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Cinco de Mayo, which comes this Sunday, has in the past few decades become widely celebrated in the United States, and not just among the 33.7 million U.S. residents of Mexican origin. (It’s not, as sometimes thought, Mexico’s Independence Day — that’s Sept. 16. Rather, Cinco de Mayo commemorates the 1862 victory of Mexican forces over an invading French army at the Battle of Puebla.)

Cinco de Mayo also is a good time to take a look at how Mexicans in the United States view their identity. A 2011 survey by the Pew Hispanic Center found that 52% of U.S. Hispanics of Mexican origin usually described themselves as “Mexican” or “Mexicano,” while 26% described themselves as Hispanic or Latino and 19% most often said they were American.

But those favored descriptors shift markedly across the generations. While two-thirds of Mexican immigrants used “Mexican,” only 39% of second-generation Mexicans and 32%  of third-generation Mexicans did so. Conversely, while just 3% of Mexican immigrants called themselves American, 35% of second-generation and 45% of third-generation Mexicans did.

A similar trend showed up when Mexican-origin Hispanics were asked whether or not they considered themselves typical Americans. While only 29% of Mexican immigrants described themselves that way, 60% of second-generation Mexicans and 71% of third-generation Mexicans did so.

While it’s a federal holiday in Mexico, Cinco de Mayo isn’t considered a particularly major one (except in Puebla State, where the battle occured). But many U.S. cities will mark Cinco de Mayo with parades, street festivals and other public celebrations of Mexican heritage and culture.

Drew DeSilver is a senior writer at the Pew Research Center.

Cinco de Mayo also is a good time to take a look at how Mexicans in the United States view their identity. A 2011 survey by the Pew Hispanic Center found that 52% of U.S. Hispanics of Mexican origin usually described themselves as “Mexican” or “Mexicano,” while 26% described themselves as Hispanic or Latino and 19% most often said they were American.

But those favored descriptors shift markedly across the generations. While two-thirds of Mexican immigrants used “Mexican,” only 39% of second-generation Mexicans and 32%  of third-generation Mexicans did so. Conversely, while just 3% of Mexican immigrants called themselves American, 35% of second-generation and 45% of third-generation Mexicans did.

A similar trend showed up when Mexican-origin Hispanics were asked whether or not they considered themselves typical Americans. While only 29% of Mexican immigrants described themselves that way, 60% of second-generation Mexicans and 71% of third-generation Mexicans did so.

While it’s a federal holiday in Mexico, Cinco de Mayo isn’t considered a particularly major one (except in Puebla State, where the battle occured). But many U.S. cities will mark Cinco de Mayo with parades, street festivals and other public celebrations of Mexican heritage and culture.

From its origin on the Arabian Peninsula in the seventh century C.E., Islam has grown into a worldwide religion with more than 1.6 billion adherents – nearly a quarter of the world’s population. Today, Muslims live on all inhabited continents and embody a wide range of races, ethnicities and cultures. What beliefs and practices unite these diverse peoples into a single religious community, or ummah? And how do their religious convictions and observances vary?

This report by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life seeks to describe both the unity and the diversity of Islam around the globe. It is based on more than 38,000 face-to-face interviews conducted in over 80 languages with Muslims in 39 countries and territories that collectively are home to roughly two-thirds (67%) of all Muslims in the world. The survey includes every country that has a Muslim population of more than 10 million, except those (such as China, India, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria) where political sensitivities or security concerns prevented opinion research among Muslims.

Unity and diversity are themes that emerge naturally from the survey results. On what are often considered Islam’s articles of faith and “pillars” of practice, there is much commonality among Muslims around the world. But on other important questions, such as whether Islam is open to more than one correct interpretation or which groups should be considered part of the Muslim community, there are substantial differences of opinion. The survey also suggests that many Muslims do not see themselves as belonging to any particular sect: Fully a quarter of the Muslims surveyed identify themselves neither as Sunni nor as Shia but as “just a Muslim.”

 Graphic: Muslim Beliefs Around the Globe

The Pew Hispanic Center recently published “When Labels Don’t Fit: Hispanics and Their Views of Identity.” The report was based on a new nationwide survey that found most Hispanics don’t embrace the term “Hispanic.” And even fewer prefer the term “Latino.”

In the days following the release, hundreds of people offered their observations on social media, and scores of newspapers and websites published articles, commentaries and editorials. Some of our readers emailed us with their own opinions and stories.

It’s a fascinating topic, and we’d like to continue the conversation. So we invited journalists, scholars and civic leaders to share their views. Each day for the next two weeks, we will publish one of these commentaries here. We also invite you to join the discussion. Share your thoughts, views and personal stories about your own identity on our Pew Hispanic Center Facebook page.

The Pew Hispanic Center recently published “When Labels Don’t Fit: Hispanics and Their Views of Identity.” The report was based on a new nationwide survey that found most Hispanics don’t embrace the term “Hispanic.” And even fewer prefer the term “Latino.”

