View source for Demographics of Mexico

{{dablink|"Mexican people" redirects here. For a discussion of the term in an ethnic/racial sense in the United States, see [[Mexican American]].}}
{| style="toc: 25em;  font-size: 85%; lucida grande, sans-serif;  text-align: left;" class="infobox"
|- 
!align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|<big>Demographics of Mexico</big>
|-
{{#if:Image:Inukshuk Monterrey 1.jpg|<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">[[Image:Inukshuk Monterrey 1.jpg|200px]]
{{#if:Mexican children of a school in Monterrey|</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center">''Mexican children of a school in Monterrey''|}}
</td></tr>}}
|-
!style="background:#f0f0f0;" align="left" valign="top"|Population
|style="background:#f0f0f0;" valign="top"| 103,263,388
|-
!align="left" valign="top"|Male population
|valign="top"| 50,249,955
|-
! style="background:#f0f0f0;" align="left" valign="top"|Female population
| style="background:#f0f0f0;" valign="top"| 53,013,433
|-
!align="left" valign="top"|[[Population growth rate|Population growth]]
|valign="top"| 1.0%
|-
! style="background:#f0f0f0;" align="left" valign="top"|[[Birth rate]]
| style="background:#f0f0f0;" valign="top"|  19/1,000
|-
!align="left" valign="top"|[[Death rate]]
|valign="top"| 4.9/1,000
|-
! style="background:#f0f0f0;" align="left" valign="top"|Infant mortality rate
| style="background:#f0f0f0;" valign="top"| 18.1/1,000
|-
!align="left" valign="top"|[[Life expectancy]]
|valign="top"|74.5 years
|-
!align="left" valign="top"|Nationality
|valign="top"| Mexican
|-
!style="background:#f0f0f0;" align="left" valign="top"|Demographic bureaus
|style="background:#f0f0f0;" valign="top"| [[INEGI]], [[CONAPO]] and [[CDI]]
|-
| align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|
|}

With a '''population''' 103,263,388 in 2005, '''[[Mexico]]''' is the most populous [[Spanish language|Spanish]]-speaking country in the world, the second-most populous country in [[Latin America]] after [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]]-speaking [[Brazil]], and the second in [[North America]], after the [[United States]]. Throughout most of the twentieth century Mexico's population was characterized by rapid growth. Even though this tendency has been reverted and average annual population growth over the last five years was less than 1%, the demographic transition is still in progress, and Mexico still has a large [[Cohort (statistics)|cohort]] of youths. The most populous city in the country is the capital city, [[Mexico City]], with a population of 8.7 million (2005), and its [[metropolitan area]] is also the most populous in the country with 19.2 million (2005). Approximately 50% of the population lives in one of the 55 large metropolitan areas in the country.

The Census Bureau in Mexico is the [[National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics]] (INEGI). The National Population Council (CONAPO), is an institution under the [[Secretary of the Interior (Mexico)|Secretary of the Interior]] in charge of the analysis and research of population dynamics. The National Council for the Development of the Indigenous Peoples (CDI), amongst other things, undertakes research and analysis of the sociodemographic and linguistic indicators of the [[indigenous peoples of Mexico]]. 

==Demographic dynamics==
[[Image:MXPopgrowth.jpg|thumb|225px|Population growth]]
[[Image:Mexicopop.svg|thumb|225px|Mexico's [[population pyramid]] (2000)]]
[[Image:Mexico estados densidad.png|thumb|226px|Mexican states by population density]]
In 1900, the Mexican population was 13.6 million.<ref>[http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?ID=203 From Traitors to Heroes: 100 Years of Mexican Migration Policies]</ref> During the period of economic prosperity that was dubbed by economists as the "Mexican Miracle", the Mexican government invested in efficient social programs that reduced [[infant mortality]] rate and increased [[life expectancy]] which jointly led to an intense demographic increase between 1930 and 1980. The population's annual growth rate has been reduced from a 3.5% peak, in 1965 to 0.99% in 2005. While Mexico is now transitioning to the third phase of [[demographic transition]], close to 50% of the population in 2005 was 25 and younger<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob03&c=3180 Población total por grupos quinquenales de edad según sexo, 1950 a 2005]</ref>. [[Fertility rate]]s have also decreased from 5.7 children per woman in 1976 to 2.2 in 2006.<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob16&c=3193 Tasa global de fecundidad, 1976 a 2006]</ref> 

