Majority-minority Relations
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A majority-minority or minority-majority area is a term used to refer to a
subdivision Subdivision may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Subdivision (metre), in music * ''Subdivision'' (film), 2009 * "Subdivision", an episode of ''Prison Break'' (season 2) * ''Subdivisions'' (EP), by Sinch, 2005 * "Subdivisions" (song), by Rush ...
in which one or more racial, ethnic, and/or religious minorities (relative to the whole country's population) make up a majority of the local population.


Terminology

The exact terminology used differs from place to place and language to language. In many large, contiguous countries like
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, there are many
autonomous regions An autonomous administrative division (also referred to as an autonomous area, zone, entity, unit, region, subdivision, province, or territory) is a subnational administrative division or internal territory of a sovereign state that has a degree o ...
where a minority population is the majority. These regions are generally the result of historical population distributions, not because of recent immigration or recent differences in birth and fertility rates between various groups.


Background

Majority minority areas exist in two main forms. One form is when a homogeneous grouping residing within an area make up a majority of the local population. This grouping would otherwise be a minority in the broader jurisdiction. The other type occurs when several disparate groupings, when counted together, form a percentage-share majority of the local population, outnumbering the historically dominant group as a composite of diverse minority groups. Whether distinctions between groups are religious, ethnic, linguistic or racial; these different forms of majority-minority scenarios, or areas, tend to contribute towards different socio-political and cultural environments. For example, a study of the 2006
European Social Survey The European Social Survey (ESS) is a social scientific endeavour to map the attitudes, beliefs and behaviour patterns of the various populations in Europe. The average duration of an ESS interview is 60 minutes in British English and data is deposi ...
found that people of localized majority-minority status across 21 EU countries were more supportive of stronger political
European integration European integration is the process of political, legal, social, regional and economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe, or nearby. European integration has primarily but not exclusively come about through the European Union ...
than existing national native majorities, and a 2019
Pew Research Center The Pew Research Center (also simply known as Pew) is a nonpartisan American think tank based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the world. It ...
study found that 46 percent of
white Americans White Americans (sometimes also called Caucasian Americans) are Americans who identify as white people. In a more official sense, the United States Census Bureau, which collects demographic data on Americans, defines "white" as " person hav ...
believed national majority-minority demography would negatively impact
American culture The culture of the United States encompasses various social behaviors, institutions, and Social norm, norms, including forms of Languages of the United States, speech, American literature, literature, Music of the United States, music, Visual a ...
. There has also been study on groupings said to have 'old' and 'new' majority-minority status in specific areas. In research funded by the EU's
Framework Programmes A framework is a generic term commonly referring to an essential supporting structure which other things are built on top of. Framework may refer to: Computing * Application framework, used to implement the structure of an application for an op ...
, a 2015 study explored this difference, finding that, for example, ethnic Austrians living in
South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...
manifest a culture which tends to oblige
ethnic Italians Italians (, ) are a European ethnic group native to the Italian geographical region. Italians share a common culture, history, ancestry and language. Their predecessors differ regionally, but generally include populations such as the Etrusc ...
to learn the
German language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western Europe, Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and Official language, official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switze ...
for advancement in the province, such as access to the administration of local government. This was contrasted with 'new' immigration-derived majority-minority populaces in Europe.


