Cinco de Mayo a celebration of Mexican heritage, culture

Cinco de Mayo celebrates the legendary Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, in which a Mexican force of 4,500 men faced 6,000 well-trained French soldiers. The battle lasted four hours and ended in a victory for the Mexican army under Gen. Ignacio Zaragoza. Along with Mexican Independence Day on Sept. 16, Cinco de Mayo has become a time to celebrate Mexican heritage and culture.

The number of U.S. residents of Mexican origin, according to the 2010 Census, is 31.8 million. These residents accounted for about three-quarters (63 percent) of the 50.5 million Hispanics and increased 54 percent, growing from 20.6 million in 2000 to 31.8 million in 2010.

Sixty-one percentage of the Mexican-origin population in the United States reside in California (11.4 million) and Texas (8 million) in 2010.