Editing Virginia (section)

==Demographics==

{{Main|Demographics of Virginia}}
{{US Census population
|1790= 691737
|1800= 807557
|1810= 877683
|1820= 938261
|1830= 1044054
|1840= 1025227
|1850= 1119348
|1860= 1219630
|1870= 1225163
|1880= 1512565
|1890= 1655980
|1900= 1854184
|1910= 2061612
|1920= 2309187
|1930= 2421851
|1940= 2677773
|1950= 3318680
|1960= 3966949
|1970= 4648494
|1980= 5346818
|1990= 6187358
|2000= 7078515
|2010= 8001024
|2020= 8631393
|estyear= 2024
|estimate= 8811195
|align-fn=center
|footnote=1790–2020,<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www2.census.gov/library/visualizations/2000/dec/2000-resident-population/virginia.pdf |title= Resident Population and Apportionment of the U.S. House of Representatives |publisher=United States Census Bureau |date= December 27, 2000 |access-date= May 3, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Historical Population Change Data (1910–2020) |url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/dec/popchange-data-text.html |website=Census.gov |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=May 1, 2021 |archive-date=April 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429012609/https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/dec/popchange-data-text.html |url-status=dead}}</ref> 2024<ref name=QuickFacts/>
}}

The [[2020 United States census|2020 census]] found the state resident population was 8,631,393, a 7.9% increase since the [[2010 United States census|2010 census]]. Another 23,149&nbsp;Virginians live overseas, giving the state a total population of 8,654,542. Virginia has the fourth-largest overseas population of U.S. states due to its federal employees and military personnel.<ref name="Bureau 2021">{{cite web |website= U.S. Census Bureau |title= 2020 Census Apportionment Results |date= April 26, 2021 |url= https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2020/dec/2020-apportionment-data.html |access-date= April 27, 2021}}</ref> The [[fertility rate]] in Virginia {{as of|2020|lc=on}} was 55.8 per 1,000 females between the ages of 15 and 44,<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.marchofdimes.org/peristats/data?reg=99&top=2&stop=1&lev=1&slev=4&obj=1&sreg=51 |title= Fertility Rate: Virginia, 2010–2020 |date= January 2022 |access-date= January 4, 2022 |website= March of Dimes}}</ref> and the [[List of U.S. states and territories by median age|median age]] {{as of|2021|lc=on}} was the same as the national average of 38.8&nbsp;years old.<ref name=agesex/> The geographic [[center of population]] is located northwest of [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] in [[Hanover County, Virginia|Hanover County]], {{As of|2020|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/centers-population.html |title= Centers of Population |website= U.S. Census Bureau |date= November 16, 2021 |access-date= January 4, 2023}}</ref>

Though still growing naturally as births outnumber deaths, Virginia has had a negative [[net migration rate]] since 2013, with 8,995&nbsp;more people leaving the state than moving to it in 2021. This is largely credited to high home prices in Northern Virginia,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://cardinalnews.org/2023/01/25/youngkin-is-worried-about-people-moving-out-of-virginia-heres-how-big-that-out-migration-is/ |title= Youngkin is worried about people moving out of Virginia. Here's how big that out-migration is. |website= Cardinal News |first= Dwayne |last= Yancey |date= January 25, 2023 |access-date= February 7, 2023}}</ref> which are driving residents there to relocate south; [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]] is their top destination.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonian.com/2023/02/14/is-richmond-turning-into-the-new-bedroom-community-for-dc-workers/ |title= Is Richmond Turning Into the New Bedroom Community for DC Workers? |website= Washingtonian |first= Mimi |last= Montgomery |date= February 14, 2023 |access-date= February 16, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2023/01/16/northern-virginia-nova-richmond |title= Northern Virginia residents are relocating to Richmond in droves |date= January 17, 2023 |first= Karri |last= Peifer |website= Axios |access-date= February 22, 2023}}</ref> Aside from Virginia, the top birth state for Virginians is [[New York (state)|New York]], with the [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]] accounting for the largest number of domestic migrants into the state by region.<ref name=nytmigrationanddiaspora>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/upshot/where-people-in-each-state-were-born.html?_r=2&abt=0002&abg=1#Virginia|title=Where We Came From and Where We Went, State by State|first1=Gregor|last1=Aisch|first2=Robert|last2=Gebeloff|first3=Kevin|last3=Quealy|newspaper=The New York Times|date=August 14, 2014|access-date=February 23, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190301065745/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/upshot/where-people-in-each-state-were-born.html?_r=2&abt=0002&abg=1#Virginia|archive-date=March 1, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> About twelve percent of residents were born outside the United States {{as of|2020|lc=on}}. [[El Salvador]] is the most common foreign country of birth, with [[India]], [[Mexico]], [[South Korea]], the [[Philippines]], and [[Vietnam]] as other common birthplaces.<ref name=nova_immigrants>{{cite web |url= https://www.thecommonwealthinstitute.org/2020/07/29/a-profile-of-our-immigrant-neighbors-in-northern-virginia/ |title= A Profile of Our Immigrant Neighbors in Northern Virginia |website= The Commonwealth Institute |date= July 29, 2020 |access-date= May 2, 2021}}</ref>