Schools

In the United States, the vast majority of
African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
and
Hispanic and Latino Americans Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spaniards, Spanish or Latin Americans, Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino (demonym), ...
attend schools where
white Americans White Americans (sometimes also called Caucasian Americans) are Americans who identify as white people. In a more official sense, the United States Census Bureau, which collects demographic data on Americans, defines "white" as " person hav ...
are in the minority. 2006 research from
The Civil Rights Project The Civil Rights Project/ El Proyecto de CRP, originally named The Civil Rights Project, is a multidisciplinary research and policy think tank focused on issues of racial justice. In January 2007, The Civil Rights Project moved from Harvard Univer ...
found that, on average, white students attend schools that are 78% white, while black and Hispanic students attend schools which are 29% white. A study on this suggested that; "This data is important because "majority minority" schools have the worst facilities (buildings, labs, libraries, athletic facilities), the least qualified teachers, the worst overcrowding, and the least financial support." In regards to racial classification at a national level,
public schools Public school may refer to: *Public school (government-funded), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government *Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging private schools in England and Wales *Great Public Schools, ...
in the US obtained majority minority status in 2014. At the university level,
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
's first case of a majority-minority freshman class was reported in 2017. In the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
, majority-minority schools emerged in the post-war period, starting as a phenomenon in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
with immigration from Suriname and from Curaçao, right after
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. In the 1970 and 80s, second-generation black Dutch students with ancestry from the
Netherlands Antilles The Netherlands Antilles (, ; ), also known as the Dutch Antilles, was a constituent Caribbean country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands consisting of the islands of Saba (island), Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten in the Lesser Antilles, ...
, were joined in classes by the children of workers emigrating from Turkey and
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
, creating
ethnic Dutch The Dutch, or Netherlanders (Dutch language, Dutch: ) are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common ancestry and culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities wor ...
minorities in some schools within the country's capital. In a 2020 study of school classes in European cities, research on
Turks in Austria Turks in Austria, also referred to as Turkish Austrians and Austrian Turks, (; ) are people of Turkish ethnicity living in Austria. They form the largest ethnic minority group in the country; thus, the Turks are the second largest ethnic group ...
and
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
found that "a 'majority minority' school environment may empower minority group members so that relative numbers would protect them from becoming the target of discrimination."


Observation by settlement


Towns and cities

Many cities in
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
have majority-minority scenarios (based upon racial classifications in the
US census The United States census (plural censuses or census) is a census that is legally mandated by the Constitution of the United States. It takes place every ten years. The first census after the American Revolution was taken in 1790 under Secretar ...
and the
census in Canada Statistics Canada conducts a national census of population and Canadian Census of Agriculture, census of agriculture every five years and releases the data with a two-year lag. The Census of Population provides Demographics of Canada, demographic ...
). Since the late 20th century, areas of Northern and
Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
have been undergoing demographic transformation resulting in majority minority cities. A 2018 study in ''
Frontiers in Psychology ''Frontiers in Psychology'' is a peer-reviewed open-access academic journal covering all aspects of psychology. It was established in 2010 and is published by Frontiers Media, a controversial company that is included in Jeffrey Beall's list of " ...
'' analyzed:
In the United States and Canada racial minorities already comprise a larger share of the population than Whites in dozens of major cities (e.g.,
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
and
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
). These cities have been dubbed majority-minority areas—or places where the racial/ethnic majority comprise less than half the population (Frey, 2011; Jedwab, 2016). Western Europe is also becoming more diverse, albeit more slowly (Browne, 2000).
London, England London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
is one of the few major European cities that has been designated a majority–minority area.
Based upon the UK's
Office for National Statistics The Office for National Statistics (ONS; ) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament. Overview The ONS is responsible fo ...
racial or ethnic categorization, demographic research suggests that
Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
and
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
will each join London in majority minority status in the 2020s.
University of Antwerp The University of Antwerp () is a major Belgian university located in the city of Antwerp. The official abbreviation is ''UAntwerp''. The University of Antwerp has about 20,000 students, which makes it the third-largest university in Flanders. ...
's professor Dirk Geldof, writing in 2016, noted that "within a matter of years,
Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
will also become a majority-minority city, as will many other
European cities This list ranks metropolitan areas in Europe by their population according to three different sources; it includes metropolitan areas that have a population of over 1 million. Sources List includes metropolitan areas according only to the stud ...
." An education inclusion project at
Hague University The Hague University of Applied Sciences (abbreviated as: ''THUAS''; ) is a university of applied sciences with its campuses located in The Hague, Delft and Zoetermeer. The main campus in The Hague is located behind The Hague Hollands Spoor ra ...
published that; "In superdiverse cities like
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
,
The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
and
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
there is no majority anymore. These are so-called majority minority cities". According to a study at the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...
's research repository
CORDIS The Community Research and Development Information Service (CORDIS) is the European Commission's primary public repository and portal to disseminate information on all European Union (EU) funded research projects and their results in the broadest se ...
:
In cities like
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, now only one in three youngsters under age fifteen is of native descent. This situation, referred to as a majority-minority context, is a new phenomenon in Western Europe and it presents itself as one of the most important societal and psychological transformations of our time.
In the course of two generations places in
Northwestern Europe Northwestern Europe, or Northwest Europe, is a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern and Western Europe. The term is used in geographic, history, and military contexts. Geographic definitions Geographically, Northwestern ...
, such as
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
and
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
, have become majority minority, with
ethnic Dutch The Dutch, or Netherlanders (Dutch language, Dutch: ) are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common ancestry and culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities wor ...
,
Flemings Flemish people or Flemings ( ) are a Germanic ethnic group native to Flanders, Belgium, who speak Flemish Dutch. Flemish people make up the majority of Belgians, at about 60%. ''Flemish'' was historically a geographical term, as all inhabita ...
and
Walloons Walloons ( ; ; ) are a Gallo-Romance languages, Gallo-Romance ethnic group native to Wallonia and the immediate adjacent regions of Flanders, France, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Walloons primarily speak ''langues d'oïl'' such as B ...
, respectively, representing less than 50 percent of the population of the capitals.


