Central Americans now make up the majority of Maryland’s Hispanic population — the fastest-growing population in the state — a growth primarily led by a large influx of Salvadorans over the last decade, new Census data shows. But unlike the 1990s, which saw large numbers of immigrants, growth in the Washington region in the last 10 years is mostly attributed to the children of immigrants, experts said. The shift has meant that organizations that serve Hispanics in Maryland, who are largely focused in the suburbs, are grappling with how to integrate the growing population while preserving their culture.
In the last decade, the number of Salvadorans statewide more than tripled and their share of Maryland’s Hispanic population increased by 11 percentage points, the largest jump of any group. Much of the growth was focused in Prince George’s County, where the population quadrupled. Montgomery and Prince George’s combine for more than 80 percent of the statewide Salvadoran population, down from 90 percent in 2000.
The story is similar in Northern Virginia, with Fairfax and Prince William counties combining for 57 percent of the statewide Salvadoran population.
Source: U.S. Census
| Salvadorans make up largest ethnic group among Hispanics | ||||||||||
| Total | Central | Share of | Salva- | Share of | Mexi- | Share of | Guate- | Share of | ||
| Total | Hispanic | Amer. | Hispanic | doran | Hispanic | can | Hispanic | malan | Hispanic | |
| Jurisdiction | pop. | pop. | total | pop. | total | pop. | total | pop. | total | pop. |
| Maryland | 5.8 million | 470,632 | 8.2% | 283,696 | 60.3% | 123,789 | 26.3% | 88,004 | 18.7% | 34,491 | 7.3% |
| Montgomery | 971,777 | 165,398 | 17.0% | 93,146 | 56.3% | 52,615 | 31.8% | 14,819 | 9% | 10,596 | 6.4% |
| Wheaton | 48,284 | 20,155 | 41.7% | 13,602 | 67.5% | 8,912 | 44.2% | 1,530 | 7.6% | 1,354 | 6.7% |
| Prince George’s | 863,420 | 128,972 | 14.9% | 94,484 | 73.3% | 47,355 | 36.7% | 24,247 | 18.8% | 13,818 | 10.7% |
| Langley Park | 18,755 | 14,359 | 76.6% | 11,298 | 78.7% | 4,217 | 29.4% | 1,101 | 7.7% | 5,029 | 35% |
As to why the population continues to grow in concentrated areas, demographers said there’s often no special reason.
“It has to do with who gets a toehold and oftentimes it’s just happenstance,” said Lisa Sturtevant, a professor at George Mason University’s Center for Regional Analysis, adding that job opportunities across a wide skill range originally attracted may immigrants to the Washington area. “So as word spreads … why not go [there] because you knew you’d have a place to stay for a while.”
It’s the same reason why a significant contingent of Bolivians has settled in Arlington County, even as that jurisdiction becomes less diverse, she said. South Americans in Northern Virginia contribute to that area’s expansion but suburban Maryland is split. More than 22 percent of Montgomery’s Hispanic population is South American, while that share is just 4.5 percent in Prince George’s.
Over the last decade, Central Americans have claimed a majority of the Hispanic population in Montgomery and statewide. They were already the majority in Prince George’s in 2000.
“It’s important to keep in mind that a lot of growth is coming from children, so that has its own set of issues associated with it,” said Audrey Singer, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution. “[Especially] with certain countries like El Salvador and Guatemala where the economy and political conditions were so harsh that people who would not normally leave did leave.”
Enid Gonzalez, an attorney with CASA de Maryland, said that leads to different social issues among the Hispanic community. Whereas first-generation immigrants tend to be more grateful just to find work and create an opportunity for their families, that can change with the children.
“You have kids who grow up as a minority and with a chip on their shoulder their attitudes change,” she said. “That’s why I think the work to provide a path to integration is so important.”
She noted that separation can cause more disruption, especially when it’s linked to criminal behavior such as the MS-13 gang from El Salvador.
“We are working very hard to integrate folks while they maintain those values they bring,” she said. “The association between immigrants and criminals … causes hate toward immigrants and a feeling of rejection among their citizen children growing up in the United States.”
