USA Census Glossary

CDP
CDP is the abbreviation for Census designated place,
a statistical entity defined for each decennial census according to Census Bureau guidelines, comprising a densely settled concentration of population that is not within an incorporated place, but is locally identified by a name. CDPs are delineated cooperatively by state and local officials and the Census Bureau, following Census Bureau guidelines. Beginning with Census 2000 there are no size limits.

Related term: Incorporated place

Cell
In a tabulation, a field containing a single number, usually a count of some kind of unit, such as persons or housing units possessing some kind of characteristic (for example, a certain age or number of rooms). In a statistical table with rows and columns of numbers, a cell constitutes the intersection of one row and one column. Sometimes also termed tally cell or data item.

Censo 2000 Puerto Rico en Español
Census 2000 Puerto Rico in Spanish. The data for Census 2000 Puerto Rico in Spanish are accessed in FactFinder from a link in the 'Special Interest' section of the Main Page. The same data in English are included in the Census 2000 of the United States dataset. FactFinder does not present data from the 1990 Census of Population and Housing for Puerto Rico.

Census
A complete enumeration, usually of a population, but also of businesses and commercial establishments, farms, governments, and so forth.

Census (decennial)
The census of population and housing, taken by the Census Bureau in years ending in 0 (zero). Article I of the Constitution requires that a census be taken every ten years for the purpose of reapportioning the U.S. House of Representatives.

Related terms: Apportionment, Reapportionment, Redistricting

Census (economic)
Collective name for the censuses of construction, manufactures, minerals, minority- and women-owned businesses, retail trade, service industries, transportation, and wholesale trade, conducted by the Census Bureau every five years, in years ending in 2 and 7.

Census 2000 Dress Rehearsal
The Census Bureau used a dress rehearsal to provide for operational testing of procedures and systems in regional census centers, local census offices, and data capture centers planned for use in Census 2000, including the production of prototype data products that comply with the requirements of Public Law 94-171. The exercise was an opportunity for others to comment on the range of standard products and their formats. The dress rehearsal also included some procedures and systems that had not been tested operationally in any prior field or processing activity. It was conducted in three sites: Sacramento, California; 11 counties in South Carolina and the city of Columbia; and Menominee County, Wisconsin, including the Menominee American Indian Reservation.

Census 2000 Gateway
This page provides descriptions and links to Internet tables and reference materials relating to Census 2000. It is available at http://www.census.gov/main/www/cen2000.html or by selecting the Census 2000 logo on the Census Bureau home page (http://www.census.gov).

Census 2000 Supplementary Survey (C2SS)
The Census 2000 Supplementary Survey was an operational test conducted as part of the Census 2000, and used the American Community Survey questionnaire to collect demographic, social, economic, and housing data from a national sample. This evaluation study gives the Census Bureau essential information about the operational feasibility of converting from the long form to the American Community Survey. The data are for the nation, states, and most cities and counties above 250,000 population. Researchers will be able to use the Census 2000 Supplementary Survey data as they develop the policy-specific models they will use once the American Community Survey is fully operational later in the decade.

The data was made available in three releases: 1) core tables for 50 states, the District of Columbia and the nation (Summer 2001); 2) core tables for most counties and cities with populations of 250,000 or more (Fall 2001); 3) the remaining 700 non-core tables, including race iterations for 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the nation (Winter 2001-2002).

Census 2000 Supplementary Survey detailed tables are identified and labeled using established guidelines. Table identification begins with a letter that refers to the type of data in the table, and then a number is assigned sequentially as the tables are produced.

Tables labeled:
'P' are population tables;
'H' are housing tables;
'PCT' are population tables that cover geographies to the census tract level.

For example, 'Table P4. Sex by Age' is a population table with the sequential number, '4'.

Related terms: American Community Survey (ACS), Decennial Supplementary Surveys

Census area
The statistical equivalent of a county in Alaska. Census areas are delineated cooperatively by the state of Alaska and the Census Bureau for statistical purposes in the portion of Alaska not within an organized borough.