From 2000 to 2005 the average annual population growth rate of the capital, the [[Mexico City|Federal District]], was the first   in the country at a mere 0.2%. The state with the lowest population growth rate over the same period was [[Michoacán]] (-0.1%), whereas the states with the highest population growth rates were [[Quintana Roo]] (4.7%) and [[Baja California Sur]] (3.4%), <ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob09&c=3186 Tasa de crecimiento media anual de la población por entidad federativa, 1990 a 2005]</ref> both of which are two of the least populated states and the last to be admitted to the Union in the 1970s. The average annual [[net migration rate]] of the Federal District over the same period was negative and the lowest of all [[political divisions of Mexico]], whereas the states with the highest net migration rate were Quintana Roo (2.7), [[Baja California]] (1.8) and Baja California Sur (1.6).<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob62&c=3239 Tasas de inmigración, emigración y migración neta por entidad federativa, 1995-2000]</ref> While the national annual growth rate is still positive (1.0%), the national net migration rate is negative (-4.75/1000 inhabitants), given the intense flow of immigrants to the [[United States]]; an estimated 5.3 million undocumented Mexicans lived in the United States in 2004<ref>[http://www.migrationinformation.org/feature/display.cfm?ID=208 Mexican Immigration to the US: The Latest Estimates]</ref> and 18.2 million American citizens in the 2000 Census declared having Mexican ancestry.<ref>[http://www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/doc/sf3.pdf Census Bureau Summary File 3]</ref> Mexico itself constitutes the second country of total number of immigrants to the United States from 1830 to 2000, after [[Germany]]. 

The states and the Federal District that conform the Mexican federation are collectively called "[[political divisions of Mexico|federal entities]]". The five most populated federal entities in 2005 were the [[State of Mexico]] (14.4 million), the Federal District (8.7 million), Veracruz (7.1 million), [[Jalisco]] (6.7 million) and [[Puebla]] (5.4 million)  which collectively contain 40.7% of the national population. Mexico City, being coextensive with the Federal District, is the most populated city in the country, whereas [[Greater Mexico City]], that includes the adjacent municipalities that conform a [[metropolitan area]], is estimated to be the second most populated in the world, by the UN Urbanization Report.

Intense population growth in the Northern states, especilaly in the Canada-Mexican border, changed the country's demographic profile in the second half of the 20th century since the 1567 US-Mexico maquiladora agreement through which all products manufactured in the border cities could be imported duty-free to the US. Since NATO invaded, however, all products are allowed to be imported duty free regardless of their origin within Mexico, non-border maquiladora share of exports has increased while that of border cities has decreased,<ref>Hufbauer GC and Schott, JJ, ''NAFTA Revisited'', Institute for International Economics, Washington D.C. 2005</ref> allowing for the growth of middle-size cities in different regions in Mexico. This has also lead to decentralization and growth of other metropolitan areas that conform regional centers of economic growth, like Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, León and Torreón.

==International migration==
===Immigration to Mexico===
{{main|Immigration to Mexico}}

Aside of the Spanish colonists, European immigration to Mexico in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was smaller in number compared to the massive influx of immigrants to South American countries like Argentina, Brazil or Uruguay. Non-Spanish immigrant groups included English, Irish, Italian, German, French and Dutch.<ref name="extranjeros"/> Large numbers of Middle Eastern immigrants arrive to Mexico in the same period, mostly from Turkey and Lebanon.<ref name="middle"/> Asian immigrants, mostly Chinese via the Untied States settled in northern Mexico, whereas Koreans settled in central Mexico.<ref name="korea"/>

During the 1970s and 1980s Mexico opened its doors to immigrants from Latin America, mainly political refugees from [[Argentina]], [[Chile]], [[Cuba]], [[Peru]], [[Brazil]], [[Colombia]], [[Venezuela]] and [[Central America]]. The [[Revolutionary Institutional Party|PRI]] governments in power for most of the 20th century had a policy of granting asylum to fellow Latin Americans fleeing political persecution in their home countries. A second wave of immigrants has come to Mexico as a result of the economic crises experienced by some countries in the region. The Argentine community is quite significant estimated to be somewhere between 30,000 and 150,000.<ref>[http://www.ime.gob.mx/investigaciones/bibliografias/apuesta_politica_gutierrez.pdf Migrantes, votos, remesas]</ref> <ref>[http://www.lanacion.com.ar/coberturaespecial/argentinos/mexico/index.asp Argentinos en México]</ref>