===Race and ethnicity===
The state's most populous racial group, [[non-Hispanic whites]], has declined as a proportion of the population from 76% in 1990 to 58.6% in 2020.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/demographics-are-destiny-virginia-flna8c11525607 |website= U.S. Census Bureau |title= Demographics are destiny in Virginia |first= Domenico |last= Montanaro |date= November 4, 2013 |access-date= September 1, 2021}}</ref><ref name=race2020>{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/race-and-ethnicity-in-the-united-state-2010-and-2020-census.html |title= Race and Ethnicity in the United States: 2010 Census and 2020 Census |publisher= U.S. Census Bureau |date= August 17, 2021 |access-date= September 1, 2021 |ref= CITEREFethnicity}}</ref> Immigrants from Britain and Ireland settled throughout the Commonwealth during the colonial period,{{sfn|Miller|Schrier|Boling|Doyle|2003|pp=6, 147}} when roughly three-fourths of immigrants came as [[indentured servant]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last= Masur |first= Louis P. |title= The Sum of Our Dreams: A Concise History of America |year= 2020 |publisher= Oxford University Press |location= New York |pages= 4–5 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=fobxDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA4 |isbn= 978-0-19-069257-5}}</ref> The Appalachian mountains and [[Shenandoah Valley]] have many settlements that were populated by [[Shenandoah Germans|German]] and [[Scotch-Irish Americans|Scotch-Irish immigrants]] in the 18th and 19th centuries, often following the [[Great Wagon Road]].<ref name=dutch/><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/virginia-is-for-irish-lovers/article_3f1da178-4734-11e9-8302-ebb4c2629721.html |title= Virginia is for Irish lovers? |first= Rosemarie |last= O'Connor |agency= Capital News Service |date= March 17, 2019 |website= Prince William Times |access-date= September 28, 2023}}</ref> Over ten percent of Virginians have German ancestry {{as of|2020|lc=on}}.<ref name=ancestry>{{cite web |url= https://data.census.gov/table?t=Ancestry&g=0400000US51,51$0500000&d=ACS+5-Year+Estimates+Data+Profiles&tid=ACSDP5Y2020.DP02&moe=false&tp=true |title= Selected Social Characteristics |website= American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates |publisher= [[U.S. Census Bureau]] |year= 2020 |access-date= December 23, 2022 |ref=CITEREFancestry}}</ref>

