Fresno, [[Yuba City, California|Yuba City]], and the [[Imperial Valley (California)|Imperial Valley]]. Most South Asians in California are Indian American, but there are also Pakistani Americans, Bangladeshi Americans, and Sri Lankan Americans (see [[Sinhalese people|Sinhalese]] and [[Tamil people|Tamil]]s) especially concentrated in the San Gabriel Valley ([[Covina, California|Covina Valley]]) of the Los Angeles area. California is home to the unique [[Punjabi Mexican Americans|Punjabi Mexican American]] community, mostly centered around Yuba City.

====Southeast Asian Americans====
{{Main|Southeast Asian Americans}}

California has the largest American population of Southeast Asians, concentrated in the Los Angeles-Long Beach, Sacramento, and Fresno areas. This includes the [[Hmong people|Hmong]] and Vietnamese, including [[Hoa people|Chinese Vietnamese]]. [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]] has one of the largest Cambodian American communities in the United States. The neighboring cities of [[Westminster, California|Westminster]] and [[Garden Grove, California|Garden Grove]] have the largest Vietnamese American community outside of Vietnam and are often dubbed "[[Little Saigon]]". Vietnamese and Cambodian immigrants also settled in the San Francisco Bay Area, especially San Jose, [[Santa Clara, California|Santa Clara]] and [[Sunnyvale, California|Sunnyvale]], as well across the [[San Joaquin Valley]] and in [[San Diego]].

Filipino Americans are particularly numerous in [[Los Angeles]], [[Sacramento]], [[San Francisco]], [[San Diego]], [[San Mateo County, California|San Mateo]], and [[Solano County, California|Solano]] counties, and in southern California communities such as [[Artesia, California|Artesia]], [[Baldwin Park, California|Baldwin Park]], [[Carson, California|Carson]], [[Cerritos, California|Cerritos]], [[Covina, California|Covina]], [[West Covina, California|West Covina]], and the [[Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, California|Eagle Rock]] district of Los Angeles. Around San Diego, many Filipinos live in the communities of [[Mira Mesa, California|Mira Mesa]], [[National City, California|National City]], and [[Chula Vista, California|Chula Vista]]. [[Delano, California|Delano]] near Bakersfield, other towns in the [[San Joaquin Valley]], the [[Inland Empire, California|Inland Empire]] of [[Riverside, California|Riverside]]-[[San Bernardino, California|San Bernardino]], [[Coachella Valley]]-[[Imperial Valley]] region,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/23518756/the-desert-sun/|title=Clipped From The Desert Sun|newspaper=The Desert Sun |date=November 30, 2009|pages=1|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> [[Salinas, California|Salinas]], [[Stockton, California|Stockton]] and [[Lathrop, California|Lathrop]], and the [[Santa Maria, California|Santa Maria]]/[[San Luis Obispo]] area also have large Filipino American populations. [[Daly City]] south of [[San Francisco]] has a large Filipino population and is the largest percentage wise in the United States. As of the 1980s, Filipinos have been the largest population of Asians in California.<ref>{{cite news |last=Archibold |first=Randal C. |date=20 August 1993 |title=Political Awakening : Filipino-Americans Start to Reach for Reins of Power |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-08-20-me-25819-story.html |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |access-date=24 November 2014 }}</ref> Twenty percent of [[registered nurses]], in 2013, in California are Filipino.<ref>{{cite news |title=Telltale Signs: "Why are there so many Filipino nurses in the US?" |author=Rodel Rodis |url=http://www.asianweek.com/2013/05/14/telltale-signs-why-are-there-so-many-filipino-nurses-in-the-us/ |newspaper=Asian Week |date=14 May 2013 |access-date=19 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130608033815/http://www.asianweek.com/2013/05/14/telltale-signs-why-are-there-so-many-filipino-nurses-in-the-us/ |archive-date=June 8, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Over 6,000 Laotian Americans live in the [[Fresno, California|Fresno]] area, including an even larger Hmong American community, the second-largest of its kind. Other Hmong colonies in the [[Central Valley of California]] and Northern California developed since the end of the Vietnam War (1975–1979).

California also has a Thai American community of over 250,000, concentrated in Southern California, with small Thai and Southeast Asian communities in [[Perris, California|Perris]] and [[Banning, California|Banning]] in the Inland Empire region. Los Angeles has the largest Thai population outside of Thailand and is also home to the world's first [[Thai Town, Los Angeles|Thai Town]]. About 150,000 [[Overseas Indonesians|Indonesians]] live in Southern California, primarily the Los Angeles and San Diego areas.

===Pacific Islander Americans===
{{Main|Pacific Islander Americans}}

The state has 150,000 residents with [[Pacific Islander Americans|Pacific Islander]] ancestry. Most of them are 80,000 [[Native Hawaiians]] of measurable Polynesian ancestry; many also have Asian, European, or other ancestries. There are also 25,000 [[Samoan Americans]] originally from [[American Samoa]] or [[Western Samoa]].  Most live in [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]] and the Los Angeles suburbs of [[Carson, California|Carson]], Artesia, Cerritos, and [[Redondo Beach, California|Redondo Beach]], [[Oceanside, California|Oceanside]], and [[Upland, California|Upland]]. About 10,000 [[Chamorros]] from [[Guam]] and the [[Northern Mariana Islands]] live in Northern California, the largest Micronesian community in the mainland United States. An estimated 10,000 [[Tahitians]] from [[French Polynesia]] live in Southern California.

There are also many [[Palauan Americans]] in southern California, specifically in the San Diego area. This includes [[Vista, California|Vista]] which has a population of 677 Palauan Americans according to the 2010 US census. Members of the [[Palauans|Palauan]] community often also have [[Malaysia|Malay]], [[Indonesia]]n, [[Micronesians|Micronesian]], [[Melanesians|Melanesian]], [[Japanese people|Japanese]], and other East Asian ancestries. Many [[Chuukese people|Chuukese]] or Trukese live in San Diego.

===Americans of some other race===

====Hispanic and Latino Californians====
{{Main|Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanics and Latinos in California}}

[[Hispanics and Latinos in California|Latinos]], mainly [[Mexican Americans]], form the  largest collective ethnic group in California, at  15,760,437 or 40.4% of the total population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B03002 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B03002&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-06-02 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref> They make up major portions of the population of Southern California, especially in [[Los Angeles]], as well as the San Joaquin Valley. The city of Los Angeles is often said to have the largest Mexican community in the United States. Census records kept track of the growth since 1850, but Mexicans and Mexican Americans have lived in California since Spanish colonial times. However, the number and percentage population of Latinos living in California increased rapidly in the late 20th century, from only 9% in 1960 to over 40% in 2023.

The [[Imperial Valley (California)|Imperial Valley]] on the US-Mexican border is about 70–75% Latino; communities with many Latinos can also be found in [[Riverside County, California|Riverside County]], especially at its eastern end, and the [[Coachella Valley]]. The [[California Central Valley|Central Valley]] has many Mexican American migrant farm workers. Latinos are the majority in 11 counties: [[Colusa County, California#Demographics|Colusa]], [[Fresno County, California#Demographics|Fresno]], [[Imperial County, California#Demographics|Imperial]], [[Kern County, California#Demographics|Kern]], [[Kings County, California#Demographics|Kings]], [[Madera County, California#Demographics|Madera]], [[Merced County, California#Demographics|Merced]], [[Monterey County, California#Demographics|Monterey]], [[San Benito County, California#Demographics|San Benito]], [[San Bernardino County, California#Demographics|San Bernardino]], and [[Tulare County, California#Demographics|Tulare]] counties.

Latinos make up over 20% of the [[San Francisco Bay Area]]. Many live in [[San Mateo County, California|San Mateo]], [[Redwood City, California|Redwood City]], [[Alameda County, California|Alameda]], [[Contra Costa County, California|Contra Costa]], and [[Santa Clara County, California|Santa Clara]] counties, as well in [[San Francisco]]. The [[Napa Valley AVA|Napa]] and [[Salinas Valley]]s have predominantly Latino communities established by migrant farm workers. San Jose is about 30–35% Latino, the largest Latino community in northern California, while the [[Mission District, San Francisco]] and Lower/[[West Oakland]] have [[barrio]]s established by Mexican and Latin American immigrants. The Mexican American communities of [[East Los Angeles (region)|East Los Angeles]] and [[Logan Heights, San Diego]], as well the [[San Joaquin Valley]] are centers of historic [[Chicano]] and Latino cultures.