Census block
A subdivision of a census tract (or, prior to 2000, a block numbering area), a block is the smallest geographic unit for which the Census Bureau tabulates 100-percent data. Many blocks correspond to individual city blocks bounded by streets, but blocks -- especially in rural areas - may include many square miles and may have some boundaries that are not streets. The Census Bureau established blocks covering the entire nation for the first time in 1990. Previous censuses back to 1940 had blocks established only for part of the nation. Over 8 million blocks are identified for Census 2000.

Related term: Block

Census county division (CCD)
A subdivision of a county that is a relatively permanent statistical area established cooperatively by the Census Bureau and state and local government authorities. Used for presenting decennial census statistics in those states that do not have well-defined and stable minor civil divisions that serve as local governments.

Census data information
Information about the data in the Census Bureau tables in FactFinder is found in the "Help" system. This information is referred to as metadata. Information presented under this heading includes description and data content of surveys and censuses, geographical areas covered, level of geographical detail, dataset descriptions, definitions, and lists of tables and products.

Related term: Metadata

Census Day
Reference date for the decennial census. For Census 2000, Census Day was April 1, 2000; for the Census 2000 Dress Rehearsal, April 18, 1998; and for the 1990 Census, April 1, 1990.

Census designated place (CDP)
A statistical entity, defined for each decennial census according to Census Bureau guidelines, comprising a densely settled concentration of population that is not within an incorporated place, but is locally identified by a name. CDPs are delineated cooperatively by state and local officials and the Census Bureau, following Census Bureau guidelines. Beginning with Census 2000 there are no size limits.

Related term: Incorporated place

Census geography
A collective term referring to the types of geographic areas used by the Census Bureau in its data collection and tabulation operations, including their structure, designations, and relationships to one another.

Census Information Centers
The Census Information Center (CIC) program is a cooperative activity between the Census Bureau and the national nonprofit organizations representing interests of racial and ethnic communities. The program objective is to make census information and data available to the participating organizations for analysis, policy planning, and for further dissemination through a network of regional and local affiliates. For a listing of the organizations and the contacts, access http://www.census.gov/clo/www/cic/.

Census tract
A small, relatively permanent statistical subdivision of a county delineated by a local committee of census data users for the purpose of presenting data. Census tract boundaries normally follow visible features, but may follow governmental unit boundaries and other non-visible features in some instances; they always nest within counties. Designed to be relatively homogeneous units with respect to population characteristics, economic status, and living conditions at the time of establishment, census tracts average about 4,000 inhabitants. They may be split by any sub-county geographic entity.

Central city
The largest city of a Metropolitan area (MA). Central cities are a basis for establishment of an MA. Additional cities that meet specific criteria also are identified as central cities. In a number of instances, only part of a city qualifies as central, because another part of the city extends beyond the MA boundary.

Related term: Metropolitan area (MA)

Central place
The core incorporated place(s) or a census designated place of an urban area, usually consisting of the most populous place(s) in the urban area plus additional places that qualify under Census Bureau criteria. If the central place is also defined as an extended place, only the portion of the central place contained within the urban area is recognized as the central place.

Related terms: Urban, Urbanized area

Child
A son or a daughter by birth, a stepchild, or an adopted child of the householder, regardless of the child's age or marital status.

Related terms: Own children, Related children

Child dependency ratio
A measure derived by dividing the population under 18 years by the 18 to 64 years population and multiplying by 100. (American Community Survey)

Related terms: Age dependency ratio, Old age dependency ratio

Children ever born - fertility
For data from the 1990 Census of Population and Housing and the American Community Survey for 1996-1998, this refers to the number of children born live to women. The item was asked of all women 15 years old and over regardless of marital status. Stillbirths, stepchildren, and adopted children are excluded from the number of children ever born. Ever-married women were instructed to include all children born to them before and during their most recent marriage, children no longer living, and children living away from home, as well as children who were still living in the home. Never-married women were instructed to include all children born to them.