States and regions

In 2010, the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
reported that "America's two largest states -
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
and
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
- became "majority-minority" states (with an overall minority population outnumbering the white majority) in 1998 and 2004 respectively." Demographers
Dudley L. Poston Jr. Dudley Louis Poston Jr. is an American academic whose areas of study include Demography, Human Ecology, and Sociology. Early and personal life Dudley L. Poston Jr. was born in San Francisco, California on 29 November 1940 to Dudley Louis Post ...
and
Rogelio Sáenz Rogelio Sáenz is currently Professor in the Department of Demography at the University of University of Texas at San Antonio and the Mark G. Yudof Endowed Chair at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Prior to joining UTSA, Sáenz was Professor ...
have noted how "nonwhites account for more than half of the populations of
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
, the
District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...
, California,
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
, Texas and
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
. In the next 10 to 15 years, these half-dozen “majority-minority” states will likely be joined by as many as eight other states where whites now make up less than 60 percent of the population." In Europe, various national medias report on the
social situation in the French suburbs The word ''banlieue'', which is French for "suburb", does not necessarily refer to an environment of social disenfranchisement. Indeed, there exist many wealthy suburbs, such as Neuilly-sur-Seine (the wealthiest commune of France per capita) a ...
with regards to disproportionate poverty and unrest. Known as
banlieues In France, a banlieue (; ) is a suburb of a large city, or all its suburbs taken collectively. Banlieues are divided into autonomous administrative entities and do not constitute part of the city proper. For instance, 80percent of the inhabitant ...
, these outer-city regions across France are often majority-minority areas, in terms of race or ethnicity in relation to the ethnic French.


Nations and countries

The meaning of "majority-minority" or "minority-majority", in relation to a whole country, is not well defined and may not be consistent between different users of the terms. A multitude of scholars have designated countries, or sovereign states, particularly in the developed or
Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to various nations and state (polity), states in Western Europe, Northern America, and Australasia; with some debate as to whether those in Eastern Europe and Latin America also const ...
, which are projected to obtain majority-minority demography between 2040 and 2050. This includes the United States, Canada and New Zealand, with
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, and nations in
Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
, estimated to follow this trend toward the end of the century. In this usage, "majority-minority" usually means that a previously majority group becomes a plurality group, less than 50% of the population but still larger than any other group. Occasionally, it may mean a change of the majority group, with the previously majority group becoming a minority group and a previously minority group becoming the new majority group. This will not be the first time that the status of majority ethnic group has changed in these countries: it is estimated that Australia became a "majority-minority" country in the 1840s, when arriving Europeans first outnumbered
Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
. New Zealand became "majority-minority" slightly later, with non-Māori first outnumbering the Māori population around 1858.
David Coleman David Robert Coleman (26 April 1926 – 21 December 2013) was a British sports commentator and television presenter who worked for the BBC for 46 years. He covered eleven Summer Olympic Games from 1960 to 2000 and six FIFA World Cups from 196 ...
has studied a similar statistical projection in Britain. Coleman, a professor of demography at the
University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
, estimates that by 2060
the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
will reach majority-minority status (where the "white British" ethnic group is taken to be the current "majority", excluding "white Irish", "other white" and "mixed" groups). In the
developing world A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreeme ...
, the South American nation of
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
has been described as a majority-minority country. This is with regards to
white Brazilians White Brazilians ( ) refers to Brazilian citizens who are considered or self-identify as "white", typically because of Ethnic groups in Europe, European or Levant, Levantine Asian ancestry. The main ancestry of current white Brazilians is Portu ...
being the historically largest group, and while remaining culturally dominant, have since become a national minority.