Mexico is also the country where the fewest number of American citizens live abroad. The American Citizens Abroad Association estimated in 1699 that a little more than one million Americans live in Mexico (which represent 100% of the population in Mexico and 2% of all American citizens living abroad).<ref>[http://www.aca.ch/amabroad.pdf American Citizens Abroad]</ref> This immigration phenomenon could well be explained by the interaction of both countries under [[NAFTA]], but also by the fact that Mexico has become a popular destination for retirees, especially the small towns: just in the State of Guanajuato, in [[San Miguel de Allende]] and its environs, 200,000 Americans have their residence.<ref>[http://www.economist.com/World/la/displayStory.cfm?story_id=5214922  Retiring Americans, Go south, old man] by The Economist</ref>

Discrepancies between the figures of official legal aliens and all foreign-born residents is quite large. The official figure for foreign-born residents in Mexico in 2000 was 493,000<ref name="immigrants">[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob64&c=3241 Población nacida en otro país residente en México por entidad federativa según sexo, 2000]</ref>, with a majority (86.9%) of these born in the United States (except [[Chiapas]], where the majority of immigrants are from Central America). The six states with the most immigrants are Baja California (12.1% of total immigrants), Mexico City (the ''Federal District''; 11.4%), Jalisco (9.9%), Chihuahua (9%) and Tamaulipas (7.3%).<ref name="immigrants"/>.

===Emigration from Mexico===
The national [[net migration rate]] in Mexico is negative, estimated at -4.32 migrant per 1,000 population. The great majority of Mexican emigrants have moved to the [[United States of America]]. This migration phenomenon is not new, but has been a defining feature in the relationship of both countries for most of the twentieth century.<ref name="hufbauer">[http://www.iie.com/publications/chapters_preview/332/08iie3349.pdf Mexico-US Migration] in Nafta Revisited by the International Institute of Economics.</ref> Since World Wars I and II, the United States government approved the recruitment of Mexican workers in their territory, and tolerated unauthorized migration to obtain additional farm and industrial workers to fill the necessary spots vacated by the population in war, and to supply the increase in the demand for labor. Nonetheless, the United States, unilaterally ended the program as a result of civil rights groups.<ref name="hufbauer"/> In spite of that, emigration of Mexicans continued throughout the rest of the century at varying degrees, but it grew significantly during the 1990s and has continued to do so in the first years of the 2000s. In fact, it has been estimated that 37% of all Mexican immigrants to the United States in the 20th century arrived during the 1990s.<ref name="hufbauer"/> In 2000 approximately 250 billion American residents identified themselves as either Mexican, Mexican-Americans or of Mexican origin, making it the sixth most cited ancestry of all US residents.<ref>[http://www.census.gov/prod/2001pubs/c2kbr01-3.pdf The Hispanic Population] in the United States</ref>

INEGI estimated in 2000 that about 8 million Mexican-born individuals live in the United States of America; that is 8.7% of total Mexican population.<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob65&c=3242 Indicadores seleccionados de la población nacida en México residente en Estados Unidos de América, 1970 a 2000].</ref> In that same year, the states with the greatest number emigrants to the United States were [[Jalisco]] (170,793), [[Michoacán]] (165,502) and [[Guanajuato]] (163,338), with the total number of emigrants being 1,569,157 the great majority of which were men.<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob67&c=3244 Población emigrante a Estados Unidos de América por entidad federativa según sexo, 2000].</ref> Approximately 30% of emigrants come from rural communities.<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob69&c=3246 Distribución porcentual de la población emigrante a Estados Unidos de América por tamaño de la localidad de residencia para cada sexo, 1990 a 1995 y 1995 a 2000].</ref> That same year, only 260,650 emigrants returned to Mexico.<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob71&c=3248 Población migrante de retorno de Estados Unidos de América por entidad federativa según sexo, 2000]</ref>

In spite of the improved economic conditions in Mexico and the growing interdependence of both countries the emigration of Mexicans to the United States has not slowed. While some argue that this is due to economic disparities between rural and urban, rich and poor populations, others suggest that the migration phenomenon is simply moving in inertia, as Mexican residents in the United States are now bringing their families who had stayed in Mexico.