[[File:L-15-12-22-A-040 (23285802904).jpg|thumb|left|New citizens attend a naturalization ceremony in [[Northern Virginia]], where 25% of residents are foreign-born, almost twice the overall state average.<ref name=nova_immigrants/>|alt=Dozens of adults sit in auditorium rows, many waving small American flags]]
The largest minority group in Virginia are Blacks and African Americans, about one-fifth of the population.<ref name=race2020/> Virginia was a major destination of the [[Atlantic slave trade]]. The [[Igbo American|Igbo]] ethnic group of what is now southern [[Nigeria]] were the largest African group among slaves in Virginia.<ref>{{harvnb|Pinn|2009|p=175}}; {{harvnb|Chambers|2005|pp=10–14}}</ref> Blacks in Virginia also have more European ancestry than those in other southern states, and DNA analysis shows many have asymmetrical male and female ancestry from before the Civil War, evidence of European fathers and African or Native American mothers.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://psmag.com/news/how-slavery-changed-the-dna-of-african-americans |title= How Slavery Changed the DNA of African Americans |magazine= Pacific Standard |first= Michael |last= White |date= December 20, 2017 |access-date= March 25, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title= The Genetic Ancestry of African Americans, Latinos, and European Americans across the United States |first1= Katarzyna |last1= Bryc |first2= Eric Y. |last2= Durand |first3= J. Michael |last3= Macpherson |first4= David |last4= Reich |first5= Joanna L. |last5= Mountain |journal= American Journal of Human Genetics |doi= 10.1016/j.ajhg.2014.11.010 |pmid= 25529636 |date= January 8, 2015 |volume = 96|issue = 1|pages = 37–53|pmc = 4289685|doi-access= free}}</ref> Though the Black population was reduced by the [[Great Migration (African American)|Great Migration]] to northern industrial cities in the first half of the 20th century, since 1965 there has been a reverse migration of Blacks [[New Great Migration|returning south]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2004/05demographics_frey/20040524_Frey.pdf |first=William H. |last=Frey |title=The New Great Migration: Black Americans' Return to the South, 1965–2000 |journal=The Living Cities Census Series |date=May 2004 |pages=1–3 |access-date=September 10, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103165633/http://www3.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2004/05demographics_frey/20040524_Frey.pdf |archive-date=November 3, 2007}}</ref> The Commonwealth has the highest number of Black-white [[Interracial marriage in the United States|interracial marriages in the US]],<ref name=blackwhite>{{cite news|url=https://www.pilotonline.com/news/article_107293b2-cb53-5d2f-8b38-aca42251c6e3.html|title=Virginia ranks highest in U.S. for black-white marriages|newspaper=The Virginian-Pilot|date=March 17, 2012|first=Denise M.|last=Watson|access-date=April 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421082321/http://hamptonroads.com/2012/03/virginia-ranks-highest-us-blackwhite-marriages|archive-date=April 21, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> and 8.2% of Virginians describe themselves as [[Multiracial people|multiracial]].<ref name=QuickFacts/>

More recent immigration since the late 20th century has resulted in new communities of Hispanics and Asians. {{As of|2020}}, 10.5% of Virginia's total population describe themselves as [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]], and 8.8% as [[Asian people|Asian]].<ref name=QuickFacts/> The state's Hispanic population rose by 92% from 2000 to 2010, with two-thirds of Hispanics in the state living in [[Northern Virginia]].<ref name=demographics>{{cite news|url=http://hamptonroads.com/2011/02/virginians-census-8-million-total-1m-fairfax-county |title=Virginians in the census: 8 million total, 1M in Fairfax County |work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=February 3, 2011 |access-date=February 4, 2011 |first=John |last=Raby |ref=CITEREFdemographics |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110204203509/http://hamptonroads.com/2011/02/virginians-census-8-million-total-1m-fairfax-county |archive-date=February 4, 2011}}</ref> Northern Virginia also has a significant population of [[Vietnamese American]]s, whose major wave of immigration followed the [[Vietnam War]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Vietnamese American Place Making in Northern Virginia|first=Joseph|last=Wood|journal=Geographical Review|volume=87|issue=1|date=January 1997|pages=58–72|doi=10.2307/215658|jstor=215658}}</ref> [[Korean American]]s have migrated there more recently,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.wtop.com/?nid=722&sid=1374240|title=Centreville: The New Koreatown?|work=Fairfax County Times|first=Layla|last=Wilder|date=March 28, 2008|access-date=November 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611210442/http://www.wtop.com/?nid=722&sid=1374240|archive-date=June 11, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> while about 45,000 [[Filipino American]]s have settled in the Hampton Roads area.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hamptonroads.com/2008/06/locals-celebrate-philippine-independence-day|title=Locals celebrate Philippine Independence Day|work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|date=June 12, 2008|first=Nora|last=Firestone|access-date=September 30, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080617220659/http://hamptonroads.com/2008/06/locals-celebrate-philippine-independence-day|archive-date=June 17, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:345th Tax Tribute Ceremony, Richmond - 11-23-22 - 028.jpg|thumb|Governor [[Glenn Youngkin]] receiving a ceremonial tribute from representatives of the [[Mattaponi]] and [[Pamunkey]] tribes, a Thanksgiving tradition since 1677.<ref name=taxtribute/>|alt=An older white man in a dark blue blazer smiles as he is presented with a dead deer hanging upside down held by two men in contemporary Native American attire.]]
[[Native American tribes in Virginia|Tribal membership in Virginia]] is complicated by the legacy of the state's "[[Racial Integrity Act of 1924|pencil genocide]]" of intentionally categorizing Native Americans and Blacks together, and many tribal members do have African or European ancestry, or both.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://time.com/5141434/virginia-indian-recognition-pocahontas-exception/ |title= From the 'Pocahontas Exception' to a 'Historical Wrong': The Hidden Cost of Formal Recognition for American Indian Tribes |magazine= Time Magazine |first=  Arica L. |last= Coleman |date= February 9, 2018 |access-date= April 29, 2021}}</ref> In 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau found that only 0.5% of Virginians were exclusively [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indian]] or [[Alaska Native]], though 2.1% were in some combination with other ethnicities.<ref name=race2020/> The state government has [[State-recognized tribes in the United States|extended recognition]] to eleven tribes. Seven tribes also have federal recognition.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://chesapeakebaymagazine.com/seven-virginia-tribes-celebrate-federal-recognition-on-york-river/ |title= Seven Virginia Tribes Celebrate Federal Recognition on York River |magazine= Chesapeake Bay Magazine |first= Meg |last= Walburn Viviano |date= October 8, 2018 |access-date= May 18, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-recognizes-6-virginia-native-american-tribes |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191228110134/https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-recognizes-6-virginia-native-american-tribes |url-status= dead |archive-date= December 28, 2019 |title= US Recognizes 6 Virginia Native American Tribes |website= Voice of America |first= Cecily |last= Hilleary |date=January 31, 2018|access-date=April 29, 2020}}</ref> The [[Pamunkey]] and [[Mattaponi]] have reservations on tributaries of the [[York River (Virginia)|York River]] in the [[Tidewater region of Virginia|Tidewater region]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.whsv.com/content/news/After-centuries-in-Virginia-tribe-still-waiting-for-US-recognition-509597531.html |title= After centuries in Virginia, tribe still waiting for U.S. recognition |first1= Madison |last1= Manske |first2= Alexandra |last2= Zernik |agency= Capital News Service |date= May 7, 2019 |access-date= April 29, 2020 |website= WHSV-TV}}</ref>

