NC in Focus: American Indian and Alaska Native Population, 2014

“The first American Indian Day was celebrated in May 1916 in New York. Red Fox James, a Blackfeet Indian, rode horseback from state to state, getting endorsements from 24 state governments, to have a day to honor American Indians. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush signed a joint congressional resolution designating November 1990 as “National American Indian Heritage Month.” Similar proclamations have been issued every year since 1994.”

– U.S. Census Bureau on the history of American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month

179,000

North Carolina’s population of American Indians and Alaska Natives, including individuals who identify as more than one race. American Indian/Alaska Native residents made up about 1.8% of the state’s population in 2014. This represents a decline of about 5,000 individuals since the 2010 Census.

Of this total, about 62% identified as American Indian and Alaska Native only, a higher share than the national average (48%), and 38% identified as American Indian and Alaska Native in combination with one or more other races.

15

In 2014, there were 15 states with 100,000 or more American Indian and Alaska Native residents (either alone or in combination). The three states with the largest American Indian and Alaska Native population were California (739,000), Oklahoma (523,000), and Arizona (371,000).

33.5

The median age of North Carolinians who were American Indian and Alaska Native, alone or in combination, in 2014. This compares with a median age of 38.3 for North Carolina’s population as a whole.

77.5%

The percentage of American Indians and Alaska Natives (alone or in combination) who were 25 years or older and had at least a high school diploma, GED certificate, or alternative credential in 2014. Nearly 18% of American Indian and Alaska Native adults had obtained a bachelor’s degree or higher. In comparison, 86.4%% of the total state population 25 and older had a high school diploma or higher; nearly 28% had a bachelor’s degree or higher.

4.2%

Only 4.2% of North Carolina’s single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives, age 5 and older, spoke a language other than English at home in 2014. This is much lower than the national rate among single-race American Indians and Alaska Natives: 26.8%.

11,710

The number of American Indian and Alaska Native owned firms in North Carolina in 2012 according to the Survey of Business Owners. This represents 1.5% of all North Carolina firms.

North Carolina has the 6^th highest number of American Indian and Alaska Native owned firms after California, Oklahoma, Texas, New York, and Florida.

47%

The share of the state’s single-race American Indian and Alaska Native population residing in Robeson County in the 2010 Census. Half of the state’s American Indian and Alaska Native population resides in two counties: Robeson and Cumberland.