Answer: 83% of New Mexico's Hispanics were native-born and 17% foreign-born. Many Hispanics in New Mexico claim a Spanish ancestry, especially in the northern part of the state. These people are the descendants of Spanish-speaking colonists who arrived during the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, often referred to as Hispanos.Among the most important Hispanic cultural influence is the world of entertainment. Salsa, merengue, Latin rap, Latin songs and today, Reggaeton, consolidate a stable market not only for the Spanish natives but for the Americans as well.Large Hispanic populations in the southwestern U.S. can be traced to the Spanish exploration and settlement of the area nearly 500 years ago. In the 1500s, Spaniards explored present-day New Mexico, Arizona and parts of Colorado, lands that later became Spanish territories.The New Deal began to offer assistance to Hispanic Americans through its various relief and recovery programs. In particularly, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and Works Progress Administration (WPA) hired unemployed Mexican Americans on relief jobs throughout the Southwest, both rural and urban.Aug. 12, 2021, at 4:57 p.m. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico has retained its title as the nation's most heavily Hispanic state, with 47.7% of respondents to the 2020 census identifying ancestry linked to Latin America and other Spanish-speaking areas.