California  has the largest populations of Hispanics/Latinos in the country. Most of the state's Latinos have [[Mexicans|Mexican]] ancestry, having the largest Mexican population in the United States, making up about 31 percent of the state population. Despite the Hispanic population being mostly Mexican, California has a large and diverse population of other Hispanic groups, having the largest [[Central America]]n, especially [[Salvadoran Americans|Salvadoran]] population in the United States. [[Guatemalan Americans]] are spread out in Southern California after previously being centered in Los Angeles between 1970 and 2010. California also has many [[Cuban Americans]], [[Puerto Rican Americans]], [[Honduran Americans]], and [[Nicaraguan Americans]], along with people of [[Chilean Americans|Chilean]], [[Colombian Americans|Colombian]], [[Peruvian Americans|Peruvian]], and other [[South America]]n ancestry. Los Angeles has had the United States' largest Central American community, as well as the largest Mexican American community, since the 1910s. In fact, the 1900 census record finds 319 to 619 out of 100,000 residents in the city of Los Angeles were "Spanish" or "Mexican". Nearly 31% of Los Angeles itself is of Mexican descent, having the largest Mexican population of any city in the United States. 12,392 Belizeans also live in California.<ref name="auto2">{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=ancestry%20california&g=0400000US06&tid=ACSDT1Y2018.B04004&t=Ancestry&vintage=2018&hidePreview=true|title=Explore Census Data}}</ref>

In [[Mariposa County, California|Mariposa County]], there is a very small community of ''[[Californios]]'' or Spanish American people as they identify themselves, that dates back before the US annexation of California. [[Hornitos, California|Hornitos]] is home to an estimated 1,000 people and many have Spanish heritage. The community's "Spanish" Californio culture is closely linked with Mexico and other Latin American nations.

==Ancestries of Californians==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Ancestry
!Number in 2023 (Alone)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B04004 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B04004&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02015 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02015&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02020 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02020&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06 |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02016 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02016&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref>
!Number as of 2023 (Alone or in any combination)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B03001 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B03001&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06 |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B04006 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B04006&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02018 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02018&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Grid View: Table B02021 - Census Reporter |url=https://censusreporter.org/data/table/?table=B02021&geo_ids=04000US06&primary_geo_id=04000US06#valueType%7Cestimate |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=censusreporter.org}}</ref>
!% Total
|-
|[[Mexican Americans|Mexican]]
|—
|12,651,958
|32.5%
|-
|[[African Americans|Black or African American]]
<small>(Including Afro-Caribbean and sub-Saharan African</small>
|2,103,789
|2,813,880
|7.2%
|-
|[[German Americans|German]]
|620,921
|2,535,439
|6.5%
|-
|[[English Americans|English]]
|686,470
|2,332,372
|6.0%
|-
|[[Irish Americans|Irish]]
|536,672
|2,176,582
|5.6%
|-
|[[Chinese Americans|Chinese]]
<small>(</small><small>Not including Taiwanese)</small>
|1,535,224
|1,881,140
|4.8%
|-
|[[Filipino Americans|Filipino]]
|1,301,440
|1,717,654
|4.4%
|-
|[[Italian Americans|Italian]]
|407,677
|1,268,906
|3.3%
|-
|[[American ancestry|American]]
<small>(</small><small>Mostly [[Old Stock Americans|old-stock]] white Americans of British descent)</small>
|730,918
|1,104,076
|2.8%
|-
|[[Indian Americans|Indian]]
|924,630
|998,170
|2.5%
|-
|[[Vietnamese Americans|Vietnamese]]
|688,048
|835,275
|2.1%
|-
|[[Salvadoran Americans|Salvadoran]]
|—
|779,779
|2.0%
|-
|Broadly "[[European Americans|European]]"
<small>(No country specified)</small>
|402,709
|569,123
|1.5%
|-
|[[Korean Americans|Korean]]
|472,787
|564,443
|1.4%
|-
|[[Guatemalan Americans|Guatemalan]]
|—
|541,911
|1.4%
|-
|[[French Americans|French]]
<small>(Not including French Canadian)</small>
|88,705
|492,485
|1.3%
|-
|[[Japanese Americans|Japanese]]
|238,913
|465,117
|1.2%
|-
|[[Scottish Americans|Scottish]]
|108,335
|449,373
|1.2%
|-
|[[Polish Americans|Polish]]
|119,719
|419,229
|1.1%
|-
|Other Hispanic
<small>(Including [[Californios]])</small>
|—
|348,958
|0.9%
|-
|[[Arab Americans|Arab]]
|224,577
|333,777
|0.9%
|-
|[[Spanish Americans|Spanish]]
<small>(Including responses of "Spaniard," "Spanish," and "Spanish American")</small>
|—
|315,273
|0.9%
|-
|Broadly "[[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]]"
<small>(No tribe specified)</small>
|88,760
|304,532
|0.8%
|-
|[[Portuguese Americans|Portuguese]]
|123,591
|304,272
|0.8%
|-
|[[Norwegian Americans|Norwegian]]
|85,291
|303,728
|0.8%
|-
|[[Swedish Americans|Swedish]]
|68,643
|301,010
|0.8%
|-
|[[Russian Americans|Russian]]
|119,263
|299,388
|0.8%
|-
|[[Dutch Americans|Dutch]]
|71,250
|254,031
|0.7%
|-
|[[Aztecs|'Aztec']]
|159,126
|249,237
|0.6%
|-
|[[Armenian Americans|Armenian]]
|187,846
|246,558
|0.6%
|-
|[[Iranian Americans|Iranian/Persian]]
|178,247
|221,462
|0.6%
|-
|[[Scotch-Irish Americans|Scotch-Irish]]
|47,722
|167,074
|0.4%
|-
|[[Ukrainian Americans|Ukrainian]]
|79,919
|148,151
|0.4%
|-
|[[Nicaraguan Americans|Nicaraguan]]
|—
|144,174
|0.4%
|-
|[[Colombian Americans|Colombian]]
|—
|141,735
|0.4%
|-
|Broadly [[British Americans|“British]]”
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|53,603
|141,004
|0.4%
|-
|[[Taiwanese Americans|Taiwanese]]
|116,422
|140,727
|0.4%
|-
|[[Danish Americans|Danish]]
|31,079
|134,210
|0.3%
|-
|[[Welsh Americans|Welsh]]
|20,001
|126,530
|0.3%
|-
|[[Honduran Americans|Honduran]]
|—
|123,483
|0.3%
|-
|[[Cambodian Americans|Cambodian]]
|92,355
|123,266
|0.3%
|-
|[[Peruvian Americans|Peruvian]]
|—
|122,803
|0.3%
|-
|Broadly "African"
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|81,259
|120,268
|0.3%
|-
|[[Greek Americans|Greek]]
|47,388
|117,668
|0.3%
|-
|[[Maya peoples|Maya]]
|69,829
|115,830
|0.3%
|-
|Broadly "[[Asian Americans|Asian]]"
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|41,563
|113,784
|0.3%
|-
|[[Hmong Americans|Hmong]]
|106,958
|113,383
|0.3%
|-
|Broadly "[[Eastern Europe|Eastern European]]"
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|65,348
|111,130
|0.3%
|-
|[[Pakistani Americans|Pakistani]]
|82,851
|96,172
|0.2%
|-
|[[Hungarian Americans|Hungarian]]
|28,442
|95,723
|0.2%
|-
|Broadly "[[Nordic and Scandinavian Americans|Scandinavian]]"
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|35,505
|88,812
|0.2%
|-
|[[Afghan Americans|Afghan]]
|77,005
|86,859
|0.2%
|-
|[[Native Hawaiians|Native Hawaiian]]
|19,432
|86,710
|0.2%
|-
|[[Thai Americans|Thai]]
|54,688
|83,726
|0.2%
|-
|[[Swiss Americans|Swiss]]
|16,590
|81,133
|0.2%
|-
|[[French-Canadian Americans|French Canadian]]
|25,594
|68,468
|0.2%
|-
|[[Samoan Americans|Samoan]]
|37,349
|68,080
|0.2%
|-
|[[Canadian Americans|Canadian]]
|29,516
|64,088
|0.2%
|-
|[[Czech Americans|Czech]]
|16,234
|63,910
|0.2%
|-
|[[Nigerian Americans|Nigerian]]
|42,947
|62,685
|0.2%
|-
|[[Laotian Americans|Laotian]]
|42,469
|60,496
|0.2%
|-
|[[Austrian Americans|Austrian]]
|13,933
|58,131
|0.1%
|-
|Broadly "[[Northern Europe|Northern European]]"
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|38,823
|56,433
|0.1%
|-
|[[Romanian Americans|Romanian]]
|29,946
|56,147
|0.1%
|-
|[[Brazilian Americans|Brazilian]]
|31,662
|51,662
|0.1%
|-
|[[Indonesian Americans|Indonesian]]
|23,860
|47,864
|0.1%
|-
|[[Lithuanian Americans|Lithuanian]]
|12,057
|46,075
|0.1%
|-
|[[Finnish Americans|Finnish]]
|10,420
|44,353
|0.1%
|-
|[[Croatian Americans|Croatian]]
|13,963
|40,404
|0.1%
|-
|[[Chamorro people|Chamorro]]
<small>(2,475 additionally reported their ancestry as "[[Guamanian]]" alone, and 6,328 reported "Guamanian" alone or in combination)</small>
|17,337
|37,787
|0.1%
|-
|[[Fijian Americans|Fijian]]
|25,284
|37,550
|0.1%
|-
|[[Jamaican Americans|Jamaican]]
|19,009
|37,149
|0.1%
|-
|[[Turkish Americans|Turkish]]
|22,782
|34,351
|0.09%
|-
|[[Navajo]]
|13,385
|32,663
|0.08%
|-
|[[Ethiopian Americans|Ethiopian]]
|25,507
|30,288
|0.08%
|-
|[[Israeli Americans|Israeli]]
|18,681
|30,242
|0.08%
|-
|[[Blackfeet Nation|Blackfeet]]
|2,785
|28,099
|0.07%
|-
|'[[Yugoslav Americans|Yugoslavian]]'
<small>(Not further specified)</small>
|13,109
|25,540
|0.07%
|-
|[[Belgian Americans|Belgian]]
|6,602
|22,758
|0.06%
|-
|[[Slovak Americans|Slovak]]
|7,430
|22,565
|0.06%
|-
|[[Belizean Americans|Belizean]]
|12,782
|22,488
|0.06%
|-
|[[Assyrian Americans|Assyrian]]
|14,961
|22,088
|0.06%
|}

