Elkhart County’s population is edging closely to 200,000.

According to the latest figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, the estimated population here totaled 199,619 as of July 1, 2012. That’s up about 1,000 from the 2011 estimate and around 2,000 more than the official 2010 head count, 197,559.

The figures — and those of all other U.S. counties — were released Thursday, March 14, by the Census Bureau. Here are some additional highlights:

• Elkhart County had the sixth largest population in Indiana in 2012, same as 2011. St. Joseph County sat in the fifth spot, with 266,344 residents, down slightly from 266,931 in 2010. Vanderburgh County is seventh, with a population of 180,858, up from 179,703 in 2010.

• The increase in Elkhart County’s population from 2010 stemmed largely from births. There were 6,830 births in the 2010 to 2012 period and 3,343 deaths. “International” migration brought 460 people here while another 1,885 left for some other part of the United States. A “residual” factor also figured in the total.

• Indiana’s overall population as of 2012 reached an estimated 6.54 million, up from the 6.48 million estimated base on April 1, 2010.

Elkhart County’s estimated population in 2009 had surpassed 200,000, reaching 200,502, according to the Census Bureau estimate released in 2010. But the number dipped below the 200,000 threshold in the formal count for 2010.

Thursday’s figures don’t break down the population by race or ethnicity.