page_title: Demographics of Buffalo, New York
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Demographics of Buffalo, New York / Background
caption_attribution_description: Maps of racial and ethnic divisions in US cities, inspired by Bill Rankin's map of Chicago, updated for Census 2010. Red is White, Blue is Black, Green is Asian, Orange is Hispanic, Yellow is Other, and each dot is 25 residents. Data from Census 2010. Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA
context_page_description: Buffalo, New York is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. The city has a population of 261,310 and the Buffalo–Cheektowaga–Olean Combined Statistical Area is home to 1,215,826 residents.
context_section_description: Buffalo was first settled primarily by New Englanders. The first wave of European immigrants was a large influx of Germans. The city was further populated by Irish immigrants first, Erie Canal builders and then escaping famine, and infused by Polish, Italian, Jewish, and more recently Latino populations, all of which have made it a melting pot of ethnic cultures. The newest immigrants are from Somalia, Sudan, and Asia.
  The Old First Ward retains a strong Irish identity, and Kaisertown reflects a German heritage. Buffalo's Polonia was centered at the Broadway Market on the East Side. The market serves as a microcosm of Polish/Slavic traditions and delicacies. The East Side is now home to African Americans, many of whom came north during the Great Migration. The annual Juneteenth Festival is a large cultural celebration organized by African Americans in Martin Luther King Jr. Park.
  The West Side is home to the city's Hispanic community, predominantly of Puerto Rican descent. The West Side was once Buffalo's "Little Italy," but in the 1980s much of Buffalo's Italian American community moved to North Buffalo. There is also a small Italian-American enclave in the East Side neighborhood of Lovejoy. Many Buffalo households, churches, and restaurants continue to observe the Sicilian custom of preparing St. Joseph's Day (March 19) tables, at which various meatless Lenten courses are laid out for the poor.
  Buffalo is also home to a large Jewish community. German Jewish immigrants originally settled on Buffalo's Westside in the mid-19th century. Lower income Russian Jews and Polish Jews immigrating to the Niagara Frontier in the early 20th century initially settled on the Lower East Side, near William Street and Jefferson Avenue. The community migrated to the Masten Park neighborhood on the East Side, and then to North Buffalo between the 1940s and the 1960s. Although many still live in the city, particularly in North Buffalo and the Delaware District on the city's Westside, the majority of the Buffalo area's Jews now live in the northeastern suburbs. Buffalo's Jewish Community Centers are located in the Delaware District, North Buffalo and Amherst.
  Distancing itself from its industrial past, Buffalo is redefining itself as a cultural, banking, educational, medical center and architectural tourism destination. In 2001, USA Today named Buffalo the winner of its "City with a Heart" contest. proclaiming it the nation's "friendliest city." Buffalo is also a two-time winner of the All-America City Award.
caption: Map of racial distribution in Buffalo, 2010 U.S. Census. Each dot is 25 people: White, Black, Asian, Hispanic or Other (yellow)
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