Beginning in 1999, the item on the number of children ever born was deleted in the American Community Survey and replaced by a question asking if a woman has had a live birth in the 12-month period preceding the survey date. The universe for this item is all women 15 to 50 years of age, regardless of marital status.

Related term: Universe

Citizenship status
Citizen
People who indicate that they were born in the United States, Puerto Rico, a U.S. Island Area, or abroad of a U.S. citizen parent(s) are citizens.

People who indicate that they are U.S. citizens through naturalization are also citizens.

Naturalized citizens are foreign-born people who identify themselves as naturalized. Naturalization is the conferring, by any means, of citizenship upon a person after birth.

Not a citizen
People who indicate they are not U.S. citizens.

Related terms: Foreign born, Place of birth

City
A type of incorporated place in 49 states and the District of Columbia. In 23 states and the District of Columbia, some or all cities are not part of any Minor Civil Division (MCD), and the Census Bureau also treats these as county subdivisions, statistically equivalent to MCDs.

Related terms: Incorporated place, Minor civil division (MCD)

Class of worker
All people over the age of 15 who have been employed at any time are asked to designate the type of work normally done or the work performed most regularly. Occupations and types of work are then broken down into the following 5 classes.

Private Wage and Salary Workers--Includes people who worked for wages, salary, commission, tips, pay-in-kind, or piece rates for a private-for-profit employer or a private-not-for-profit, tax-exempt, or charitable organization.

Self-employed people whose business was incorporated are included with private wage and salary workers because they are paid employees of their own companies. Some tabulations present data separately for these subcategories: "For profit," "Not-for-profit," and "Own business incorporated."

Government Workers--Includes people who are employees of any local, state, or federal governmental unit, regardless of the activity of the particular agency. For some tabulations, the data are presented separately for the three levels of government.

Employees of foreign governments, the United Nations, or other formal international organizations controlled by governments should be classified as "Federal Government employee."

Self-Employed Workers--Includes people who worked for profit or fees in their own unincorporated business, profession, or trade, or who operated a farm.

Unpaid Family Workers--Includes people who worked 15 hours or more without pay in a business or on a farm operated by a relative.

Salaried/Self-Employed--In tabulations that categorize persons as either salaried or self-employed, the salaried category includes private and government wage and salary workers; self-employed includes self-employed people and unpaid family workers.

Related term: Worker

Classes
Classes define the number of groups into which data are assigned using a classing method. American FactFinder allows from 2 to 7 classes for thematic maps. Any of the 4 available classing methods and number of classes (from 2 to 7) can be combined to depict information on a thematic map.

Refer to Classing Method for information about how values are assigned to classes.

Related term: Thematic map

Classing method
Classing Method refers to the process used to assign values to classes for a thematic map. American FactFinder offers the choice of 4 classing methods:

Natural Breaks - identifies groupings that naturally exist in the data
Equal Interval - divides data into classes of equal size
Quantile - units of measurement are ranked and then divided equally into the number of classes
User Defined - the user determines how values are assigned to classes

For more information, see table tm_classes, Explain classing methods

Related term: Thematic map

Commonwealth
The legal designation for four states (Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia), Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands. The Census Bureau does not use this term in presenting data.

Comunidad
Represents a census designated place that is not the representing governmental center of the municipio in Puerto Rico. There are no incorporated places in Puerto Rico. For Census 2000 there are no minimum population requirements. For 1990 comunidades had to have at least 1,000 people.

Related term: Municipio

Confidence interval (American Community Survey)
The sample estimate and its standard error permit the construction of a confidence interval that represents the degree of uncertainly about the estimate. Each American Community Survey and Census 2000 Supplementary Survey estimate is accompanied by the upper and lower bounds of the 90 percent confidence interval. A 90 percent confidence interval can be interpreted roughly as providing 90 percent certainty that the true number falls between the upper and lower bounds.

Related terms: American Community Survey (ACS), Estimates (American Community Survey and Census 2000 Supplementary Survey),Census 2000 Supplementary Survey (C2SS),Standard error (ACS), Margin of error (MOE)

Confidentiality
The guarantee made by law (Title 13, United States Code) to individuals who provide census information regarding nondisclosure of that information to others.