==Country of birth==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+American Community Survey (ACS) data from 2021<ref>{{cite web |title=State Immigration Data Profiles |url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/data/state-profiles/state/demographics/CA |website=Migration Policy |access-date=13 March 2023}}</ref>
!Rank
!Country of birth
!Population
|-
|1. 
|United States
|28,786,026
|-
|2. 
|Mexico
|3,859,785
|-
|3.
|Philippines
|812,752
|-
|4.
|China, excluding Taiwan
|766,855
|-
|5.
|India
|547,009
|-
|6.
|Vietnam
|503,340
|-
|7.
|El Salvador
|460,260
|-
|8.
|Korea
|311,049
|-
|9.
|Iran
|212,452
|-
|10.
|Taiwan
|171,960
|-
|11.
|United Kingdom
|121,581
|-
|12.
|Canada
|120,102
|-
|13.
|Japan
|106,870
|-
|14.
|Russia
|73,582
|-
|15.
|Germany
|72,672
|}

==Vital statistics==
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:right"
|+Vital statistics since 1909<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dof.ca.gov/forecasting/Demographics/estimates/|title=E-7. California Population Estimates, with Components of Change and Crude Rates, July 1, 1900-2022|website=www.dof.ca.gov}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/article211330979.html|title=California birth rate falls again to record low|last=Reese|first=Phillip|date=2018-05-17|work=The Sacramento Bee|access-date=2018-10-23|language=en-US|issn=0890-5738}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-06-06 |title=Products - Monthly Vital Statistics Reports - Homepage |url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/mvsr.htm |access-date=2025-02-03 |website=www.cdc.gov |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=US Vital Statistics Volumes 1900-1968 |url=https://www.nber.org/research/data/us-vital-statistics-volumes-1900-1968 |access-date=2025-02-03 |website=NBER |language=en}}</ref>
!Year
!Average<br>population
!Live<br>births
!Deaths
!Natural change
!Crude birth rate<br>(per 1,000)
!Crude death rate<br>(per 1,000)
!Natural change<br>(per 1,000)
|-
|1909
| style="color:red;" |2,282,000
|
|
|
|13.6
|13.6
|0.0
|-
|1910
|2,406,000
|
|
|
|13.3
|13.3
|0.0
|-
|1911
|2,534,000
|
|
|
|13.8
|13.4
|0.4
|-
|1912
|2,668,000
|
|
|
|14.6
|13.9
|0.7
|-
|1913
|2,811,000
|
|
|
|15.7
|13.9
|1.8
|-
|1914
|2,934,000
|
|
|
|15.7
|12.6
|3.1
|-
|1915
|3,008,000
|
|
|
|16.0
|13.0
|3.0
|-
|1916
|3,071,000
|
|
|
|16.6
|13.0
|3.6
|-
|1917
|3,171,000
|
|
|
|16.4
|13.2
|3.2
|-
|1918
|3,262,000
|
|
|
|17.2
| style="color:blue;" |17.6
| style="color:red;" | -0.6
|-
|1919
|3,339,000
|
|
|
|17.1
|13.8
|3.3
|-
|1920
|3,554,000
|
|
|
|18.9
|13.2
|5.7
|-
|1921
|3,795,000
|
|
|
|19.0
|12.4
|6.6
|-
|1922
|3,991,000
|
|
|
|18.3
|13.0
|5.3
|-
|1923
|4,270,000
|
|
|
|18.7
|12.6
|6.1
|-
|1924
|4,541,000
|
|
|
|19.2
|12.6
|6.6
|-
|1925
|4,730,000
|
|
|
|18.0
|12.1
|5.9
|-
|1926
|4,929,000
|
|
|
|16.6
|12.0
|4.9
|-
|1927
|5,147,000
|
|
|
|16.3
|11.9
|4.4
|-
|1928
|5,344,000
|
|
|
|15.7
|12.4
|3.3
|-
|1929
|5,531,000
|
|
|
|14.6
|11.8
|2.8
|-
|1930
|5,711,000
|
|
|
|14.7
|11.6
|3.1
|-
|1931
|5,824,000
|
|
|
|14.1
|11.7
|2.4
|-
|1932
|5,894,000
|
|
|
|13.2
|11.5
|1.7
|-
|1933
|5,963,000
|
|
|
|12.6
|11.4
|1.2
|-
|1934
|6,060,000
|
|
|
|12.9
|11.2
|1.7
|-
|1935
|6,175,000
|
|
|
|13.0
|11.8
|1.2
|-
|1936
|6,341,000
|84,502
|76,094
|8,408
|13.3
|12.0
|1.3
|-
|1937
|6,528,000
|94,230
|80,256
|13,974
|14.4
|12.3
|2.1
|-
|1938
|6,656,000
|101,844
|76,187
|25,657
|15.3
|11.4
|3.9
|-
|1939
|6,785,000
|103,453
|77,130
|26,323
|15.2
|11.4
|3.9
|-
|1940
|6,950,000
|112,011
|80,270
|31,741
|16.1
|11.5
|4.6
|-
|1941
|7,237,000
|124,682
|81,421
|43,261
|17.2
|11.3
|6.0
|-
|1942
|7,735,000
|153,632
|85,045
|68,587
|19.9
|11.0
|8.9
|-
|1943
|8,506,000
|172,475
|89,492
|82,983
|20.3
|10.5
|9.8
|-
|1944
|8,945,000
|177,213
|91,428
|85,785
|19.8
|10.2
|9.6
|-
|1945
|9,344,000
|183,127
|93,157
|89,970
|19.6
|10.0
|9.6
|-
|1946
|9,559,000
|217,902
|95,035
|122,867
|22.8
|9.9
|12.9
|-
|1947
|9,832,000
|245,482
|96,977
|148,505
|25.0
|9.9
|15.1
|-
|1948
|10,060,000
|240,777
|98,905
|141,872
|23.9
|9.8
|14.1
|-
|1949
|10,340,000
|245,199
|100,361
|144,838
|23.7
|9.7
|14.0
|-
|1950
|10,680,000
|243,757
|98,672
|145,085
|22.8
|9.2
|13.6
|-
|1951
|11,130,000
|259,508
|103,808
|155,700
|23.3
|9.3
|14.0
|-
|1952
|11,640,000
|280,426
|108,645
|171,781
|24.1
|9.3
|14.8
|-
|1953
|12,250,000
|296,634
|110,005
|186,629
|24.2
|9.0
|15.2
|-
|1954
|12,750,000
|305,224
|109,332
|195,892
|23.9
|8.6
|15.4
|-
|1955
|13,130,000
|315,901
|114,463
|201,438
|24.1
|8.7
|15.3
|-
|1956
|13,710,000
|336,351
|119,851
|216,500
|24.5
|8.7
|15.8
|-
|1957
|14,260,000
|353,549
|124,078
|229,471
|24.8
|8.7
|16.1
|-
|1958
|14,880,000
|352,195
|125,842
|226,353
|23.7
|8.5
|15.2
|-
|1959
|15,470,000
|358,386
|128,441
|229,945
|23.2
|8.3
|14.9
|-
|1960
|15,870,000
|371,476
|135,508
|235,968
|23.4
|8.5
|14.9
|-
|1961
|16,500,000
|380,856
|137,327
|243,529
|23.1
|8.3
|14.8
|-
|1962
|17,070,000
|378,052
|141,172
|236,880
|22.1
|8.3
|13.9
|-
|1963
|17,670,000
|380,410
|147,866
|232,544
|21.5
|8.4
|13.2
|-
|1964
|18,150,000
|374,972
|150,793
|224,179
|20.7
|8.3
|12.4
|-
|1965
|18,580,000
|355,592
|152,907
|202,685
|19.1
|8.2
|10.9
|-
|1966
|18,860,000
|337,734
|157,444
|180,290
|17.9
|8.3
|9.6
|-
|1967
|19,180,000
|336,720
|156,881
|179,839
|17.6
|8.2
|9.4
|-

