A surging number of immigrants from China will soon surpass immigrants from the Dominican Republic in New York City, according to a report from the City Planning Department. It's 235 pages, and you can curl up with it by popping open this pdf, but the short version is that NYC's immigrant population is at a record high, and the leading demographic is Chinese. Some fun facts to scare your xenophobic uncle with:
- The largest numeric growth in immigration took place in the Bronx, while Staten Island saw the largest percentage increase.
- The largest immigrant group is from the Dominican Republic, with 380,200 residents. China follows with 350,200 residents.
- But immigrants from China are surging, having grown by 34 percent since 1990.
- Dominicans have increased by just 3 percent.
- China gave NYC more legal immigrants than any other nation between 2002 and 2011.
- Mexicans are now in third place, with 186,300 residents, but that immigrant group increased a whopping 52 percent over the last decade.
- Jamaicans (169,200) and Guyanese (139,900) are in third and fourth place, respectively.
- Ecuador, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, India, and Russia round out the top ten groups.
- Many of Brooklyn’s immigrants settled along a “horseshoe” formed by the B, Q and N train lines.
- Most Queens immigrants are along the 7 line.
- Immigrants comprise 47 percent of all employed residents across all major industries.
According to the report, New York now "boasts the most diverse population of any major city in the world because of the flow of immigrants from across the globe." The city is so diverse, there is currently no single dominate ethnic group in New York City. If you're curious to see which ethnic groups live where, check out the neat interactive map on the Department of City Planning website.