Distinctions between groups

There are multiple axis points of difference, and distinction, between groupings of people that can contribute towards the attribution of majority-minority status upon a particular area or within a societal scenario. With cultural, linguistic or religious differences, there is usually a corresponding difference in ethnicity, whether related in a central or peripheral way, to said distinctions. For instance, there are examples of this throughout
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
. Where racial distinctions are made, this is most often in relation to
white people White is a Race (human categorization), racial classification of people generally used for those of predominantly Ethnic groups in Europe, European ancestry. It is also a Human skin color, skin color specifier, although the definition can var ...
, and most usually in
European nations The list below includes all entities falling even partially under any of the regions of Europe, various common definitions of Europe, geographical or political. Fifty generally recognised sovereign states, Kosovo with limited, but substantial, ...
or nations derived from
European colonialism The phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by various civilizations such as the Phoenicians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Han Chinese, and Ar ...
, such as Brazil or the United States. Other countries, such as Australia, do not collect statistics based on racial categories such as "white people" or "black people", preferring to categorise ancestries by reference to self-identified country of ancestral origin, such as "English", "German" or "Australian".


Cultural and linguistic

Where religion does not significantly influence designations of majority minority labels, certain cultural and linguistic differences may be emphasized in that particular society, such as in
South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...
. Whereas the majority of residents in the
northern Italian Northern Italy (, , ) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. The Italian National Institute of Statistics defines the region as encompassing the four Northwest Italy, northwestern Regions of Italy, regions of Piedmo ...
province are ethnic Austrians and speak the
German language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western Europe, Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and Official language, official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switze ...
(in comparison with the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
-speaking ethnic Italian majority of the broader nation), the population's adherence to
Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
is similar to the rest of the country.


Ethnic

Kosovo has a history of being a majority-minority area via the historic borders of Serbia in the 20th century, and prior to its independence declaration. While this phenomenon may predominantly be observed to be ethnicity-based (upon distinctions between ethnic Albanians and ethnic Serbs), contributing factors involve the Islamic religiosity of Albanians and Christianity of Serbians, as well as the ethno-linguistic considerations of the Albanian language and Serbian language.


Racial

When majority minority status is designated or predicted in terms of racial groups, many scholarly and journalistic works make this distinction with reference to
white people White is a Race (human categorization), racial classification of people generally used for those of predominantly Ethnic groups in Europe, European ancestry. It is also a Human skin color, skin color specifier, although the definition can var ...
. Based upon nation-based racial classifications, academics Eric Kaufmann and Matthew Goodwin have suggested that white people will be minorities in the United States, Canada and New Zealand, in what they define as "the ‘majority-minority’ point", by approximately 2050.


Religious

While majority-minority status for Catholics in areas of Northern Ireland, in contrast with historical Protestant majorities across the territory as a whole, can be described to be based on religion; there are ethno-linguistic factors (such as Irish language, Irish-speaking Catholics and English language, English-speaking Protestants), as well as broader overlapping factors of ethnicity (Catholic Gaels and Protestant people of mainly English people, English, Scottish people, Scottish and Huguenot descent) which can contribute toward religiously defined majority minority attribution.


Regions


Africa


South Africa

*White South African, Whites and Coloureds are a Distribution of white South Africans, majority in some parts of South Africa while being a minority in South Africa overall.


Asia


Azerbaijan

*Azeris are a minority in several parts/areas of Azerbaijan.


East Timor

*The vast majority (around 96%) of East Timor's population practice Catholicism, owing to Portuguese influence,International Religious Freedom Report 2007: Timor Leste
United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (14 September 2007). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.''
but on the island of Atauro Island#Culture, Atauro, Protestants make up the majority due to Dutch influence.


Georgia

*The Georgian province of Samtskhe-Javakheti has an Armenians, Armenian majority, while the Georgian province of Kvemo Kartli has an Azerbaijanis, Azeri plurality. No ethnic group composed a majority of the population in Abkhazia from at least 2003 until around 2011.