|1968
|19,390,000
|339,760
|160,806
|178,954
|17.5
|8.3
|9.2
|-

|1969
|19,710,000
|353,526
|166,077
|187,449
|17.9
|8.4
|9.5
|-

|1970
|19,970,000
|362,756
|166,339
|196,417
|18.2
|8.3
|9.8
|-

|1971
|20,350,000
|329,954
|169,322
|160,632
|16.2
|8.3
|7.9
|-

|1972
|20,590,000
|306,470
|169,984
|136,486
|14.9
|8.3
|6.6
|-

|1973
|20,870,000
|298,086
|172,710
|125,376
|14.3
|8.3
|6.0
|-

|1974
|21,170,000
|311,820
|170,403
|141,417
|14.7
|8.0
|6.7
|-

|1975
|21,540,000
|317,423
|170,687
|146,736
|14.7
|7.9
|6.8
|-

|1976
|21,940,000
|332,256
|171,022
|161,234
|15.1
|7.8
|7.3
|-

|1977
|22,350,000
|347,817
|170,399
|177,418
|15.6
|7.6
|8.0
|-

|1978
|22,840,000
|356,310
|176,069
|180,241
|15.6
|7.7
|7.9
|-

|1979
|23,260,000
|379,244
|177,399
|201,845
|16.3
|7.6
|8.7
|-

|1980
|23,670,000
|402,949
|186,624
|216,325
|17.0
|7.9
|9.1
|-

|1981
|24,290,000
|420,726
|184,987
|235,739
|17.3
|7.6
|9.7
|-

|1982
|24,820,000
|429,897
|188,471
|241,426
|17.3
|7.6
|9.7
|-

|1983
|25,360,000
|436,096
|188,442
|247,654
|17.2
|7.4
|9.8
|-

|1984
|25,840,000
|447,586
|195,531
|252,055
|17.3
|7.6
|9.8
|-

|1985
|26,440,000
|470,951
|201,911
|269,040
|17.8
|7.6
|10.2
|-

|1986
|27,100,000
|482,236
|203,293
|278,943
|17.8
|7.5
|10.3
|-

|1987
|27,780,000
|503,413
|209,424
|293,989
|18.1
|7.5
|10.6
|-

|1988
|28,460,000
|533,148
|215,485
|317,663
|18.7
|7.6
|11.2
|-

|1989
|29,220,000
|569,992
|216,619
|353,373
|19.5
|7.4
|12.1
|-

|1990
|29,960,000
|612,628
|214,369
|398,259
|20.4
|7.2
|13.3
|-

|1991
|30,470,000
|610,077
|215,284
|394,793
|20.0
|7.1
|12.9
|-

|1992
|30,970,000
|601,730
|215,847
|385,883
|19.4
|7.0
|12.5
|-

|1993
|31,270,000
|585,324
|221,989
|363,335
|18.7
|7.1
|11.6
|-

|1994
|31,480,000
|567,930
|224,292
|343,638
|18.0
|7.1
|10.9
|-

|1995
|31,700,000
|552,045
|224,213
|327,832
|17.4
|7.1
|10.3
|-

|1996
|32,020,000
|539,789
|223,447
|316,342
|16.8
|7.0
|9.9
|-

|1997
|32,830,000
|524,840
|224,592
|300,248
|16.0
|6.8
|9.1
|-

|1998
|32,990,000
|521,661
|226,954
|294,707
|15.9
|6.9
|9.0
|-
|1999
|33,500,000
|518,508
|229,380
|289,128
|15.5
|6.8
|8.7
|-
|2000
|33,990,000
|531,959
|229,551
|302,408
|15.5
|6.7
|8.8
|-
|2001
|34,480,000
|527,759
|234,044
|293,715
|15.3
|6.7
|8.6
|-
|2002
|34,870,000
|529,357
|234,565
|294,792
|15.1
|6.7
|8.4
|-
|2003
|35,250,000
|540,997
|239,371
|301,626
|15.2
|6.6
|8.6
|-
|2004
|35,570,000
|544,843
|232,525
|312,318
|15.1
|6.7
|8.4
|-
|2005
|35,830,000
|548,882
|237,037
|311,845
|15.2
|6.4
|8.8
|-
|2006
|36,020,000
|562,440
|237,126
|325,314
|15.3
|6.6
|8.7
|-
|2007
|36,250,000
|566,414
|233,720
|332,694
|15.4
|6.4
|9.0
|-
|2008
|36,600,000
|551,779
|234,766
|317,013
|15.4
|6.4
|9.0
|-
|2009
|36,960,000
|527,020
|232,736
|294,284
|14.5
| style="color:red;" |6.1
|8.4
|-
|2010
|37,350,000
|510,198
|234,012
|276,186
|13.8
|6.2
|7.6
|-
|2011
|37,670,000
|502,120
|239,942
|262,178
|13.5
|6.3
|7.2
|-
|2012
|38,020,000
|503,755
|242,554
|261,201
|13.1
|6.3
|6.8
|-
|2013
|38,350,000
|494,705 
|248,359
|246,346
|13.0
|6.5
|6.5
|-
|2014
|38,700,000
|502,879 
|245,929
|256,950
|12.9
|6.3
|6.6
|-
|2015
|38,914,000
|491,748
|259,206
|232,542
|12.8
|6.5
|6.3
|-
|2016
|39,128,000
|488,827
|262,240
|226,587
|12.5
|6.6
|5.9
|-
|2017
|39,329,000
|471,658
|268,189
|203,469
|12.3
|6.8
|5.5
|-
|2018
|39,476,000
|454,920
|268,818
|186,102
|11.7
|6.9
|4.8
|-
|2019
|39,530,000
|446,479
|269,831
|176,648
|11.4
|6.8
|4.6
|-
|2020
| style="color:blue;" |39,542,000
|420,259
|319,808
|100,451
|11.1
|7.1
|4.0
|-
|2021
|39,247,000
|420,608
| style="color:red;" |333,249
|87,359
| style="color:red;" |10.5
|8.8
|1.7
|-
|2022
|39,146,000
|419,104
|
|
|10.8
|8.1
|2.7
|-
|2023
|39,109,000
|400,108
|
|
| style="color:red;" |10.5
|7.7
|2.8
|-
|2024
|39,431,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!Year
!Average<br>population
!Live<br>births
!Deaths
!Natural change
!Crude birth rate<br>(per 1,000)
!Crude death rate<br>(per 1,000)
!Natural change<br>(per 1,000)
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:90%"
|+ Live Births by Single Race/Ethnicity of Mother
|-
! [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Ethnicity]]
! 2013<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_01.pdf|title=Births: Final Data for 2013|website=Cdc.gov|access-date=7 October 2017}}</ref>
! 2014<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_12.pdf|title=Births: Final Data for 2014|website=Cdc.gov|access-date=7 October 2017}}</ref>
! 2015<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr66/nvsr66_01.pdf|title=Births: Final Data for 2015|website=Cdc.gov|access-date=7 October 2017}}</ref>
! 2016<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_01.pdf|title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov  |access-date=2020-11-13}}</ref>
! 2017<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_08-508.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov  |access-date=2020-11-13}}</ref>
! 2018<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_13-508.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov |access-date=2019-12-02}}</ref>
! 2019<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr70/nvsr70-02-508.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov |access-date=2019-12-02}}</ref>
! 2020<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr70/nvsr70-17.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov |access-date=2022-02-20}}</ref>
! 2021<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr72/nvsr72-01.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov |access-date=2022-02-02}}</ref>
! 2022<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr73/nvsr73-02.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov |access-date=2024-04-04}}</ref>
! 2023<ref>
{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr74/nvsr74-1.pdf |title=Data |website=www.cdc.gov |access-date=2024-04-11}}</ref>
|-
| [[Non-Hispanic whites|White]]
| 143,531 (29.0%)
| 144,318 (28.7%)
| 141,592 (28.8%)
| 132,780 (27.2%) 
| 127,822 (27.1%)
| 123,139 (27.1%)
| 121,076 (27.1%)
| 115,543 (27.5%) 
| 115,845 (27.5%)
| 110,370 (26.3%)
| 104,381 (26.1%)
|-
| [[Asian Americans|Asian]]
| 76,424 (15.4%)
| 84,224 (16.7%)
| 80,269 (16.3%)
| 73,843 (15.1%)
| 72,049 (15.2%)
| 68,444 (15.0%)
| 67,754 (15.2%)
| 58,543 (13.9%) 
| 55,777 (13.3%)
| 56,915 (13.6%)
| 55,780 (13.9%)
|-
| [[African Americans|Black]]
| 31,977 (6.5%)
| 31,654 (6.3%)
| 30,546 (6.2%)
| 23,936 (4.9%)
| 23,441 (5.0%)
| 22,380 (4.9%)
| 22,374 (5.0%)
| 21,350 (5.1%) 
| 21,287 (5.1%)
| 20,050 (4.8%)
| 18,340 (4.6%)
|-
| [[Pacific Islands Americans|Pacific Islander]]
| ...
| ...
| ...
| 1,851 (0.4%)
| 1,809 (0.4%)
| 1,732 (0.4%)
| 1,711 (0.4%)
| 1,617 (0.4%)
| 1,619 (0.4%)
| 1,601 (0.4%)
| 1,453 (0.4%)
|-
| [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indian]]
| 3,590 (0.7%)
| 3,509 (0.7%)
| 3,510 (0.7%)
| 1,447 (0.3%)
| 1,411 (0.3%)
| 1,411 (0.3%)
| 1,458 (0.3%)
| 1,391 (0.3%) 
| 1,316 (0.3%)
| 1,297 (0.3%)
| 1,169 (0.3%)
|-
| ''[[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic]]'' (any race) 
| ''238,496'' (48.2%)
| ''237,539'' (47.2%)
| ''234,237'' (47.6%)
| ''228,982'' (46.8%)
| ''220,122'' (46.7%)
| ''211,271'' (46.4%)
| ''203,996'' (45.7%)
| ''194,295'' (46.2%) 
| ''196,077'' (46.6%)
| ''203,312'' (48.5%)
| ''194,939'' (48.7%)
|-
| '''Total'''
| '''494,705''' (100%)
| '''502,879''' (100%)
| '''491,748''' (100%)
| '''488,827''' (100%)
| '''471,658''' (100%)
| '''454,920''' (100%)
| '''446,479''' (100%)
| '''420,259''' (100%) 
| '''420,608''' (100%)
| '''419,104''' (100%)
| '''400,108''' (100%)
|}