Related term: Title 13 (U.S. Code)

Confidentiality edit
The name for the Census 2000 disclosure avoidance procedure.

Related term: Disclosure avoidance

Congressional district (CD)
An area established by law for the election of representatives to the United States Congress. Each CD is to be as equal in population to all other CDs in the state as practicable, based on the decennial census counts. The number of CDs in each state may change after each decennial census, and the boundaries may be changed more than once during a decade.

In the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, a single CD is created consisting of the entire area. The representative is termed a delegate or resident commissioner, respectively and does not have voting rights in Congress.

Related terms: Apportionment, Reapportionment, Redistricting

Consolidated city
An incorporated place that has combined its governmental functions with a county or sub-county entity but contains one or more other incorporated places that continue to function as local governments within the consolidated government.

Related term: Incorporated place

Consolidated metropolitan statistical area (CMSA)
A geographic entity defined by the federal Office of Management and Budget for use by federal statistical agencies. An area becomes a CMSA if it meets the requirements to qualify as a metropolitan statistical area, has a population of 1,000,000 or more, if component parts are recognized as primary metropolitan statistical areas, and local opinion favors the designation.

Related terms: Metropolitan statistical area (MSA), Primary metropolitan statistical area (PMSA)

Continuous Measurement System
This system is a re-engineering of the method for collecting the housing and socio-economic data traditionally collected in the decennial census. It provides data every year instead of once in ten years. It blends the strength of small area estimation from the census with the quality and timeliness of the continuing surveys. This system includes a large monthly survey, the American Community Survey, and additional estimates through the use of administrative records in statistical models. It was in a developmental period that started in 1996 and, in 2005, began full-scale national implementation. This survey will replace the 'long-form' for the 2010 decennial census of population and housing.

Related term: American Community Survey (ACS)

Contract rent
The monthly rent agreed to or contracted for, regardless of any furnishings, utilities, fees, meals, or services that may be included. For vacant units, it is the monthly rent asked for the rental unit at the time of interview.

Related term: Gross rent

Controlled (American Community Survey)
During the ACS weighting process, the official county-level population and housing unit estimates are used as controls. Weights are adjusted so that ACS estimates conform to these controls. This is done to improve person and housing unit coverage and to reduce the variability of the ACS estimates. Total population and total housing unit estimates are controlled for states and counties. Combinations of age, sex, and Hispanic origin may also be controlled. Controlled estimates are by definition fixed, and are not subject to sampling error.

County and equivalent entity
The primary legal subdivision of most states. In Louisiana, these subdivisions are known as parishes. In Alaska, which has no counties, the county equivalents are boroughs, a legal subdivision, and census areas, a statistical subdivision. In four states (Maryland, Missouri, Nevada and Virginia), there are one or more cities that are independent of any county and thus constitute primary subdivisions of their states. The District of Columbia has no primary divisions, and the entire area is considered equivalent to a county for statistical purposes. In Puerto Rico, municipios are treated as county equivalents.

Related terms: Borough, Municipio

County subdivision
A legal or statistical division of a county recognized by the Census Bureau for data presentation. The two major types of county subdivisions are census county divisions and minor civil divisions.

County subdivision not defined- The name assigned to an area of unpopulated coastal water within a county that belongs to no county subdivision.

Related terms: Minor civil division (MCD), Unorganized territory

Cross tabulation
The interrelation of two or more data characteristics, where each of the categories of one variable is repeated for each of the categories of the other variables. A cross-tabulation is denoted where "by" is used as the conjunction between variable terms, for example, age by sex or age by sex by race.

Related terms: Detailed Tables (DT)

https://allcountries.org/uscensus/ glossary_c.html

These tables are based on figures supplied by the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce, and they are subject to revision by the Census Bureau.

Copyright © 2006 Photius Coutsoukis and Information Technology Associates, all rights reserved.