{|class="toccolours" style="border-spacing: 1px; margin:1em auto 1em auto"
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Largest race by county or city
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Race and ethnicity ([[#CITEREFethnicity|2020]])
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:6px; padding-left:6px;"|Alone
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:6px; padding-left:6px;"|Total
|-
|rowspan=6 style="text-align:center; width:280px;" |[[File:Virginia Counties by race (2020 census).svg|270px|Map of racial plurality in Virginia by county as of the [[2020 United States census|2020 U.S. census]]]]
{|class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="line-height:1.3em; border:0; margin-top:0em; background:transparent; width:100%"
|+Legend
|-
|style="border:0px; vertical-align:top;"|Non-Hispanic White{{legend|#e6b8af|30–39%}}
{{legend|#dd7e6b|40–49%}}
{{legend|#cc4125|50–59%}}
{{legend|#a61c00|60–69%}}
{{legend|#85200c|70–79%}}
{{legend|#5b0f00|80–89%}}
{{legend|#410b00|90–99%}}
|style="border:0px; vertical-align:top;"|Black or African American{{legend|#ffe599|40–49%}}
{{legend|#ffd966|50–59%}}
{{legend|#f1c232|60–69%}}
{{legend|#bf9000|70–79%}}
|style="border:0px; vertical-align:top;"|Hispanic or Latino{{legend|#a2c4c9|40–49%}}
|}
|Non-Hispanic White
|align=center|58.6%
|align=center|62.8%
|-
|Black or African American
|align=center|18.3%
|align=center|20.1%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
|
|10.5%
|-
|Asian
|align=center|7.1%
|align=center|8.6%
|-
|American Indian and Alaska Native
|align=center|0.2%
|align=center|1.5%
|-
|Other
|align=center|0.6%
|align=center|1.5%
|-
|colspan=3 style="padding-bottom:0.75em;" |
|-
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Largest ancestry by county or city
!style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Ancestry ([[#CITEREFancestry|2020&nbsp;est.]])
!colspan=2 style="background:lavender; padding-right:3px; padding-left:3px;"|Total
|-
|rowspan=5 style="text-align:center; width:280px;"|
[[File:Virginia Ancestries by County 2020.svg|270px|Virginia counties colored either red, blue, yellow, green, or purple based on the populations most common ancestry. The south-east is predominantly purple for African American, while the west is mostly red for American. The north has yellow for German, with two small areas green for Irish. Yellow is also found in spots in the west. A strip in the middle is blue for English.]]
<br />
<span style="line-height: 1.3em">[[American Community Survey]] five-year estimate</span>
|{{legend|green|Irish or Scotch-Irish}}
|colspan=2 align=center|10.4%
|-
|{{legend|#fc0|German}}
|colspan=2 align=center|10.3%
|-
|{{legend|#2a7fff|English}}
|colspan=2 align=center|9.8%
|-
|{{legend|#a00|American}}
|colspan=2 align=center|9.4%
|-
||{{legend|#5a2ca0|Subsaharan African}}
|colspan=2 align=center|2.3%
|}