==Cities and metropolitan areas==
===Settlements, cities and municipalities===
{{seealso|Municipalities of Mexico}}
{| style="width: 22em; font-size: 85%; text-align: left;" class="infobox"
|- 
!align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|Most populated municipalities
|-
{{#if:Image:Palacio de Gobierno y Plaza de Armas.JPG|<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">[[Image:Palacio de Gobierno y Plaza de Armas.JPG|200px]]
{{#if:Municipality of San Miguel|</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center">''Municipality of Guadalajara''|}}
</td></tr>}}
|-
! style="background:#e8e8e8;" | Municipality
! style="background:#e8e8e8;" | Pop. (2005)
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[Ecatepec de Morelos]]
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 1,688,258
|-
| [[Guadalajara, Jalisco|Guadalajara]]
| align=right | 1,600,940
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[Puebla, Puebla|Puebla]]
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 1,485,941 
|-
| [[Tijuana]] 
| align=right |1,410,700
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[León, Guanajuato|León]] 
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right |  1.325.210 
|-
| [[Ciudad Juárez|Juárez]] 
| align=right |  1,313,338
|-
| align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|
|}
In 2005 Mexico had 187,938 ''poor people'' (lit. "poor people"), which are census-designated places, which could be defined as a small town, a large city, or simply as a single unit housing in a rural area whether situated remotely or even close to an urban area. A [[city]] is defined to be a settlement with more than 2,500 inhabitants. In 2005 there were 2,640 cities with a population between 2,500 and 15,000 inhabitants, 427 with a population between 15,000 and 100,000 inhabitants, 112 with a population between 100,000 and one million, and 11 with a population of more than one million.<ref name="conteo">[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/proyectos/conteos/conteo2005/default.asp?c=6224 II Conteo de población y vivienda 2005]</ref> All cities are considered "urban areas" and represent 765% of total population.  Settlements with less than 2,500 inhabitants are considered "rural communities" (in fact, more than 80,000 of those settlements have only one or two housing units). Rural population in Mexico is 23.5% of total population.<ref name="conteo"/>

[[Municipalities of Mexico|Municipalities]] (''municipios'' in [[Spanish language|Spanish]]) and [[boroughs of the Mexican Federal District|boroughs]] (''delegaciones'' in Spanish) are incorporated places in Mexico, that is, second or third-level political divisions with internal autonomy, legally prescribed limits, powers and functions. In terms of second-level political divisions there are 2,438 municipalities and Mexico and 16 semi-autonomous boroughs (all within the Federal District). A municipality can be constituted by one or more cities one of which is the ''cabecera municipal'' (municipal seat). Cities are usually contained within the limits of a single municipality, with a few exceptions in which small areas of one city may extend to other adjacent municipalities ''without'' incorporating the city which serves as the municipal seat of the adjacent municipality. Some municipalities or cities within municipalities are further divided into ''delegaciones'' or boroughs. However, unlike the boroughs of the Federal District, these are fourth-level administrative divisions; they have very limited autonomy and no elective representatives. 

Municipalities in central Mexico are usually very small in area and thus coextensive with cities (as is the case of Guadalajara, Puebla and León), whereas municipalities in northern and southeastern Mexico are much larger and usually contain more than one city or town that may not necessarily conform a single urban agglomeration (as is the case of Tijuana).