''Note: Births in table do not add up, because Hispanics are counted both by their ethnicity and by their race, giving a higher overall number.''

*Persons of ''Hispanic'' origin may be of any race.

===Percentage surviving===
{{Main|List of U.S. states and territories by life expectancy#Data of the United States Mortality DataBase}}

The percentage surviving, is the percent of the population that would survive to certain age, if their life conditions in a given year, were extrapolated to their whole life. Data for 2019.

{{mw-datatable}}{{sticky header}}{{table alignment}}
{| class="wikitable mw-datatable sticky-header-multi sortable col5center" style="text-align:right;"
|-
! rowspan=2 class="unsortable" style="vertical-align:middle;"|Age
! colspan=2|Percentage surviving
! rowspan=2 style="vertical-align:middle;width:6ex;"|{{tooltip|F <small>Δ</small> M|Change between female and male}}
! rowspan=2 class="unsortable" style="vertical-align:middle;width:6ex;"|{{tooltip|F / M|Ratio of female survivors to male survivors}}
|-
! class="unsortable" style="vertical-align:middle;"|male
! class="unsortable" style="vertical-align:middle;"|female
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 1 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.6 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.6 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 0.1 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.00
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 5 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.5 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.6 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 0.1 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.00
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 10 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.4 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.5 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 0.1 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.00
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 15 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.4 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.5 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 0.1 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.00
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 20 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.1 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.4 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 0.3 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.00
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 25 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 98.6 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.2 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 0.6 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.01
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 30 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 98.0 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 99.0 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 1.0 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.01
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 35 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 97.3 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 98.7 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 1.4 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.01
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 40 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 96.4 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 98.2 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 1.8 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.02
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 45 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 95.4 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 97.7 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 2.2 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.02
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 50 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 94.0 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 96.8 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 2.8 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.03
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 55 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 91.8 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 95.5 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 3.7 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.04
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 60 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 88.5 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 93.6 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 5.1 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.06
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 65 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 83.8 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 90.6 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 6.8 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.08
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 70 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 77.6 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 86.6 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 9.0 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.12
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 75 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 69.4 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 80.6 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 11.2 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.16
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 80 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 58.0 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 71.5 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 13.5 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.23
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 85 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 42.5 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 56.9 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 14.4 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.34
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 90 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 24.4 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 37.3 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 12.8 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.53
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 95 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:3ex;"| 9.1 ||style="color:red;padding-right:3ex;"| 17.1 ||style="color:darkgray;padding-right:3ex;"| 8.0 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 1.87
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 100 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:1ex;"| 1.848 ||style="color:red;padding-right:1ex;"| 4.569 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 2.721 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 2.47
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 105 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:1ex;"| 0.168 ||style="color:red;padding-right:1ex;"| 0.570 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 0.402 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 3.39
|-
|style="padding-right:3ex;"| 110 ||style="color:blue;padding-right:1ex;"| 0.006 ||style="color:red;padding-right:1ex;"| 0.029 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 0.023 ||style="color:darkgray;"| 4.83
|}

Data source: US Mortality DataBase.<ref>{{cite web|title=United States Mortality DataBase: California|url=https://usa.mortality.org/state.php?state=CA|access-date=2025-04-14|publisher=[[Human Mortality Database]]}}</ref>

==Languages==
{{main|California English|Spanish language in California}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin-left:1em; float:right"
|+ Top 12 Non-English Languages spoken in California<br><small> (as of 2010)</small><ref name="MLA Data"/>
! Language !! Percentage of<br>population 
|-
| [[Spanish language in California|Spanish]] || 28.46%
|-
| [[Chinese language|Chinese]] (including<br>[[Cantonese language|Cantonese]] and [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]]) || 2.80%
|-
| [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]] || 2.20%
|-
| [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] || 1.43%
|-
| [[Korean language|Korean]] || 1.08%
|-
| [[Armenian language|Armenian]] and [[Persian language|Persian]] (tied) || 0.52% (each)
|-
| [[Japanese language|Japanese]] || 0.43%
|-
| [[Russian language|Russian]] || 0.42%
|-
| [[Hindi language|Hindi]] and [[Arabic language|Arabic]] (tied) || 0.38% (each)
|-
| [[French language|French]] || 0.36%
|}

As of 2010, 20,379,282 of California residents age 5 and older spoke [[English language|English]] at home as a [[primary language]], while 10,672,610 spoke [[Spanish language in California|Spanish]], 1,231,425 [[Chinese language|Chinese]] (which includes [[Cantonese]] and [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]]), 796,451 [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]], 559,932 [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]], 367,523 [[Korean language|Korean]], 192,980 [[Armenian language|Armenian]], and [[Persian language|Persian]] was spoken as a [[main language]] by 203,770 of the population over the age of five. In total, 14,644,136 of California's population age 5 and older spoke a [[mother language]] other than English.<ref name="MLA Data">{{cite web|url=http://www.mla.org/map_data|title=California|publisher=[[Modern Language Association]]|access-date=August 11, 2013|archive-date=December 1, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071201170638/http://www.mla.org/map_data|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Comparatively, according to the 2007 [[American Community Survey]], 42.6 percent of California's population older than five spoke a language other than English at home, with 73 percent of those also speaking English well or very well, while 9.8 did not speak English at all.<ref name="Language2007">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/language/data/acs/ACS-12.pdf |title=Language Use in the United States: 2007 |author=Hyon B. Shin |author2=Robert A. Kominski |date=April 2010 |work=United States Census Bureau |publisher=United States Department of Commerce |access-date=May 27, 2013}}</ref>

California had the highest concentration of [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] or [[Chinese language|Chinese]] speakers in the United States, second highest concentration of [[Korean language|Korean]] or [[Spanish language in California|Spanish]] speakers in the United States, and third highest concentration of [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]] speakers in the United States.<ref name="Language2007"/> California was historically one of the most linguistically diverse areas in the world, and is home to more than 70 indigenous languages derived from 64 root languages in 6 language families.<ref name="Native Languages 1770">{{Cite map|publisher=Coyote Press|title=Native Tribes, Groups, Language Families and Dialects of California in 1770|url=http://www.californiaprehistory.com/tribmap.html|edition=1966|access-date=December 27, 2009}}</ref><ref name="Indian Root Languages 1994">{{Cite map|publisher=California State Parks|title=California Indians Root Languages and Tribal Groups|url=http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=23545|edition=1994|access-date=December 27, 2009}}</ref> A survey conducted between 2007 and 2009 identified 23 different indigenous languages of Mexico that are spoken among California farmworkers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Indigenous Farmworker Study – Indigenous Mexicans in California Agriculture. Section V. Language and Culture|year=2013|access-date=2013-07-01|url=http://indigenousfarmworkers.org/final_report_section_v.pdf}}</ref>