===Languages===
[[File:Monologue with 93 year old white male, Tangier Island, Virginia.ogg|thumb|start=00:16|A recording of a resident of [[Tangier, Virginia|Tangier Island]] who was born in the late 1800s, showcasing the island's unique accent]]
According to U.S. Census data {{As of|2022|lc=on}} on Virginia residents aged five and older, 83% (6,805,548) speak [[English language|English]] at home as a [[first language]]. [[Spanish language|Spanish]] is the next most commonly spoken language, with 7.5% (611,831) of Virginia households, though age is a factor; 8.7% (120,560) of Virginians under age eighteen speak Spanish. [[Arabic language|Arabic]] was the third most commonly spoken language with around 0.8% of residents, followed by [[Chinese language]]s  and [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] each with over 0.7%, and then [[Korean language|Korean]] and [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]], just under 0.7% and 0.6% respectively.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.migrationpolicy.org/data/state-profiles/state/language/VA |title= State Immigration Data Profiles: Virginia |website= Migration Policy Institute |date= July 1, 2023 |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref>

English was passed as the Commonwealth's official language by statutes in 1981 and again in 1996, though the status is not mandated by the constitution.{{sfn|Joseph|2006|p=63}} While a more homogenized [[American English]] is found in urban areas, and the use of Southern accents in general has been on the decline in speakers born since the 1960s,<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.npr.org/2023/09/17/1200026181/are-southern-accents-disappearing-linguists-say-yes |title= Are Southern accents disappearing? Linguists say yes |date= September 17, 2023 |website= NPR |first= Ayesha |last= Rascoe |access-date= November 3, 2023}}</ref> various accents are still present.<ref name=pleasant/> The [[Piedmont region of Virginia|Piedmont]] region is known for its non-rhotic dialect's strong influence on [[Southern American English]], and a [[BBC America]] study in 2014 ranked it as one of the most identifiable accents in American English.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2014/09/8-american-dialects-brits-dont-know |title= 8 American Dialects Most Brits Don't Know About |website= BBC America |first= Laurence |last= Brown |date= September 2014 |access-date= July 26, 2022 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210308132026/https://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2014/09/8-american-dialects-brits-dont-know |archive-date= March 8, 2021}}</ref> The [[Tidewater accent]] evolved from the language that upper-class English typically spoke in the early Colonial period, while the [[Appalachian English|Appalachian accent]] has much more influence from the English spoken by Scottish and Irish immigrants from that time.<ref name=pleasant>{{cite news |url= https://augustafreepress.com/this-accent-is-one-of-the-most-pleasant-in-the-world/ |title= This accent is one of the most pleasant in the world |website= Augusta Free Press |date= December 10, 2019 |access-date= July 26, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/niceandcurious/manyvoices.htm|title=Virginia's Many Voices|first1=Edwin S.|last1=Clay III|first2=Patricia|last2=Bangs|publisher=[[Fairfax County, Virginia]]|date=May 9, 2005|access-date=November 28, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071221203242/http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/niceandcurious/manyvoices.htm|archive-date=December 21, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> The outward [[Appalachian stereotypes|stereotypes of Appalachians]] has, however, led to some from the region [[code-switching]] to a less distinct English accent.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://roanoke.com/opinion/commentary/davis-appalachian-code-switching/article_101de134-f6aa-52cc-a095-714f7389d1da.html |title= Davis: Appalachian code-switching |newspaper= The Roanoke Times |first= Chelyen |last= Davis |date= July 26, 2015 |access-date= November 3, 2023}}</ref> The English spoken on [[Tangier, Virginia|Tangier Island]] in the [[Chesapeake Bay]], preserved by the island's isolation, contains many phrases and euphemisms not found anywhere else and retains elements of [[Early Modern English]].<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20180206-the-tiny-us-island-with-a-british-accent |title= The tiny US island with a British accent |website= BBC |first1= Veena |last1= Rao |first2= Eliot |last2= Stein |date= February 7, 2018 |access-date= July 26, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Miller">{{cite news|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/article/215086/exotic-tangier-john-j-miller|title=Exotic Tangier|work=[[National Review]]|first=John J.|last=Miller|date=August 2, 2005|access-date=October 9, 2008}}</ref>