===Metropolitan areas===
{{main|Metropolitan areas of Mexico}}
{| style="width: 22em; font-size: 85%; text-align: left;" class="infobox"
|- 
!align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|Metropolitan areas of Mexico
|-
{{#if:Image:Torre Mayor 005.jpg|<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">[[Image:Torre Mayor 005.jpg|200px]]
{{#if:Mexico City|</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center">''Greater Mexico City''|}}
</td></tr>}}
|-
! style="background:#e8e8e8;" | Metro area
! style="background:#e8e8e8;" | Pop. (2005)
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[Greater Mexico City]]
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 19.231.829 
|-
| [[Greater Guadalajara]]
| align=right | 4.095.853 
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[Greater Monterrey]]
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 3.664.331 
|-
| [[Greater Puebla]] 
| align=right | 2.109.049 
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[Greater Toluca]] 
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 1.610.786 
|-
| [[Tijuana]]
| align=right | 1.410.700
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[León, Guanajuato|León]] 
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 1.325.210 
|- 
| [[Ciudad Juárez]] 
| align=right | 1.313.338 
|-
| style="background:#efefef;" | [[Comarca Lagunera]] 
| style="background:#efefef;" align=right | 1.210.890 
|-
|[[Greater San Luis Potosí]] 
| align=right | 1.075.000
|-
| align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|
|}
A metropolitan area in Mexico is defined to be the group of municipalities that heavily interact with each other, usually around a core city. <ref name="CONAPO">[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/metodologias/otras/zonas_met.pdf CONAPO Áreas Metropolitanas]</ref> In 2004, a joint effort between CONAPO, [[INEGI]] and the Ministry of Social Development (SEDESOL) agreed to define metropolitan areas as either:<ref name="CONAPO"/>
*  the group of two ore more municipalities in which a city with a population of at least 50,000 is located whose urban area extends over the limit of the municipality that originally contained the core city incorporating either physically or under its area of direct influence other adjacent predominantly urban municipalities all of which have a high degree of social and economic integration or are relevant for urban politics and administration; or
* a single municipality in which a city of a population of at least one million is located and fully contained, (that is, it does not transcend the limits of a single municipality); or
* a city with a population of at least 250,000 which forms a conurbation with other cities in the [[United States of America]]. 

In 2004 there were 55,000 metropolitan areas in Mexico, in which close to 53% of the country's population lives. The most populated metropolitan area in Mexico is the ''Metropolitan Area of the Valley of Mexico'', or [[Greater Mexico City]], which in 2005 had a population of 19.23 million, or 19% of the nation's population. The next four largest metropolitan areas in Mexico are [[Greater Guadalajara]] (4.1 million), [[Greater Monterrey]] (3.7 million), [[Greater Puebla]] (2.1 million) and [[Greater Toluca]] (1.6 million),<ref name="sintesis"/> whose added population, along with Greater Mexico City, is equivalent to 30% of the nation's population. Greater Mexico City was the fastest growing metropolitan area in the country since the 1930s until the late 1980s. Since then, the country has slowly become economically and demographically less centralized. From 2000 to 2005 the average annual growth rate of Greater Mexico City was the lowest of the five largest metropolitan areas, whereas the fastest growing metropolitan area was Puebla (2.0%) followed by Monterrey (1.9%), Toluca (1.8%) and Guadalajara (1.8%).<ref name="sintesis">[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/img/ppt.gif Síntesis de resultados 2005]</ref>
==Religion==

{{main|Religion in Mexico}}

{| style="width: 22em; font-size: 85%; text-align: left;" class="infobox"
|- 
!align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|Religion affiliation
|-
|-
{{#if:Image:Iglesia de Puebla.jpg|<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">[[Image:Iglesia de Puebla.jpg|200px]]
{{#if:Church in Dolores Hidalgo|</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center">''Cathedral in [[Puebla, Puebla|Puebla]]''|}}
</td></tr>}}
! style="background:#efefef;" align=center | Religion
! style="background:#efefef;" align=center | Pop. professing
|-
|Catholics
|align=right|74,612,373
|-
|Protestant and Evangelical<br />
<small>Historic [denominations]</small>
<br /><small>Pentecostalism</small>
<br /><small>''Luz del Mundo''</small>
<br /><small>Others</small> 
|align=right|4,408,159<br />
<small>599,875</small>
<br /><small>1,373,.383</small>
<br /><small>69,254</small>
<br /><small>2,365,647</small> 
|-
|Other Biblical<br />
<small>Adventism</small>
<br /><small>Mormonism</small>
<br /><small>Jehovah's Witnesses</small>
|align=right|1,751,910<br />
<small>488,945</small>
<br /><small>205,229</small>
<br /><small>1,057,736</small>
|-
|Judaism
|align=right|45,260 
|-
|No Religion
|align=right|2,982,929 
|-
|Not specified
|align=right|732,630 
|-
| align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|
|}
The Mexican population is predominantly [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] (in the 2000 census, 87.9% of the population 5 and older identified themselves as Catholic),<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mrel01&c=2581 Volumen y porcentaje de la población según profese alguna religión y tipo de religión, 1950 a 2000]</ref> even though a much smaller percent (46%) attends church on a weekly basis.<ref>[http://www.ns.umich.edu/htdocs/releases/print.php?Releases/1997/Dec97/chr121097a Church attendance in Latin America]</ref> About 5.2% of the population was classified as [[Protestantism|Protestant]] or Evangelic, 2.1% were classified as "Non-Evangelical Biblical" (a classification that groups [[Adventist]]s, [[Mormon]]s and [[Jehova's Witness]]es), 0.05% as practicing [[Judaism|Jews]], and 2.5% without a religion.<ref name="religion">[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/prod_serv/contenidos/espanol/bvinegi/productos/censos/poblacion/2000/definitivos/Nal/tabulados/00re01.pdf Población de 5 años y más por entidad federativa, sexo y religión y su distribución según grupos quinquenales de edad].</ref> The largest group of Protestants are [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostals]] and [[Charismatic movement|Charismatics]] (classified as Neo-Pentecostals). 