Over 200 languages are known to be spoken and read in California, with Spanish used as the state's "alternative" language. California has more than 100 indigenous languages, making California one of the most linguistically diverse areas in the world. All of California's indigenous languages are [[Endangered language|endangered]] as a direct result of the [[California genocide]] and generations of forced linguistic assimilation at [[American Indian boarding schools]], although there are now tribal-led efforts toward [[language revitalization]], mostly among nations with means to sustain formal language programs.{{efn|name="indigenous languages"|The following are a list of the indigenous languages: Root languages of California:
* Algic Family: 
**[[Wiyot language|Wiyot]] {{extinct}}
**[[Yurok language|Yurok]] {{extinct}}
* Na-Dene Family: 
**[[Cahto language|Cahto]] {{extinct}}
**[[Chilula]] {{extinct}}
**[[Hupa language|Hupa]] 
**[[Mattole language|Mattole]] {{extinct}}
**[[Tolowa language|Tolowa]] {{extinct}}
**[[Wailaki language|Wailaki]] (includes Lassik, Nongatl and Sinkyone) {{extinct}}
**[[Whilkut]] {{extinct}}
* Hokan Family: 
**[[Chimariko language|Chimariko]] {{extinct}}
**[[Chumashan languages|Chumash]] {{extinct}}
**[[Esselen language|Esselen]] {{extinct}}
**[[Ipai language|Ipai]]
**[[Tiipai language|Tipai]]
**[[Mojave language|Mohave]]
**[[Quechan language|Yuma]] 
**[[Halcidhoma language|Halchichoma]] {{extinct}}
**[[Karuk language|Karuk]]
**[[Pomoan languages|Pomo]] 
**[[Salinan language|Salinan]]{{extinct}}
**[[Shasta language|Shasta]] {{extinct}}
* Penutian Family: 
**[[Klamath language|Modoc]] {{extinct}}
**[[Konkow language|Konkow]] 
**[[Maidu language|Maidu]] {{extinct}}
**[[Miwok languages|Miwok]] (includes Coast Miwok and Lake Miwok) 
**[[Nisenan language|Nisenan]] {{extinct}}
**[[Nomlaki language|Nomlaki]] {{extinct}}
**[[Ohlone languages|Ohlone]] {{extinct}}
**[[Patwin language|Patwin]]
**[[Wintu language|Wintu]] {{extinct}}
**[[Yokuts language|Yokuts]] (includes Northern Valley, Southern Valley and Foothill Yokuts)
* Uto-Aztecan Family:
**[[Cahuilla language|Cahuilla]] {{extinct}}
**[[Colorado River Numic language|Chemehuevi]]
**[[Cupeño language|Cupeño]] {{extinct}}
**[[Kawaiisu language|Kawaiisu]]
**[[Kitanemuk language|Kitanemuk]] {{extinct}}
**[[Luiseño language|Luiseño-Juaneño]] {{extinct}}
**[[Mono language|Monache and Owens Valley Paiute]] 
**[[Shoshoni language|Panamint Shoshone]]
**[[Serrano language|Serrano]] {{extinct}}
**[[Tataviam language|Tataviam]] {{extinct}}
**[[Tongva language|Tongva-Gabrielino]] {{extinct}}
**[[Tübatulabal language|Tübatulabal]] {{extinct}}
* Yukian Family: 
**[[Yuki language|Yuki]] {{extinct}}
**[[Wappo language|Wappo]] {{extinct}}
}}

The [[official language]] of California has been English since the passage of [[List of California ballot propositions 1980–1989#November 4, 1986|Proposition 63 in 1986]].<ref name="AB 800 Analysis">{{cite web|last=Wesson |first=Herb |author-link=Herb Wesson |title=AB 800 Assembly Bill – Bill Analysis |page=3 |publisher=California State Assembly |quote=In 1986, California voters amended the state constitution to provide that the: The {{sic}} Legislature and officials of the State of California shall take all steps necessary to insure that the role of English as the common language of the State of California is preserved and enhanced. The Legislature shall make no law which diminishes or ignores the role of English as the common language of California."|date=July 17, 2001|url=http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/01-02/bill/asm/ab_0751-0800/ab_800_cfa_20020116_162757_sen_comm.html|access-date=December 27, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101123142018/http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/01-02/bill/asm/ab_0751-0800/ab_800_cfa_20020116_162757_sen_comm.html|archive-date=November 23, 2010|df=mdy}}</ref> However, many state, city, and local government agencies still continue to print official public documents in numerous languages.<ref name="Hull English already official">{{Cite news|last=Hull|first=Dana|title=English already is "official" in California|newspaper=San Jose Mercury News|location=San Jose, California|quote=English has been the "official" language of California since 1986, when voters passed Proposition 63. You'd barely know it. The Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters prints ballots in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese and Tagalog. California drivers can take the written license exam in 31 languages, from Amharic, which is spoken in Ethiopia, to Thai. You can view the state's online Megan's Law database of registered sex offenders in Portuguese or Punjabi. [..] Proposition 63, which received 73 percent of the vote in 1986, was largely symbolic, sending a message to immigrants that they should learn to speak English if they expected to live in California. The measure directed the state to "preserve, protect and strengthen the English language," but did not call for any specific action or enforcement. Twenty-six other states have official-English laws on the books.|publisher=MediaNews Group|date=May 20, 2006}}</ref> For example, the [[California Department of Motor Vehicles]] offers the written exam for [[Driver's license in the United States#Standard licenses|the standard C Class driver's license]] in 31 languages along with English, and the audio exam in 11 languages.<ref>{{cite web|title=What other languages is the written or audio test available in? Driver License and Identification (ID) Card Information|publisher=California Department of Motor Vehicles|url=http://www.dmv.ca.gov/dl/dl_info.htm#languages}}</ref> The politics of language is a major political issue in the state, especially in regard to [[language policy]] controlling the teaching and official use of immigrant languages.

As a result of the state's increasing diversity and migration from other areas across the country and around the globe, linguists began noticing a noteworthy set of emerging characteristics of spoken English in California since the late 20th century. This dialect, known as [[California English]], has a [[vowel shift]] and several other phonological processes that are different from the dialects used in other regions of the country.<ref name="Bucholtz">{{cite journal|last=Bucholtz|first=Mary|display-authors=etal|title=Hella Nor Cal or Totally So Cal? : The Perceptual Dialectology of California|journal=Journal of English Linguistics|date=December 2007|volume=35|issue=4|pages=325–352|doi=10.1177/0075424207307780|s2cid=64542514|url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6492j904}}</ref>

==Religion==
{{Pie chart
| thumb = right
| caption = Religion in California (2023-2024)<ref name="j873">{{cite web | title=Religious Landscape Study | website=Pew Research Center | date=2004-07-01 | url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religious-landscape-study/state/california/ | access-date=2025-02-26}}</ref>
| label1 = [[Protestantism]] 
| value1 = 26
| color1 = DodgerBlue
| label2 = [[Catholic Church|Catholicism]]
| value2 = 25
| color2 = Red
| label3 = [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in California|Mormonism]]
| value3 = 1
| color3 = DarkTurquoise
| label4 = [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodoxy]]
| value4 = 1 
| color4 = Purple
| label5 = [[Jehovah's Witnesses|Jehovah's Witness]]
| value5 = 1
| color5 = Aquamarine
| label6 = Other Christian
| value6 = 1
| color6 = Pink
| label7 = [[Irreligion|No religion]]
| value7 = 33
| color7 = Honeydew
| label8 = [[Judaism]]
| value8 = 2
| color8 = Blue
| label9 = [[Hinduism]]
| value9 = 2
| color9 = Orange
| label10 = [[Buddhism]]
|value10 = 2
| color10 = Gold
| label11 = [[Islam]]
|value11 =  1
| color11 = Chartreuse
| label12 = Other
|value12 = 2
| color12 = Black
}}

California has the most [[Catholic Church in the United States|Catholics in the United States]], ahead of [[Religion in New York|New York State]], as well as large Protestant, non-religious, Jewish, and Muslim populations. It also has the largest [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in California|Latter-day Saint]] population outside of [[Utah]].<ref name="CalLDS">{{Cite web |title = USA-California - LDS Newsroom |publisher = The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |url = http://www.newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/contact-us/usa-california |access-date = January 29, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100122060218/http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/contact-us/usa-california |archive-date = January 22, 2010 |url-status = dead }}</ref> The state also has a large [[American Jews|American Jewish]] community, the second-largest in the nation, as well as largest in the Western US, and third-largest in the world, mainly concentrated in Los Angeles, [[Beverly Hills, California|Beverly Hills]], [[San Francisco]], [[Oakland, California|Oakland]], [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]], and [[Palm Springs, California|Palm Springs]].<ref name="auto">{{cite journal |last1=Dashefsky |first1=Arnold |title=Jewish Population in The United States |journal=Berman Jewish Databank |url=http://www.jewishdatabank.org/Studies/downloadFile.cfm?FileID=3393 |access-date=6 October 2020}}</ref>

California also has large Muslim communities in west Los Angeles, San Diego, Beverly Hills, Orange County, [[Santa Clara County, California|Santa Clara County]], and the [[Modesto, California|Modesto]] area.

