How2Day: Five Largest States by Population

The U.S. government has recorded population size since the 18th century. group of people hand waving image by Accent from Fotolia.com
Even though Alaska ranks as the largest U.S. state in terms of geographical size, it is listed near the bottom in terms of population. To determine the amount of people who reside in each state, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a decennial survey, which is every 10 years. The groups included in each state are citizens, permanent residents who are not citizens and long-term visitors. Military and civilian persons serving overseas, along with their families who live with them, are counted in their home state totals.

The most populated state in the U.S. is California, with an estimated 36,961,664 people living there in 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The percentage of California residents out of the whole U.S. population is 11.87 percent. Since 1940, the state population has increased four times faster on an annual average than the entire U.S. population. The most populated urban agglomeration of California, which includes the suburbs and inner city, is Los Angeles with 16,373,645 residents, as recorded by the U.S. Census of 2000.

While the state of Texas may be larger in geographical size than California, it ranks second to its total population size. Estimates of the 2009 population of Texas provided by the U.S. Census Bureau lists 24,782,302 residents living in the Lone Star state. This population total accounts for 7.96 percent of the entire U.S. population. The most populated urban agglomeration of Texas is in Dallas, which is home to 5,221,801 Texans, as of the 2000 U.S. Census.

New York is the third most populated state in the U.S. with an estimated 19,541,453 people residing there in 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Of the entire U.S. population, 6.28 percent live in New York which consists of 54,475-square feet and is the 27th largest state by geographical size. The majority of people who live in New York live within the city limits and outer lying neighborhoods of New York City, home to 8,391,881 New Yorkers. This city is the most populated in the U.S. according to the U.S. Census of 2000.

The fourth most populated state in the U.S. is Florida. An estimated total number of residents in this state was recorded at 18,537,969 as of 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Consisting of 5.95 percent of the entire U.S. population, Florida is the most populated state of the Southeast. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, Miami was the most populated city of Florida, with 3,876,380 residents.

Illinois is the fifth most populated state in the U.S. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were an estimated 12,910,409 residents living in Illinois in 2009, which is 4.15 percent of the total U.S. population. The most populated city in the state is Chicago, which was home to 9,157,540 people as of the 2000 U.S. Census.

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