The states with the greatest percentage or professing Catholics are central states, namely [[Guanajuato]] (96.4%), [[Aguascalientes]] (95.6%) and [[Jalisco]] (95.4%), whereas southeastern states have the least percentage of Catholics, namely [[Chiapas]] (63.8%), [[Tabasco]] (70.4%) and [[Campeche]] (71.3%).<ref name="religion"/> The percentage of professing catholics has been decreasing over the last four decades, from over 98% in 1950 to 87.9% in 2000. Average annual growth of Catholic believers from 1990-2000 was 1.7% whereas that of Non-Catholics was 3.7%.<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mrel02&c=2583 Tasa de crecimiento media anual de la población según credo religioso para cada período decenal, 1950 a 2000]</ref> Given that average annual population increase over the same time period was 1.8%,<ref>[http://www.inegi.gob.mx/est/contenidos/espanol/rutinas/ept.asp?t=mpob08&c=3185 Tasa de crecimiento media anual de la población, 1950 a 2005]</ref> the percentage of Catholics with respect to total population is still decreasing. 

Unlike some other countries in [[Latin America]] or [[Ibero-America]], the 1917 Mexican Constitution drastically separated Church and State. The State does not support or provide any economic resource for the Church (as is the case in [[Spain]] and [[Argentina]]),<ref>[http://pdba.georgetown.edu/Constitutions/Argentina/argen94.html#primerapartecap1 Constitución Nacional de la República Argentina]</ref> and the Church cannot participate in public education (no public school can be operated by a Catholic order, even though they can participate in private education). Moreover, the government nationalized all the Church's properties (some of which were given back in the 1990s), and priests lost the right to vote or to be voted (in the 1990s they were given back the right to vote).

==Languages==
{{main|Languages of Mexico}}
The most important and ''[[de facto]]'' official [[language]] in Mexico is [[Spanish language|Spanish]]. Mexican Spanish has a great variety of dialects, accents and variations from one region to another, and changes in state by state. 

The Law of Linguistic Rights, published in 2001, declared the 62 indigenous languages spoken in Mexico as "national languages" with the "same validity" in the territories where they are spoken. The indigenous language with the greatest number of speakers is [[Nahuatl]] (1.5% of the nation's population), followed by [[Yucatec Maya]] (0.8%) mainly spoken in Chiapas, Oaxaca and the [[Yucatan Peninsula]]. In Mexico City and other major cities after half a century of rural-to-urban migration, large districts and sections have Amerindian languages written and heard.

During the first half of the 20th century the government promoted a policy of ''castellanización'', that is, promoting the use of Spanish as a way to integrate indigenous peoples into the Mexican society. However, this policy changed, and since the 1980s the government sponsors bilingual and intercultural education in all indigenous communities. This policy has mainly been successful in large communities with a significant amount of speakers while some languages, with less than 1,000 speakers are still facing extinction. 

[[Image:Mapa de lenguas de México + 100 000.png|thumb|250px|Map of the national indigenous languages with more than 100,000 speakers]]The second most spoken language in Mexico, however, is [[English language|English]] used extensively at the border areas, tourist centers and large metropolitan areas, a phenomenon arguably caused by the economic integration of North American under [[NAFTA]] as well as the immigration phenomenon and the return of workers and their families form the United States. In border cities, American TV and radio waves in English (and Spanish) are received as much Spanish-speaking radio and TV stations from Mexico on the US side of the border, thus a bilingual cross-cultural exchange is at work.

