TOP FIFTEEN ETHNIC GROUPS IN THE U.S. (1990 U.S. CENSUS) German--23.3% Irish--15.6% English--13.1% African American--9.6% Hispanic--7.0% Italian--5.9% Franco-American--5.3% Polish--3.8% Native American--3.5% Dutch--2.5% Scots-Irish--2.3% Scottish--2.2% Swedish--1.9% Norwegian--1.6% Russian--1.2% SOURCES FOR DETERMINING ETHNIC ORIGINS Home Sources ~ Census Records ~ Naturalization Records ~ Passenger Lists ~ Printed Biographies, Genealogies, and Family Histories ~ Surname Sources GENERAL REFERENCE BOOKS FOR ETHNIC STUDIES One of the most definitive and useful background sources for almost every ethnic group is Stephen Thernstrom's, "Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups" (Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1980). It assembles the basic information about the multitude of people who make up the population of the United States. It is a succinct, authoritative synthesis of the origins and histories of 106 ethnic groups, with twenty-nine thematic essays, eighty-seven maps, and a critical bibliography for each section. ~ Paul Wasserman and Alice E. Kennington, eds., "Ethnic Information Sources of the United States," 2nd ed., 2 vols. (Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1983) assembles in one source, information about the various ethnic groups that comprise the U.S. populace. The work is intended for use by individuals whose ancestors or relatives belong to particular ethnic groups, and by students, educators, librarians, and others interested in learning about distinctive ethnic lines and the countries from which they are drawn. It is also for those who require information about the details of history, culture, customs, values, politics, and problems of ethnic groups in the United States. Topics and resources include standard ethnic sources and research institutions, as well as more obscure information (such as embassies, ethnic fraternal organizations, ethnic newspaper collections, dealers of ethnic books, and ethnic museums) that may be especially useful for genealogists. "Ethnic Information Sources" indicates, for example, that the American Irish Historical Society (http://www.aihs.org/) maintains a library of more than 25,000 volumes on Irish history and genealogy and the Irish in America. ~