At Home in the Nation’s Capital: Immigrant Trends in Metropolitan Washington

Findings

An analysis of the growth and location of the foreign born in the Washington metropolitan
area between 1980 and 2000 finds that:

• The Washington metropolitan area
  attracted 575,000 immigrants
  between 1980 and 2000 and has
  become a major destination for immigrants
  to the United States. By 2000, 832,016 immigrants made up some 17
  percent of the region’s population, making
  the area the seventh-largest immigrant
  gateway in the United States.

• During the 1990s, the largest numerical
  gain of immigrants occurred in
  the inner suburban counties, while
  the largest proportional increase was
  in the outer counties. Montgomery, Fairfax, and Prince George’s counties
  together gained nearly 250,000 immigrants,
  for an increase of 72 percent.
  Immigrants in the outer counties,
  including Loudoun and Prince William,
  grew by 160 percent with a gain of
  nearly 50,000 foreign-born residents.

• New immigrants made up nearly half
  of the overall population growth in the
  Washington metropolitan region in the
  past decade. Remarkably, some 47.5 percent
  of Washington’s foreign born arrived in the decade. This influx has accounted
  for a majority of inner suburban population
  growth and offset some of the
  District of Columbia’s population losses.

• Three-quarters of all immigrants in
  greater Washington come from a
  diverse group of 30 origin countries. El Salvador tops the list of origin countries
  with more than 100,000 residents
  counted in 2000, or 12.6 percent of the
  foreign-born population. Overall, 39 percent
  of the region’s immigrants come
  from Latin America and the Caribbean,
  36 percent are from Asia, 12 percent
  from Europe, 11 percent from Africa, and
  2 percent from other countries.

• The majority of the region’s immigrants
  report a good command of the English
  language, with one in six speaking only
  English and 62 percent speaking English
  well or very well. This high rate of
  English proficiency exceeds that in all of the other large immigrant metro areas.
  At the same time, more than one-quarter
  of the foreign born in the more densely
  populated immigrant areas of Arlington,
  Alexandria, and the District say they cannot
  speak English well, or at all.

• The region’s immigrants primarily live
  in moderate and high income neighborhoods,
  not the poorest. Not all indicators
  are positive, however, as 10.6
  percent of immigrants live in poverty.

Immigration has indelibly altered the Washington region. Its heterogeneous nature—in
terms of national origin, settlement patterns, language ability, and economic status—poses
unique challenges, particularly in areas of immigrant concentration. How these challenges
are met, especially in light of a languishing economy and the immigration impacts of
September 11, will influence whether the region remains a home and employment center
for immigrants.