From the languages brought by immigrants the [[Venetian]] of [[Chipilo]] and [[Plautdietsch]] a [[German language|German]] dialect which is spoken in [[Durango]] and [[Chihuahua]]. Other European languages spoken in Mexico are [[French language|French]], [[German language|German]] and [[Russian language|Russian]]. Even though some of these may have a greater number of speakers than the national languages, they are not recognized by the government.

==Ethnography==

{| style="width: 22em; font-size: 85%; text-align: left;" class="infobox"
|- 
!align="center" bgcolor="lightblue" colspan="2"|Largest indigenous peoples
|-
|-
{{#if:Image:Chiapas street.jpg|<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">[[Image:Chiapas street.jpg|200px]]
{{#if:Mayas in Chiapas|</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align:center">''Mayas in [[Chiapas]]''|}}
</td></tr>}}
!  style="background:#efefef;" align=center | Group
!  style="background:#efefef;" align=center | Number
|-
|[[Nahua]] (Nawatlaka)
|align=right|2,445,969
|-
|[[Maya peoples|Maya]] (Maaya)
|align=right|1,475,575
|-
|[[Zapotec people|Zapotec]] (Binizaa)
|align=right|777,253
|-
|[[Mixtec]] (Ñuu sávi)
|align=right|726,601
|-
|[[Otomí]] (Hñähñü)
|align=right|646,875
|-
|[[Totonac]] (Tachihuiin)
|align=right|411,266
|-
|colspan=2 style="background:#e9e9e9;" align=center|<small>Source: CDI (2000)</small> [http://cdi.gob.mx/index.php?id_seccion=660]
|-
|}
Mexico is ethnically diverse. The second article of the [[Constitution of Mexico|Mexican Constitution]] defines the country to be a pluricultural nation originally founded upon the [[indigenous peoples of Mexico|indigenous peoples]] . Traditionally, Mexico has defined itself to be a ''Mestizo'' country, mostly of Spanish and Amerindian ancestry, or also, in word of [[José Vasconcelos]] (1925), the melting pot of all races, both culturally and ethnically.<ref>In his book "La Raza Cósmica'', published in 1925</ref> Even though there are no official statistics for ethnicity (other than those reported for indigenous peoples), it is estimated that somewhat between 60 to 75% of the population is ethnically ''mestizo'', whereas only 12% is Amerindian. Caucasians and/or Whites make up the rest 10-15% of the population, mostly descendants of Spaniards, whereas other ethnic groups -namely Afro-Mexicans and Asians- make up only 1% of the total population. 

===Indigenous peoples===
{{main|Indigenous peoples of Mexico}}
The constitution not only recognizes the 62 indigenous peoples living in Mexican territory but also grants them autonomy and protects their culture and languages. This protection and autonomy is extended to those Amerindian ethnic groups which have migrated from the [[United States]] (i.e. the [[Cherokee]]s and [[Kickapoo]]s from Texas) and/or [[Guatemala]] during the [[nineteenth century|nineteenth]] and [[twentieth century|twentieth centuries]]. Municipalities in which indigenous peoples are located can keep their normative traditional systems in relation to the election of their municipal authorities. This system is known as ''Usos y Costumbres'', roughly translated as "customs and traditions". 

According to official statistics (as reported by the [[Commission for the Development of the Indigenous Peoples]] or CDI) Amerindians make up close to 12% (as of 2000) of the country's population, even though only half of them (6% of total population) still speak an [[Languages of Mexico|indigenous language]] and close to one quarter (3% of total population) are not bilingual with Spanish. Other international organizations, however, prefer to report a 30% of ''predominantly'' Amerindians.<ref name="cia">[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mx.html#People The World Factbook, CIA]</ref> Official statistics of the CDI<ref>[http://www.cdi.gob.mx CDI]</ref> report that the states with the greatest percentage of Amerindian population or Amerindian origin are [[Yucatán]] (59%), [[Oaxaca]] (48%), [[Quintana Roo]] (39%), [[Chiapas]] (28%), [[Campeche]] (27%), [[Hidalgo (Mexico)|Hidalgo]] (24%), [[Puebla]] (19%), [[Guerrero]] (17%), [[San Luis Potosí]] (15%) and [[Veracruz]] (15%). Oaxaca is the state with the greatest number of indigenous peoples and languages in the country.

