VII.  Geographic Area Definitions

LEGAL AREAS

United States - The 50 States and the District of Columbia.

States and Statistically Equivalent Areas - The 50 States; in addition, we
treat the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and each of the outlying
areas-American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, and the
Virgin Islands of the United States-as statistical equivalents to States
for presentation.  We also have TIGER/Line files for the Marshall Islands,
the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Midway Islands.

Counties, Parishes, Statistically Equivalent Areas - The first-order
divisions of each State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the
outlying areas:  counties for 48 States; parishes for Louisiana; boroughs
and census areas for Alaska; independent cities in Maryland, Missouri,
Nevada, and Virginia; Yellowstone National Park in Montana, "District of
Columbia" for the District of Columbia, municipios in Puerto Rico; other
entities in the outlying areas.

Minor Civil Divisions (MCDs) - Legally defined subcounty areas such as
towns and townships.  For the 1990 census, these are found in 28 States,
Puerto Rico, and the outlying areas.

Sub-MCDs - Legally defined subdivisions of a minor civil division;
specifically,  subbarrios in Puerto Rico, and municipal districts in the
Federated States of Micronesia.

Incorporated Places - Legal units incorporated as a city, town (excluding
the New England States, New York, and Wisconsin), borough (excluding Alaska
and New York), or village.

American Indian Reservations - American Indian areas with boundaries
established by treaty, statute, and/or executive or court order.

Alaska Native Regional Corporations (ANRCs) - Corporate entities
established by the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (P.L. 92-203) to
carry out the business and non-profit operations established by and for
Native Alaskans under the Act.  Twelve ANRCs have specific boundaries and
cover the State of Alaska except for the Annette Islands Reserve.

Statistical Areas

Alaska Native Village Statistical Areas (ANVSAs) - 1990 census statistical
areas that delineate the settled area of each Alaska Native village (ANV).
Officials of Alaska Native Regional Corporations (ANRCs) and other
appropriate State officials delineated the ANVSAs for the Census Bureau for
the sole purpose of presenting census data.

Tribal Designated Statistical Areas (TDSAs) - Geographic areas delineated
for 1990 census data tabulation purposes by tribal officials of Federally
and State-recognized tribes outside of Oklahoma that do not have a legally
defined reservation.

Tribal Jurisdiction Statistical Areas (TJSAs) - Geographic areas delineated
for 1990 census data tabulation purposes by tribal officials in Oklahoma
for Federally recognized tribes that do not have a legally defined
reservation.

Census County Divisions (CCDs) - Areas delineated by the Census Bureau in
cooperation with State and local officials in States where MCDs are not
adequate for reporting subcounty statistics.

Unorganized Territories (UTs) - Areas delineated by the Census Bureau for
those portions of a State with MCDs where MCDs do not exist or are not
adequate for reporting subcounty statistics.

Census Designated Places (CDPs) - Densely settled population centers
without legally defined corporate limits or corporate powers, defined in
cooperation with State officials and local data users.

Census Tracts - Small, locally delineated statistical areas within selected
counties, generally having stable boundaries and, when first established by
local committees, designed to have relatively homogeneous demographic
characteristics.

Block Numbering Areas (BNAs) - Areas delineated by State governments or the
Census Bureau for the purpose of grouping and numbering blocks in counties
without census tracts.

Census Blocks - Small, usually compact areas, usually bounded by streets
and other prominent physical features as well as boundaries of legal areas
for which the Census Bureau tabulates data.  Blocks do not cross county,
census tract, or BNA boundaries.

Voting Districts (VTDs) - For the 1990 census, the term "voting district"
replaces the 1980 census term "election precinct."  A voting district is
any of a variety of areas (for example, election districts, precincts,
legislative districts, wards) defined by State and local governments for
purposes of elections.  The 1990 voting district codes that appear in the
1990 census version of the TIGER/Line files were supplied by the State
under the 1990 Census Redistricting Data Program.  The boundaries of the
voting districts recorded in the TIGER/Line files may represent pseudo-
voting districts; the States were required to have voting districts follow
1990 census block boundaries, and therefore they may have had to relocate
the boundaries of actual voting districts to a nearby feature used as a
block boundary.  States had the option of participating in the program on a
county-by-county basis.  Voting districts do not appear in all TIGER/Line
files.