===Religion===
{{See also|Religion in early Virginia}}
{{Pie chart
| caption = '''Religious Tradition ([[#CITEREFprri2023|2023]])'''
| label1 = [[Irreligion in the United States|Unaffiliated]]
| value1 = 29
| label2 = [[Protestantism in the United States|Protestantism]]
| value2 = 46
| label3 = [[Catholic Church in the United States|Catholicism]]
| value3 = 16
| label4 = [[Jehovah's Witnesses]]
| value4 = 2
| label5 = [[Judaism in the United States|Judaism]]
| value5 = 2
| label6 = [[Eastern Orthodoxy in North America|Eastern Orthodoxy]]
| value6 = 1
| label7 = [[Islam in the United States|Islam]]
| value7 = 1
| label8 = [[Mormonism]]
| value8 = 1
| label9 = [[Unitarian Universalism]]
| value9 = 1
| other = 1
}}
Virginia enshrined [[Freedom of religion|religious freedom]] in [[Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom|a 1786 statute]]. Though the state is historically part of America's [[Bible Belt]], the 2023 [[Public Religion Research Institute]] (PRRI) survey estimated that 55% of Virginians either seldom or never attend religious services, ahead of the national average of 53.2%, and that the percent of Virginians unaffiliated with any particular religious body had increased from 21% in 2013 to 29% in 2023.<ref name=prri2023>{{cite web |url= https://ava.prri.org/#religious/2023/States/religion1/m/US-VA |title= PRRI – American Values Atlas |website= The American Values Atlas |year= 2023 |access-date= August 1, 2024 |ref=CITEREFprri2023}}</ref> The 2020 U.S. Religion Census conducted by the [[Association of Religion Data Archives]] (ARDA) similarly found that 55% of Virginians attend none of the state's 10,477&nbsp;congregations.<ref name=whopractices>{{cite news |url= https://www.coopercenter.org/research/who-practices-what-religion-where-virginia |title= Who Practices What Religion Where in Virginia? |date= June 8, 2021 |first1= Shonel |last1= Sen |first2= Rebecca |last2= Draughon |website= The Cooper Center |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref> Overall [[belief in God]] has also declined in [[Southern United States|the South region]], of which Virginia is a part, from 93% of respondents in [[Gallup, Inc.|Gallup]] surveys from 2013 to 2017, to 86% in 2022.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://news.gallup.com/poll/393737/belief-god-dips-new-low.aspx |title= Belief in God in U.S. Dips to 81%, a New Low |website= Gallup |date= June 17, 2022 |first= Jeffrey M. |last= Jones |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref>

Of the 45% of Virginians who were associated with religious bodies in the 2020 ARDA census, [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical Protestants]] made up the largest overall grouping, with 20.3% of the state's population, while 8.1% and 2% were [[Mainline Protestant|mainline]] and [[Black church|Black Protestant]] respectively. [[Baptists]], 84% of which are counted as Evangelical, included 9.4% of Virginians in that census.<ref name=arda2020>{{cite web |url= https://www.thearda.com/us-religion/census/congregational-membership?y=2020&y2=0&t=1&c=51 |title= Virginia - State Membership Report (2020) |website= The Association of Religion Data Archives |year= 2020 |access-date= August 1, 2024}}</ref> Their major division is between the [[Baptist General Association of Virginia]], which formed in 1823, and the [[Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia]], which split off in 1996. Other Protestant branches with over one percent of Virginians included [[Pentecostalism]] (1.8%), [[Presbyterianism]] (1.3%), [[Anglicanism]] (1.2%), and [[Adventism]] (1%).<ref name=arda2020/> The 2023 PRRI survey estimated that 46% of Virginians were Protestants, with 14% each as White Evangelical, White Mainline, and Black, though these numbers include individuals who report not attending services.<ref name=prri2023/>