India

*Islam in India, Muslims are a majority in the Lakshadweep and Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir states and territories of India, states/territories of India, and in some other List of districts of India, districts of India. However, Muslims are a minority in India overall. *Christianity in India, Christians currently make up the majority of the Northeast Indian states of Nagaland at 90%, Mizoram at 88% and Meghalaya at 83.3%, although Christians do not even make up more than 3% of India's total population. *Sikhism in India, Sikhs make the majority of state of Punjab, India, Punjab, although once again they do not form a majority in India overall. *In the Northeast Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, no religious or ethnic group constitutes more than 30% of its population, owing to the state's great cultural diversity.


Indonesia

*Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim country, with Islam being practiced by around 88% of the population, or over 200 million people. Muslim 207176162 (87.18%), Christian 16528513 (6.96), Catholic 6907873 (2.91), Hindu 4012116 (1.69), Buddhist 1703254 (0.72), Confucianism 117091 (0.05), Other 299617 (0.13), Not Stated 139582 (0.06), Not Asked 757118 (0.32), Total 237641326 Despite this there are several areas of Indonesia where Muslims are the minority: **84% of the population of Bali practice a form of Hinduism called Balinese Hinduism, although Hindus only form 1.7% of Indonesia's overall population. **Roman Catholicism in Indonesia, Catholics form the majority of East Nusa Tenggara at 51%, although Catholics only form about 3% of Indonesia's overall population. **Protestantism in Indonesia, Protestants form the majority in three Indonesian provinces: West Papua (province), West Papua at 60%, Papua (province), Papua at 68%, and North Sulawesi at 64%. Overall though Protestants only form about 7% of Indonesia's population. *Several neighborhoods and communities in major Indonesian cities such as Jakarta, Batam, Pontianak, Singkawang, Medan and Bagansiapiapi are of predominantly of Chinese Indonesian, Chinese origin, although people of Chinese descent do not form more than 10% in any of these cities overall population and only form about 1-2% of Indonesia's overall population.


Israel

*Arabs are a majority of the population in Israel's Northern District (Israel), Northern District and in several other smaller parts of Israel. *Non-Haredi Jews are projected to become a minority of Israel's total population by 2059.


Kazakhstan

*The Kazakh SSR did not have any ethnic group/nationality comprise a majority between 1933 and 1997. Based on the 2009 census and annual estimates thereafter, some regions of Kazakhstan still did not have a Kazakh majority .


Kyrgyzstan

*The Kirgiz SSR did not have any ethnic group/nationality comprise a majority between 1941 and 1985.


Mongolia

*Kazakh language, Kazakh-speaking Muslims make up around 93% of Mongolia's Bayan-Ölgii Province, although they make up only about 3–5% of the overall population.


Philippines

*Islam in the Philippines, Muslims make up around 6.4% of the total Philippine population. However, they are practiced by the majority of inhabitants in the region of Bangsamoro (Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi, as well as parts of Palawan and Zamboanga Peninsula.


Sri Lanka

*The Sinhalese people, Sinhalese are a minority in the Northern Province, Sri Lanka, Northern and Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, Eastern Provinces of Sri Lanka, and are a plurality in the capital city, Colombo. **Conversely, the Sri Lankan Tamils are the majority in the Northern Province, Sri Lanka, Northern Province at 93% and a plurality in the Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, Eastern Province at 39%, however they only form 11% of Sri Lanka's overall population.


Thailand

*Thai Malays, Malay-speaking Muslims make up the majority in several of Thailand's southern provinces (Narathiwat Province, Narathiwat, Pattani Province, Pattani, Yala Province, Yala, Songkhla Province, Songkhla, and Satun Province, Satun).


Europe

Albania • Macedonians (ethnic group), Macedonians are a minority in Pustec, while Greeks comprise a majority in Finiq and Dropull.


Belarus

*Belarusians are a minority in some parts of Belarus.


Bosnia and Herzegovina

*Bosnia and Herzegovina did not have any ethnic group comprise a majority of its population at the time of the 1991 population census in Bosnia and Herzegovina, last census in 1991 (which took place before the Bosnian War). A census was conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2013 population census in Bosnia and Herzegovina, October 2013, and these results showed a slight Bosniak majority, who constitute 50.11% of the population.


Bulgaria

*Ethnic Turkish people, Turks outnumber ethnic Bulgarians in Kardzhali Province, Kardzhali and Razgrad Provinces (ethnic Bulgarians are an about 85% majority in Bulgaria overall). * According to the Bulgarian census of 2001, a total of 43 Municipalities of Bulgaria, municipalities (out of 262) have a Islam in Bulgaria, Muslim majority, although Muslims only form around 10% of Bulgaria's total population.


