Southwest states like Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Nevada and California were actually part of Northern Mexico before the United States took over those areas after the Mexican–American War. When the United States took over the states that border with Mexico, Hispanics predominated the area. As a consequence, many Mexican families abounded. After the United States took possession (Arizona and New Mexico became states in 1912), the children born afterwards to Mexicans who lived in these states became, legally speaking, Mexican-Americans or Americans with Mexican descent.