United States: 1980, 1990

All persons.

HISPAN identifies and classifies persons of Hispanic origin.

The first digit of HISPAN retains only distinctions common to all years; the second and third digits distinguish additional groups and subgroups. Persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban descent are identified separately in both years, but much more detail is available for 1990.

For each year, the variable is derived from a census question designed specifically to identify Hispanics and classify them according to their background. The question was worded somewhat differently in each year. The 1990 census created more detailed categories by asking respondents to write in their Hispanic origin if it was not listed on the form as one of the options; the previous censuses simply used an "Other" category. In 1990, detailed responses that were not classified by the 1990 sample are coded "Other Hispanic/Spanish n.e.c.," and the FOSDIC entries "Other" that did not include a write-in reponse are coded "Other Hispanic/Spanish n.s."