Most [[Catholic Church|Catholics]] in California are of [[Mexican Americans|Mexican]], [[Central America]]n, [[Irish Americans|Irish]], [[German Americans|German]], [[Italian Americans|Italian]], [[Vietnamese Americans|Vietnamese]], [[Filipino Americans|Filipino]], and [[Korean Americans|Korean]] ancestry. The population of Catholic Californians is rapidly growing due to the influx of Latin American, Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Christian immigrants. In the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Sunday Mass is celebrated in 42 different languages representing more than 30 ethnic groups from around the world.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Schrank|first=Aaron|title=Photos: The Diversity Among Catholics In LA Was On Full Display This Weekend|url=https://laist.com/2019/06/24/we_all_belong_here_la_catholics_celebrate_cultural_diversity.php|access-date=2020-09-26|website=LAist|date=June 24, 2019 }}</ref> The Catholic dioceses of Orange, Los Angeles and San Jose have the largest Catholic diaspora of Vietnamese Catholics in world outside of Vietnam, estimated to be about 250,000-300,000 Catholics out of a total Vietnamese California population of 1.3 Million.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2014-08-25|title=40 percent of nation's Vietnamese immigrants call California home|url=https://www.scpr.org/blogs/multiamerican/2014/08/25/17200/california-vietnamese-immigrant-orange-county/|access-date=2020-09-26|website=Southern California Public Radio}}</ref>

The largest Christian denominations in California in 2000 were the Catholic Church with 10,079,310; the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with 529,575; and the Southern Baptist Convention with 471,119. Jewish congregations had 994,000 adherents, or 3% of the Californian population.<ref name="Religious Adherent Count">{{Cite web |title = State Membership Report 2000 |publisher = The Association of Religious Data Archives |year = 2002 |url = http://www.thearda.com/mapsReports/reports/state/06_2000_Adherents.asp |access-date = January 29, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081121072014/http://www.thearda.com/mapsReports/reports/state/06_2000_Adherents.asp |archive-date = November 21, 2008 |url-status = dead }}</ref>

[[Hinduism]], [[Buddhism]], [[Shintō]], [[Sikhism]], and [[Taoism]] were introduced in part by Asian immigrants. As the 20th century came to a close, forty percent of all Buddhists in America resided in Southern California. The [[Los Angeles metropolitan area]] has become unique in the Buddhist world as the only place where representative organizations of every major school of Buddhism can be found in a single urban center.<ref name="Encyclopedia of American Religions">{{cite book |editor1-last=Melton |editor1-first=J. Gordon |date=December 2002|title=Encyclopedia of American Religions |edition=Seventh |chapter=Eastern Family Part II: Buddhism, Shintoism, Japanese New Religions |pages=201–211 |location=Detroit |publisher=Gale Cengage |isbn = 978-0-7876-6384-1 |oclc=51255717}}</ref>{{Verify source|date=January 2010}} The [[City of Ten Thousand Buddhas]] in [[Northern California]] and [[Hsi Lai Temple]] in [[Southern California]] are two of the largest Buddhist temples in the Western Hemisphere.

California has the highest [[Hindus|Hindu]] population in the United States,<ref>{{cite book|author=Mark Davis|title=Lone Star America: How Texas Can Save Our Country|url=https://archive.org/details/lonestaramericah0000davi|url-access=registration|date=9 June 2014|publisher=Regnery Publishing, Incorporated, An Eagle Publishing Company|isbn=978-1-62157-231-2|page=[https://archive.org/details/lonestaramericah0000davi/page/78 78]}}<br />{{cite web |url=http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140SCR32 |title=SCR-32 Hindu American Awareness and Appreciation Month |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=29 August 2014 |website=California Legislative Information |publisher=State of California |access-date=15 December 2014}}</ref> most of them [[Indian Americans]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Jacob Neusner|title=World Religions in America: An Introduction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=34vGv_HDGG8C&pg=PA180|year=2009|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|isbn=978-1-61164-047-2|pages=180–181}}</ref> Many of the prominent Hindu temples including the [[Malibu Hindu Temple]] are located in California.

With more than 1,232,000 Jews as of 2015, California has the highest number of Jews of any state except [[New York (state)|New York]].<ref name="auto"/> Many Jews live in the [[West Los Angeles]] and (esp. west) [[San Fernando Valley]] regions of Los Angeles.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://jewishjournal.com/commentary/analysis/235555/deep-dive-jewish-la/|title=A Deep Dive into Jewish L.A.|date=June 27, 2018|website=Jewish Journal}}</ref> Historic synagogues include [[Beth Jacob Congregation (Beverly Hills, California)]], [[Congregation B'nai Israel (Sacramento, California)]], and [[Temple Israel (Stockton, California)]]. [[Chabad]],<ref>{{cite news|last1=BECERRA|first1=HECTOR|title=Repair work set to begin at neglected Jewish cemetery|url=http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-cemetery-repair-20130604-story.html|agency=Los Angeles Times|date=July 4, 2014|quote=Rabbi Moshe Greenwald, co-director of Chabad of Downtown Los Angeles -- which has led the effort to restore Mount Zion -- said he hopes $700,000 can be raised to properly repair the cemetery, though there would be other ongoing costs after that.  Greenwald said several people came forward to help, including businesspeople and real estate developers who gave donations. He said he even got a call from the L.A. Archdiocese, and that he hopes to speak to local church leaders to get the word out about the problem of vandalism.}}</ref> The [[Rohr Jewish Learning Institute]],<ref>{{cite news|last1=Posner|first1=Menachem|title=300 Rabbinical Students Heading Out for Summer Sojourns|url=http://www.chabad.org/news/article_cdo/aid/2261949/jewish/300-Rabbinical-Students-Heading-Out-for-Summer-Sojourns.htm|agency=Chabad.org is a division of the Chabad-Lubavitch Media Center|publisher=Lubavitch World Headquarters|quote=Zarchi was followed by Rabbi Efraim Mintz, who served as a Roving Rabbi in California in 1990. Mintz, who directs the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, shared tips and advice on honing a Torah “elevator pitch,” as well as ideas about presenting more advanced Torah thoughts on a variety of subjects to share with others during the course of their travels.}}<br />{{cite news|last1=Fishkoff|first1=Sue|title=That's Growth!|url=http://www.shturem.org/index.php?section=news&id=3837|agency=Shturem.net|publisher=JTA|date=March 3, 2006|location=SAN RAFAEL, California|quote=Leading the class was Chabad Rabbi Yisrael Rice...Rice, chairman of the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute's editorial board, asks members of the group why they're there.}}<br />{{cite news|last1=Fishkoff|first1=Sue|title=Chabad institute keeps on growing|url=http://www.jta.org/2006/03/02/life-religion/features/chabad-institute-keeps-on-growing|agency=Jewish Telegraphic Agency|date=March 2, 2006|location=SAN RAFAEL, California|quote=Rice, chairman of the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute's editorial board, asks members of the group why they're there. “I'm trying to put some things together,” one man says. “I'm trying to fix a broken link,” the women next to him says. “Where am I going? God willing, I'm going closer,” the next woman says. Billed as a mystical approach to the concepts of time and the Jewish calendar, The Kabbalah of Time is the 14th course in adult Jewish literacy offered by JLI, a seven-year-old project of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.}}</ref> and [[Aish HaTorah]] are active in California.