Estonia

*While Estonians form a majority of the population in Estonia overall, Russians made up a majority in Ida-Viru County, parts of Tallinn and some towns and villages in other counties.


Italy

*German speakers are the local majority and an officially recognised national minority in the autonomous province of South Tyrol#Languages, South Tyrol; German language, standard German is taught in schools and used in all writing, but the South Tyrolean dialect is commonly spoken; German speakers are the majority in 103 out of 116 municipalities, and in the province as a whole. *Ladin language#Geographic distribution, Ladin is a recognised minority language spoken in the Dolomites mountains, being the majority language in 15 municipalities of the Trentino-Alto Adige region. *The Slovene minority in Italy is the majority in some municipalities in eastern parts of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. *French language, French and Franco-Provençal language, Franco-Provençal (Valdôtain dialect, Valdôtain) are officially recognised and spoken by 58% of the population of Aosta Valley#Languages, Aosta Valley region, although there is no official figure of the municipalities where speakers are majority.


Kosovo

*North Kosovo has a Serb majority, while Kosovo overall has an Albanians, Albanian majority. This division has led to controversial negotiations for Kosovo–Serbia land swap, land swapping southern Albanian-majority areas of Serbia for northern Serb-majority areas of Kosovo.


Latvia

*The Latvian SSR almost became minority-majority (the ethnic Latvian population there decreased from 62% to 52% between 1959 and 1989), but the collapse of the USSR prevented this from happening. While the whole Latvian SSR never became majority-minority, its eight largest cities did become majority-minority by 1989.


Moldova

*Transnistria did not have any ethnic group compromise a majority of its population in 2004.


Montenegro

*Montenegro does not have any ethnic group compromise a majority of its population. *By religious affiliation, six Municipalities of Montenegro, municipalities have a non-Eastern Orthodoxy in Montenegro, Eastern Orthodox majority. The municipalities are: Gusinje Municipality, Gusinje (91% Islam in Montenegro, Muslim), Petnjica Municipality, Petnjica (98% Muslim), Plav Municipality, Plav (70% Muslim), Rožaje Municipality, Rožaje (95% Muslim), Tuzi Municipality, Tuzi (50% Muslim, 43% Roman Catholicism in Montenegro, Roman Catholic) and Ulcinj Municipality, Ulcinj (72% Muslim, 11% Roman Catholic).


North Macedonia

*North Macedonia has some places/areas where Macedonians (ethnic group), Macedonians are a minority. These places/areas often have an Albanians, Albanian majority.


Romania

*The Harghita and Covasna provinces in Romania have a Hungarian people, Hungarian majority, while Romania as a whole has a Romanian majority.


Russia

*There were concerns that the whole Soviet Union would lose its ethnic Russian majority due to the high birth rates in the Caucasus and Central Asia as early as 1970. The percentage of Russians among the whole Soviet population was consistently declining, from 55% in 1959 to 51% in 1989. However, the collapse of the Soviet Union, Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, before the Soviet Union could have lost its ethnic Russian majority. In the Russian Federation era, based on the 2010 census; 8 of the 22 republics of Russia had a non-Russian majority, while 9 of the 22 had a Russian majority.


Serbia

*Serbia has some municipalities where Serbs are a minority, notably in north of Vojvodina where Hungarians are a majority. *Bosniaks of Serbia, Bosniak Muslims form the majority of the city of Novi Pazar and the Sandžak, surrounding region, although they only form around 3% of Serbia's total population. *Albanians in Serbia, Albanians form the majority of population in the municipalities of Preševo and Bujanovac.


Slovakia

*Slovakia has some places/areas where Slovaks are a minority and Hungarians are a majority.


Ukraine

*Ukrainians are a minority in the Crimea, Sevastopol, and some places in other regions, especially Donbas and Budjak. Ukraine lost control over Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, Crimea and a part of War in Donbas (2014–2022), the Donbas in 2014.


United Kingdom

*White British (mainly English people) are an ethnic plurality in Ethnic groups in London, London (43.7%), but those identifying as "White" are 59.8% of London's population. *White British people are also a plurality or minority in Demographics of Luton, Luton (45.2%), Demographics of Birmingham, Birmingham (48.6%), Demographics of Slough, Slough (36.0%) and Demographics of Leicester, Leicester (40.9%). All figures are from the 2021 census.