In the days following the release, hundreds of people offered their observations on social media, and scores of newspapers and websites published articles, commentaries and editorials. Some of our readers emailed us with their own opinions and stories.

“A Conversation about Identity” brings together a group of commentators about the subject, and provides a portal to the Pew Hispanic Center’s Facebook page where others can add their comments.

Visit the Hispanic Identity page.

A. In today’s multi-ethnic society, classifying people into racial and ethnic categories is increasingly difficult, yet remains an important aspect of understanding the diversity of views and values across segments of the public. Pew Research Center surveys assign people into racial and ethnic categories based on what people tell us about themselves. Most Pew Research studies use categories for race and ethnicity similar to those used by government agencies, including the Census Bureau, where Hispanics can be of any racial background and their numbers are reported separately from non-Hispanics for each race group.

The standard federal categories for race and ethnicity are defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and are employed not just for surveys, but also for medical research, school registration forms, mortgage lending applications and other administrative uses. These categories also are widely used by researchers and businesses in order to be consistent with federal standards.

The latest OMB standards, issued in 1997, require that data be collected and reported for five major race groups: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White. The Census Bureau also reports data about people who are not included in those categories but are “some other race” and those who are mixed race-that is, included in more than one race group.

In addition, data are collected in a separate question asking whether someone is “Hispanic” or “Latino”; Hispanics or Latinos are an ethnic group based on family background or ancestral ties. Hispanics or Latinos may be of any race, and are asked the same race question as everyone else.

Although the races are defined as having origins in particular parts of the world, in reality race and Hispanic origin are self-defined. Census forms and other surveys allow people to choose their own race, and include themselves in more than one racial group. As explained by OMB, “The categories represent a social-political construct designed for collecting data on the race and ethnicity of broad population groups in this country, and are not anthropologically or scientifically based.”

In practice, the standard labels on the census form do not match the self-descriptions of many Hispanics. According to a recent Pew Hispanic Center report, “When Labels Don’t Fit: Hispanics and Their Views of Identity,” about half of Hispanics (51%) most often identify themselves by their family’s country of origin, compared with 24% who prefer “Hispanic” or “Latino.” Similarly, about half of Hispanics say they are “some other race” (26%) or volunteer “Hispanic” or “Latino” (25%) when asked how they would describe their race.

Occasionally, you will see survey reports that show results only for non-Hispanic whites and/or non-Hispanic blacks but not Hispanics. That is not because Hispanic attitudes are not important, but we only report on Hispanics when the survey was conducted in Spanish and English and when enough interviews were conducted with Hispanics to report on their views accurately and reliably.

A. In today’smulti-ethnic society, classifying people into racial and ethnic categories is increasingly difficult, yet remains an important aspect of understanding the diversity of views and values across segments of the public. Pew Research Center surveys assign people into racial and ethnic categories based on what people tell us about themselves. Most Pew Research studies use categories for race and ethnicity similar to those used by government agencies, including the Census Bureau, where Hispanics can be of any racial background and their numbers are reported separately from non-Hispanics for each race group.

The standard federal categories for race and ethnicity are defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and are employed not just for surveys, but also for medical research, school registration forms, mortgage lending applications and other administrative uses. These categories also are widely used by researchers and businesses in order to be consistent with federal standards.

The latest OMB standards, issued in 1997, require that data be collected and reported for five major race groups: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White. The Census Bureau also reports data about people who are not included in those categories but are “some other race” and those who are mixed race-that is, included in more than one race group.

In addition, data are collected in a separate question asking whether someone is “Hispanic” or “Latino”; Hispanics or Latinos are an ethnic group based on family background or ancestral ties. Hispanics or Latinos may be of any race, and are asked the same race question as everyone else.

Although the races are defined as having origins in particular parts of the world,in reality race and Hispanic origin are self-defined. Census forms and other surveys allow people to choose their own race, and include themselves in more than one racial group. As explained by OMB, “The categories represent a social-political construct designed for collecting data on the race and ethnicity of broad population groups in this country, and are not anthropologically or scientifically based.”

In practice, the standard labels on the census form do not match the self-descriptions of many Hispanics. According to a recent Pew Hispanic Center report, “When Labels Don’t Fit: Hispanics and Their Views of Identity,” about half of Hispanics (51%) most often identify themselves by their family’s country of origin, compared with 24% who prefer “Hispanic” or “Latino.” Similarly, about half of Hispanics say they are “some other race” (26%) or volunteer “Hispanic” or “Latino” (25%) when asked how they would describe their race.

Occasionally, you will see survey reports that show results only for non-Hispanic whites and/or non-Hispanic blacks but not Hispanics. That is not because Hispanic attitudes are not important, but we only report on Hispanics when the survey was conducted in Spanish and English and when enough interviews were conducted with Hispanics to report on their views accurately and reliably.

See other recent Ask the Expert questions and answers:

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