Quantitative and qualitative information on Hispanic Americans is collected in this "almanac." There are five main sections. Section I presents a descriptive, historical overview of the four subgroups who comprise Hispanic Americans: Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and "others." It is argued that, despite some differences among these subgroups, all have made significant contributions to American life and share similar concerns and needs. Section II, a national socioeconomic profile of Hispanics, is largely statistical and contains six subsections dealing with the size , growth and characteristics of the national Hispanic population; a comparative analysis of Hispanic population subgroups; and the characteristics of each of the four subgroups in turn. Section III contains demographic, cultural, and economic profiles of the top 20 Hispanic markets in the United States (Albuquerque, Chicago, Corpus Christi, Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver, El Paso, Fresno, Houston, Los Angeles, McAllen, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Sacramento, Salinas-Monterey, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, and Tucson). Section IV presents descriptive data on the size, extent of electoral participation, and voting patterns of the Hispanic American electorate. Finally, Section V lists important sources of information on Hispanic Americans, as well as partial lists of Hispanic organizations, research institutions, and communications media and media organizations. An appendix presents technical matter pertaining to the development of the national and major market profiles of Hispanics. (KH)