North America


Canada

*Two of Canada's sparsely populated territories have had a majority Indigenous population since their formal establishment: Northwest Territories & Nunavut. *Outside of the far North, there were over 20 majority-minority municipalities in Canada at the time of the 2021 Canadian Census, 2021 Census. *Two of Canada's largest cities, Toronto and Vancouver, are majority-minority. Over half of the country's other majority-minority cities are suburban commuter cities found outside these two cities. *Though many have been depopulated due to urbanization, rural majority-Black settlements have existed across Canada since the 19th century. Today, they are mostly found in Nova Scotia, with North Preston, Nova Scotia, North Preston being a notable example.
Majority-minority municipalities by province, and percentage of non-European population: British Columbia *Richmond, British Columbia, Richmond (81%) *Burnaby (69.5%) *Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey (69.3%) *Central Coast Regional District, Central Coast (68.3%) *Coquitlam (58.5%) *
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
(56.8%) *North Coast Regional District, North Coast (54%) Alberta *Brooks, Alberta, Brooks (50.9%) Saskatchewan *Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan, Meadow Lake (60%) *Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Prince Albert (56.3%) Manitoba *Thompson, Manitoba, Thompson (60.3%) *Neepawa (57.5%) Ontario *Markham, Ontario, Markham (82.3%) *Brampton (81.1%) *Richmond Hill, Ontario, Richmond Hill (66.6%) *Ajax, Ontario, Ajax (65.6%) *Mississauga (62.4%) *Toronto (56.5%) *Milton, Ontario, Milton (55.6%) *Pickering, Ontario, Pickering (53%) Quebec *Brossard, Quebec, Brossard (50.8%)


United States

In the United States of America, majority-minority area or minority-majority area is a term describing a U.S. state or jurisdiction whose population is composed of less than 50% non-Hispanic whites. White Hispanic and Latino Americans are excluded in many definitions. Racial data is derived from self-identification questions on the United States census, U.S. census and on U.S. Census Bureau estimates. (See Race and ethnicity in the United States census). The term is often used in Voting rights in the United States, voting rights law to designate voting districts which are altered under the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Voting Rights Act to enable ethnic or language minorities "the opportunity to elect their candidate of choice." In that context, the term is first used by the Supreme Court of the United States, Supreme Court in 1977. The Court had previously used the term in employment discrimination and labor relations cases.


Oceania


Australia

It is estimated that Europeans first outnumbered
Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
in Australia in the 1840s. There are still a number of rural and regional towns and communities where Indigenous Australians outnumber Europeans, but nationally Indigenous Australians constitute only 3.3% of the population. The state-level jurisdiction with the highest proportion of Indigenous Australians is the Northern Territory, where people of Indigenous ancestry make up 30.3% of the population, the largest single ethnic group by reported ancestry (although a smaller proportion, 25.5%, ''identify as'' Indigenous). Of the other ethnic groups in Australia, no single ethnic group constitutes a majority overall. English Australians make up the largest single ethnic group by ancestry, being reported by 36.1% of the population in the 2016 census. The next largest ancestry group is "Australian", at 33.5%.ABS
2016 census - Cultural Diversity Data Summary
/ref> As ancestry is self-reported and each person can nominate two ancestries (and through a separate question report whether they identify as Indigenous Australian), there is no certainty as to the ethnic make-up of the ancestry group who identify as "Australian". It is commonly speculated however that the majority of the "Australian" ancestry group have some ancestral origin from the British Isles, and as a result when people with ethnic origin in the British Isles are considered as a single group ("Anglo-Celtic Australians"), the numbers for the "Australian" ancestry group is added to that of the English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish ethnic groups, as well as (sometimes) Manx Australians and Cornish Australians. When "Anglo-Celtic" ethnic groups are considered together, they make up a majority of Australia's population overall (58% estimated in 2018). When considered as one group, European Australians make up 57.2% of the population (including 46% Northwestern Europe#Ethnographic definitions, North-West European and 11.2% Southern Europe, Southern and Eastern European). (This figure excludes those who nominate their ancestry as simply "Australian", who are therefore categorised as part of the Demographics of Oceania, Oceanian ancestry group.) Reflecting the diversity of ancestries at the national level, in most Australian towns and suburbs, no single ancestry group constitutes a majority of the population. In many places, if the "Australians" ancestry group is counted as part of an "Anglo-Celtic" ethnic group together with English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish Australians, this group constitutes a majority of the local population. However, in many other places, even when these ancestry groups are counted as one, there is no single majority ethnic group. It is rare for any non-Anglo-Celtic and non-Indigenous ethnic group to make up a majority in a suburb. For example, in the 2016 census, in the Sydney metropolitan area, Chinese Australians, Chinese people in the suburbs Burwood, New South Wales, Burwood and Hurstville, New South Wales, Hurstville made up just over 50% of the population (although reports of Chinese ancestry are less than 50% of all ancestries reported in the census in each suburb, as each person is permitted to nominate more than one ancestry). However, by the 2021 census the Chinese-ancestry population in both suburbs had dropped below 50%. Chinese Australians make up 5.6% of the national population, making them the fifth largest ancestry group overall (after the English, Australian, Scottish and Irish ancestry groups).


