Maryland’s Guatemalan population has surged in the past decade, more than doubling its population share among Hispanics, a feat some say is part of a national trend. The growth, centered in the Maryland suburbs, has reshaped Langley Park’s population. Once just less than 18 percent of the area’s Hispanic population, the Guatemalan share has jumped to 35 percent and surpassed Salvadorans as the predominant nationality there.
Some experts say the population in Maryland is still too small to draw conclusions. However, others note that the group is ranked 10th nationally in terms of its immigration numbers.
“It’s a combination of the conditions in Guatemala and strong ties to people already in U.S.,” said Audrey Singer, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.
And Guatemalans tend to have a higher birth rate among Hispanics, Singer said.
In Langley Park, the average household size is 3.7 people, significantly higher than other Prince George’s towns, which average 2.8 people per home.
The trend in fast-growing Central American populations is relatively unique to the Washington region, demographers said. Whereas New York attracts many Dominicans and Puerto Ricans and the Southwest attracts predominantly Mexicans, the Washington region is home to a large mix of nationalities, leaving no single group with the edge.
“When we looked at settlement patterns in ’90s, we were really pretty stunned to see how mixed things were on the ground,” Singer said. “After a good 25, 30 years of settlement it is the case that some neighborhoods are becoming concentrated in certain groups … but [their share is] still not even close to half.” – Liz Farmer
