New Orleans-Metairie, LA Metro Area Immigration

Population

The New Orleans-Metairie Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) population 1/ increased from 1,144,130 in 1970 to 1,189,866 in 2010 despite the major population loss in 2005 from hurricane Katrina. That was an increase of 4.0 percent.

The foreign-born (FB) population increased from 26,276 in 1970 to 81,321 in 2010. That was an increase of 209.5 percent. The foreign-born share changed from 2.3 percent to 6.8 percent.

The share of the overall population that was native-born (NB) decreased by 0.8 percent.

	New Orleans MSA: Population  1970-2010

Sources of Population Change

The primary sources of population change are:

Natural Change [Births minus Deaths or B-D];
Net Domestic Migration [NDM - movement between states]; and
Net International Migration [NIM - movement into and out of the country].
There is also a residual "other" amount that isn't placed in one of those three categories.

The first chart below shows the three population change factors for three periods adjusted for annual average amounts. Natural change (B-D) was the primary factor in population increase in the first two periods, replaced by NDM in the most recent period.

The second chart shows the same data but with an adjustment to reflect births to immigrants shifted to NIM. In it, the same relative positions remained in adding population.

	New Orleans MSA: Sources of Population Change 1990-2014 	New Orleans MSA: Sources of Population Change (Adjusted) 1990-2014

		B-D	NDM	 NIM						B-D	NDM	  NIM	
	90-'99	84.7%	 neg.	15.3%					90-'99	69.3%	 neg.	30.7%
	00-'09	77.8%	 neg.	22.2%					00-'09	60.0%	 neg.	40.0%
	10-'14	34.6%	43.2%	22.2%					10-'14	22.3%	43.2%	34.5%

1/ Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James Parish, St. John the Baptist, and St. Tammany parishes.

Links:

MSA Factsheets by state, and alphabetically.

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