Fiji

*Fiji did not have any racial or ethnic group comprise a majority from the 1930s to the 1990s, with the exception of the 1960s and possibly early-1970s.


New Zealand

*European New Zealanders are a minority in the Auckland Region, Auckland region (49.8%), Ōpōtiki District, Ōpōtiki district (49.7%), and Wairoa District, Wairoa district (46.9%). Within Auckland, ten of the 21 local board areas have a minority European population: Ōtara-Papatoetoe (14.6%), Māngere-Ōtāhuhu (18.4%), Manurewa (local board area), Manurewa (24.5%), Puketāpapa (local board area), Puketāpapa (32.1%), Papakura (local board area), Papakura (36.7%), Whau (local board area), Whau (37.6%), Howick (local board area), Howick (38.1%), Maungakiekie-Tāmaki, Maungakiekie-Tāmaki (42.2%), Henderson-Massey (43.6%), and Upper Harbour Local Board, Upper Harbour (49.1%). *The indigenous Māori people form a majority in the Kawerau, Kawerau district (63.2%), Ōpōtiki district (66.2%), Gisborne District, Gisborne district (54.8%), Wairoa District, Wairoa district (68.5%), and the Chatham Islands territory (68.6%). *Pasifika New Zealanders, Pacific peoples form a majority in the Māngere-Ōtāhuhu local board area of Auckland (60.4%). *Asian people form a majority in the Puketāpapa and Howick local board areas of Auckland (50.4% and 52.5% respectively).


South America


Brazil

Brazil has become a majority "non-White" country as of the 2010 census, together with the States of Brazil, federative units of Espírito Santo, the Federal District (Brazil), Federal District, Goiás, and Minas Gerais. Those identifying as White declined to 47.7% (about 91 million people) in the 2010 census from 52.9% (about 93 million people) in 2000 in the entire country. However, in Brazil, this is not simply a matter of origin and birthrate, but identity changes as well. The Black minority did not enlarge its representation in the population to more than 1.5% in the period, while it was mostly the growth in the number of ''pardo'' people (~38% in 2000, 42.4% in 2010) that caused the demographic plurality of Brazil.


Colombia

Afro-Colombians make up roughly about 10–12% of country's overall population, but make up a majority in many areas in the Pacific/Chocó natural region, Colombia's Pacific region, especially in Chocó Department, where they make up 80–90% of the population.


See also

*Dominant minority (including non-US examples) *Global majority *Race and ethnicity in the United States *Majority minority in the United States, List of US states and territories that are majority minority *List of majority minority United States congressional districts *Lists of U.S. cities with non-white majority populations *List of U.S. communities with Hispanic-majority populations in the 2010 census, List of U.S. communities with Hispanic-majority populations *Race and ethnicity in the United States census, Race and ethnicity and the United States Census *Race and ethnicity in censuses, Race and ethnicity in censuses worldwide *White flight


References


External links

*{{Cite web , url=http://www.census.gov/popest/estimates.php , title=U.S. census demographic estimates , access-date=September 12, 2006 , archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20061206215954/http://www.census.gov/popest/estimates.php , archive-date=December 6, 2006 , url-status=dead , df=mdy-all
10% of U.S. Counties Now 'Majority-Minority'
Demographics of the United States Majority–minority relations