California also has the largest Muslim community in the United States, an estimated one percent of the population, mostly residing in Southern California. Approximately 100,000 Muslims reside in San Diego.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Home|url=https://www.mccsandiego.org/|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Muslim Community Center of Greater San Diego|language=en-US}}</ref>

California has more members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and [[List of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|Temples]] than any state except [[Utah]].<ref name="Largest LDS Communities">{{cite web |title = Largest Latter-day Saint Communities |publisher = Adherents.com |date = April 12, 2005 |url = http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_lds.html |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/19991002054904/http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_lds.html |url-status = usurped |archive-date = October 2, 1999 |access-date = December 27, 2009}}</ref> [[Latter-day Saints]] (Mormons) have played important roles in the [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in California|settlement of California throughout the state's history]]. For example, a group of a few hundred [[Latter-day Saint]] converts from the Northeastern [[United States]] and [[Europe]] arrived at what would become [[San Francisco]] in the 1840s aboard the ship ''Brooklyn'', more than doubling the population of the small town. A group of Latter-day Saints also established the city of [[San Bernardino]] in Southern California in 1851.<ref name="CalLDS"/> According to the LDS Church 2014 statistics, 780,200 Latter-day Saints reside in the state of California, attending almost 1400 congregations statewide.<ref name="CalLDS"/>

The [[Seventh-day Adventist Church]] is headquartered in [[Loma Linda, California|Loma Linda]] in San Bernardino county 60 miles east of Los Angeles, where the church members form the majority of the town's population. The SDA church there has a university, a free hospital and a TV station ([[3ABN]] or the 3 Angels Broadcasting Network). The town is known for a large number of [[centenarians]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-blue-zone-loma-linda-20150711-story.html|title=Why Loma Linda residents live longer than the rest of us: They treat the body like a temple|first=Mary|last=MacVean|date=July 11, 2015|access-date=October 7, 2017|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref>

A Pew Research Center survey revealed, however, that California is less religious than the rest of the United States: 62% of Californians say they are "absolutely certain" of the belief "in God or a universal spirit", while in the nation 71% say so. The survey also revealed that 48% of Californians say religion is "very important", while the figure for the US in general is 56%.<ref name="Pew Religion and Politics">{{Cite web |title = Religion and Politics 2011: California |work = U.S. Religious Landscape Study | publisher = The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life |year = 2011 |url = http://religions.pewforum.org/maps |access-date = January 15, 2011}}</ref>

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
File:San Jose Basilica.jpg|[[Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph (San Jose)|Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph]] in [[San Jose, California|San Jose]]
File:San-diego-mission-chuch.JPG|[[Mission San Diego de Alcalá]]
File:Lightmatter Hsi Lai Temple 4.jpg|[[Hsi Lai Temple]] in [[Los Angeles County]]
File:Malibu Hindu Temple 25.jpg|South Indian style [[Malibu Hindu Temple]]
File:BAPS Mandir LA 1.jpg|North Indian style [[BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Chino Hills]]
File:Los_Angeles_Temple_1.jpg|[[Los Angeles California Temple]]
</gallery>

According to Pew Forum there are less than 1% Wiccans and other pagans in state with [[Central Valley Wicca]] and [[Reclaiming (Neopaganism)|Reclaiming Wicca]] as key.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/|title=Religion in America: U.S. Religious Data, Demographics and Statistics|work=Pew Research Center}}</ref>

==Income and socioeconomic factors==
California's income distribution is quite broad compared to the country's as a whole; its proportions of residents with no income and of residents with income over $100,000 are both higher than the national average. This broad distribution combined with high housing and living costs give California an abnormally high poverty rate. The Census Bureau's Supplemental Poverty Measure, calculated by comparing household income to a locally adjusted poverty threshold, reports that 20.7% of California's population has income insufficient for their basic needs, as compared to 12.9% for the US as a whole.<ref name=USCB-CPS /> This calculation of income includes the [[Social programs in the United States|benefits]] of [[Welfare in California|California welfare programs]] such as [[CalFresh|food stamps]] and earned income tax credits — without these, the state's poverty rate would be 28%.<ref name=PPIC-poverty-in>{{Cite web| last1 = Sarah Bohn| last2 = Caroline Danielson| last3 = Tess Thorman| title = Poverty in California| work = Public Policy Institute of California| access-date = 2018-04-27| date = 2017| url = http://www.ppic.org/publication/poverty-in-california/}}</ref>

[[File:Distribution of US and CA households by income relative_to CE poverty lines.png|thumb|upright=1.8|A comparison of the distributions of California (left) and US (right) households by their income relative to their estimated cost of living, showing the higher rates of poverty and near-poverty in California. Uses 2017 CPS data<ref name=USCB-CPS /> about incomes in 2016. Comparison is of NAS Family Income minus Medical Out-of-Pocket to CE-Based Poverty Threshold with CPI-U and Geographical Price Adjustments, as per [https://www.census.gov/cps/data/povthresholds.html].]]

The trends of low income in California are complex; from 1975 to 2014, real (inflation-adjusted) incomes have alternated between rises and sharp declines. These incomes have decreased overall for those outside the top 20th percentile, with the bottom 20th percentile seeing an average decline of 1% per year during that period.<ref name=LAO-data-on-real /><ref name=LAO-californias-changing /> Correspondingly, the percent of Californians with income below their poverty threshold has risen and fallen, but has on average increased by a tenth of a percentage point per year.<ref name=IPUMS />

Increasing [[Income inequality in the United States|income inequality]] has had many effects on Californians' lives, including on life expectancy, which can be taken as a proxy for health or even general welfare. A study conducted by Clarke et al.<ref name=clarke /> related life expectancy to socioeconomic status (SES, an index including income and other related factors), finding that Californians in the top 20% by SES live on average six years longer than those in the bottom 20% (81 years, compared to 75). This disparity becomes even more pronounced when [[Intersectionality|intersected]] with race: White males in the top 20% live 14 years longer than African American males in the bottom 20% (for females, the difference is 10 years).<ref name=clarke />

The complexity of the state's low-income trends were visible when, in response to growing Chinese and Spanish-speaking populations, the city of [[Oakland, California|Oakland]] implemented the nation's first policy of recruiting bilingual applicants for public-facing city jobs in 2001. This increased the employment of Hispanic and Chinese bilinguals throughout the public workforce, but also lowered (monolingual) Black employment.<ref name=sewell />

==See also==
{{Culture of California}}
* [[California locations by race]]
* [[California statistical areas]]
* [[California exodus]]
* [[Demographics of the United States]]
* [[Mexifornia]]
{{clear}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=USCB-CPS>{{Cite conference|last=US Census Bureau|date=2017|title=Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2017|url=https://www.census.gov/cps/data/cpstablecreator.html|access-date=2017-09-26}}</ref>
<ref name=sewell>{{Cite journal|last=Sewell|first=Abigail A.|date=2017|title=THE (UN)INTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF BILINGUAL EMPLOYMENT POLICIES: Ethnoraciality and Labor Market Segmentation in Alameda County, CA|journal=Du Bois Review; Cambridge|volume=14|issue=1|pages=117–143|doi=10.1017/S1742058X16000345|s2cid=150805693|issn=1742-058X|id={{ProQuest|1951745708}}}}</ref>
<ref name=clarke>{{Cite journal|last1=Clarke|first1=Christina A.|last2=Miller|first2=Tim|last3=Chang|first3=Ellen T.|last4=Yin|first4=Daixin|last5=Cockburn|first5=Myles|last6=Gomez|first6=Scarlett L.|date=2010|title=Racial and social class gradients in life expectancy in contemporary California|journal=Social Science & Medicine |volume=70|issue=9|pages=1373–80|issn=0277-9536|doi=10.1016/j.socscimed.2010.01.003|pmid=20171001|pmc=2849870|id={{ProQuest|230483088}}}}</ref>
<ref name=LAO-data-on-real>{{Cite web|url=http://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/201|title=Data on Real Income Growth Trends by Percentile, 1990-2014|last1=Sisney|first1=Jason|last2=Uhler|first2=Brian|date=2016-09-06|work=Legislative Analyst's Office (California Legislature)|access-date=2017-10-02}}</ref>
<ref name=LAO-californias-changing>{{Cite conference|last=Hill|first=Elizabeth G.|date=2000|title=California's Changing Income Distribution|url=http://www.lao.ca.gov/2000/0800_inc_dist/0800_income_distribution.pdf|publisher=Legislative Analyst's Office (California Legislature)|access-date=2017-09-30}}</ref>
<ref name=IPUMS>{{Citation| publisher = Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota| last1 = Flood| first1 = Sarah| last2 = King| first2 = Miriam| last3 = Ruggles| first3 = Steven| last4 = Warren| first4 = J. Robert| title = Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey: Version 4.0| access-date = 2017-10-02| date = 2015| url = http://cps.ipums.org}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline}}
* {{cite web |title=California Code, CONS SEC. 6. |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CONS&sectionNum=SEC.%206.&article=III |website=leginfo.legislature.ca.gov}}

{{California}}
{{Ethnic groups in California}}
{{Demographics of US}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demographics Of California}}
[[Category:Demographics of California| ]]
[[Category:Demographics of the United States by state|California]]