Connecticut: The Constitution State Atlas
Connecticut Demographics

Population Overview
Characteristics

As of the 1990 U.S. Census, Connecticut's total population was 3,287,116 persons. Fifty-seven percent of Connecticut's residents are state natives, equating to 1,874,080 people. The decennial census is the official attempted count of all persons in the United States, conducted by the Bureau of the Census. Using estimate data, Connecticut's population peaked in 1991 with approximately 3,291,000. Since this time the state's population has been declining. The 1990 population gave the state a ranking of twenty-seven, for total persons per state in the nation. However by the 1995 estimate, the rank dropped one place to twenty-eight. (1996 Statistical Book of Abstracts. 1996: p28 - 29) (U.S. Census Bureau. 1990: http://www.census.gov/population/socdemo/migration/pob-rank.txt )

During 1990 - 1995 Connecticut's population net change showed a loss of 0.4% or 12,000 persons. During this time the state saw more births than deaths, 250,000 as opposed to 151,000. In-migration to the state resulted in 37,000 people from outside the U.S. and 3,000 current U.S. citizens. The out-migration makes up the total loss, with 149,000 people leaving. (1996 Statistical Book of Abstracts. 1996: p30)

Historically, the population has been composed of Native Americans and White Anglo Saxon Protestants of English descent. Today, the composition of the state can be broken down into four basic racial categories; Native American and Alaska Native, Asian or Pacific Islander, Black, and White. (U.S. Census Bureau, "We asked You told us: Ancestry" 1990: p1-2) (1996 Statistical Book of Abstracts. 1996: p4)

The top five ancestry groups for the entire U.S. ranked by order are; German, Irish, English, Afro-American, and Italian. Connecticut's top rated ancestry today, is Italian. Of the 14,665,000 total U.S. Italians fifty-one percent are found in the Northeast. (U.S. Census Bureau, "We asked You told us: Ancestry" 1990: p1-2)(1996 Statistical Book of Abstracts. 1996: p53)

As of April 1996, 126,000 of Connecticut's residents were legal non-citizen immigrants. Of the 126,000 immigrants 73,000 were eligible for naturalization. These immigrants can legally live in the United States without becoming naturalized. (U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. 1996)

Connecticut Demographics