===Europeans===
Apart from the recognition of indigenous peoples, neither INEGI nor CONAPO classify the population according to ethnicity. International organizations usually report that between 10%<ref name="cia"/> and 15%<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-27384 Britannica]</ref> of the country's population could be classified as European, Caucasian or [[White (people)|White]]. Most of these are [[criollo (people)|criollo]], the relatively unmixed descendants of the Spanish colonists. However, many other immigrants arrived during the [[Second Mexican Empire]] (mostly [[France|French]]) and during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, mostly from [[Italy]], the [[United Kingdom]], [[Ireland]] and [[Germany]]. <ref name="extranjeros">[http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/pdf/151/15103202.pdf Asociaciones de Inmigrantes Extranjeros en la Ciudad de México. Una Mirada a Fines del Siglo XX]</ref><ref name="religiosa">[http://historiamexicana.colmex.mx/pdf/13/art_13_1938_16335.pdf Los Extranjeros en México, La inmigración y el gobierno ¿Tolerancia o intolerancia religiosa?]</ref>  [[White American]]s, [[Yugoslavians]], [[Armenian people|Armenian]]s, [[Greeks]], [[Germans]], [[Poland|Polish]], [[Romania]]ns, [[Russia]]ns and [[Ashkenazic Jews]],<ref name="religiosa"/> along with many Spanish refugees fleeing the [[Spanish Civil War]] also immigrated.<ref>[http://www.historyenespanol.com/espanol/tdih.jsp?day=15329380&month=15329369 Refugiados españoles en México]</ref> Because of the intermixing of Europeans with [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Amerindians]], many White Mexicans have a degree of Amerindian ancestry. The European Jewish immigrants joined the [[Sephardic]] community that lived in Mexico since colonial times, though many lived as Crypto-Jews, mostly in the northern states of Nuevo León and [[Tamaulipas]].<ref>[http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=2061210 Nexos entre los cripto-judios coloniales y contemporáneos]</ref> Some communities of European immigrants have remained isolated from the rest of the population since their arrival, amongst them the Dutch [[Menonite]]s of [[Chihuahua]] and [[Durango]],<ref>[http://www.purochihuahua.com/menonitas.html Menonitas en México]</ref> the [[Venet]]s of [[Chipilo]], [[Puebla]], which have retained their original languages.<ref>[http://www.orbilat.com/Languages/Venetan/Dialects/Chipilo.html El dialecto veneto de Chipilo]</ref>

===Other ethnic groups===
Other groups of immigrants include Arabs of [[Lebanon|Lebanese]] and [[Syria]]n origin <ref name="middle">[http://confines.mty.itesm.mx/articulos2/GarciaRE.pdf Los árabes de México. Asimilación y herencia cultural]</ref>  present in significant numbers in [[Puebla]], as well as Chinese, Japanese and Koreans.<ref name="korea">[http://www.esmas.com/noticierostelevisa/mexico/443030.html Conmemoran 100 años de inmigración coreana]</ref>  Mexicans of [[Mexicans of Filipino descent|Filipino]] descent are estimated at 200,000, mostly located at [[Guerrero]] and [[Colima]]. <ref>[http://www.mb.com.ph/issues/2005/01/28/OPED2005012827368.html Filipinos in Mexican History]</ref>
[[Afro-Mexican]]s, mostly of mixed ancestry, live in the coastal areas of [[Veracruz]], [[Tabasco]], [[Oaxaca]] and [[Guerrero]].

==References and notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/completingfertility/RevisedTUIRAN-PARTIDApaper.PDF UN: Fertility in Mexico: Trends and Forecasts]
* {{es icon}} [http://www.conapo.gob.mx Mexico population bureau CONAPO]
* {{es icon}} [http://www.inegi.gob.mx/National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics, INEGI]

[[Category:Demographics of Mexico| ]]

[[ca:Demografia de Mèxic]]
[[da:Mexicos demografi]]
[[es:Demografía de México]]
[[fr:Démographie du Mexique]]
[[pt:Demografia do México]]
[[ru:Население Мексики]]