[[File:Easter Sunrise Service at Arlington National Cemetery 2019.jpg|thumb|left|Since 1927, [[Arlington National Cemetery]] in [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]] has hosted an annual nondenominational [[sunrise service]] every Easter.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.dcmilitary.com/pentagram/community/jbm-hh-chaplains-easter-sunrise-service-offers-chance-to-celebrate-grow/article_1fce8350-c3b8-5ea2-9cbc-93d1744d4819.html |title= JBM-HH chaplains: Easter Sunrise Service offers chance to celebrate, grow |first= Arthur |last= Mondale |website= Pentagram |date= March 24, 2016 |access-date= June 20, 2021}}</ref>|alt=An outdoor auditorium with seated guests lined with neoclassical columns and a closed archway on one side and banners hanging inside the arch.]]
[[Roman Catholicism in the United States|Catholics]] accounted for 10.3% in the 2020 ARDA census,<ref name=arda2020/> and 16% in the 2023 PRRI survey, which divided them into 9% White Catholic, 6% Hispanic Catholic, and 1% other.<ref name=prri2023/> Catholic churches are organized in either the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Arlington|Diocese of Arlington]] or [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond|Richmond]], while [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal churches]] are similarly in their [[Episcopal Diocese of Virginia|Diocese of Virginia]], [[Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia|Southern Virginia]], and [[Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia|Southwestern Virginia]]. Adherents of [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] constitute just over one percent of the population, with 210&nbsp;[[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Virginia|congregations in Virginia]] {{as of|2024|lc=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/united-states/state/virginia|title=USA-Virginia|website=Mormon Newsroom|publisher=[[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]|access-date=August 1, 2024|first=Lance|last=Walker}}</ref> While the state's Jewish population is small, organized Jewish sites date to 1789 with [[Congregation Beth Ahabah]].{{sfn|Olitzky|1996|p=359}}

[[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]] is the state's most religiously diverse jurisdiction.<ref name=whopractices/> [[Fairfax Station, Virginia|Fairfax Station]] is the site of the [[Ekoji Buddhist Temple]], of the [[Jōdo Shinshū]] school, and the Hindu [[Durga Temple of Virginia]]. The [[All Dulles Area Muslim Society]], on the county's border in [[Sterling, Virginia|Sterling]], considers its eleven branches the country's second-largest [[Muslim]] mosque community.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/ramadan-mubarak-goes-virtual-adams-center-northern-virginia/65-7ed1440b-8ce4-4bee-b47f-4f300ae51aa9 |title= DMV mosques adjust Ramadan observance during coronavirus pandemic |first= John |last= Henry |website= WUSA9 |date= April 24, 2020 |access-date= June 20, 2021}}</ref> [[McLean Bible Church]], with around 16,500&nbsp;weekly visitors, is among the top 25&nbsp;largest [[megachurch]]es in the U.S. and 8.4% of Virginians attend [[Nondenominational Christianity|nondenomination Christian]] churches like it, according to the 2020 ARDA census.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/30-biggest-american-megachurches-ranked/ |title= America's biggest megachurches, ranked |website= CBS News |first= Elisha |last= Fieldstadt |date= November 26, 2018 |access-date= August 2, 2024}}</ref><ref name=arda2020/> [[Lynchburg metropolitan area|Lynchburg]] and [[Roanoke metropolitan area|Roanoke]] ranked in that census as the two metropolitan areas with the highest rates of religious adherence, while the state-college-dominated [[Blacksburg–Christiansburg metropolitan area|Blacksburg–Christiansburg]] and [[Charlottesville, Virginia metropolitan area|Charlottesville]] were the lowest.<ref name=arda2020/> Two major Christian universities, [[Liberty University]] and the [[University of Lynchburg]], are based in Lynchburg, while [[Regent University]] is in [[Virginia Beach, Virginia|Virginia Beach]].