How many greeks in usa

Additionally, the census found that Greek is the 20 th most commonly spoken language in the Toronto area. The state of Massachusetts has the 4 th largest Greek population in the USA, but it became the very first place that Greek immigrants settled in, when they moved to America.

During and , Greek citizens started moving to the States, especially to the Boston area, sporadically and in small numbers. Reportedly, captains and sailors arrived first and helped in the training of the US Navy. The biggest number of Greeks came to Boston during the decade of , after the Greek Revolution, and were pioneers in the textile industry, which became the main economic driver in New England.

According to a research from the Greek Community of Melbourne, the first Greeks arrived in Australia in the early s, and the majority of them settled in Victoria and in South New Wales — specifically in Sydney. The first Greek immigrants in Sydney were gold miners, farmers and fruit growers, that moved from the Aegean islands. Gradually, more and more Greeks started working in education, architecture and sciences, and the ones that distinguished themselves in their fields, were given the ultimate honour from their communities, as numerous streets in Australia were named after them.

Today, Sydney is the 2 nd biggest Greek stronghold in Australia, with more than , Greek descendants. Once the largest stronghold of Greeks in America, the state of Florida has numerous Greek towns and villages, but the one that stands out the most is Tarpon Springs, where more than 30, Greeks live. Tarpon Springs has a century-plus continuous Greek presence, Greek schools, churches, and a Greek-born mayor from Kalymnos, named Chris Alahouzos.

Everything in this place is reminiscent of Greece: the fishing boats, the taverns, the food, the people, and of course the sponge industry.

The first Greeks that moved to Tarpon Springs taught the local people the art of sponging and made their new home the largest centre of the sponge industry in America. Marital Status. Higher Education. Industry of Employment. Immigration and Naturalization Services data provide documentation that about , Greeks immigrated to the United States between and 1.

Their pattern of settlement shows that the vast majority settled on the East Coast, primarily Florida and New York, and the industrial Midwest, in Chicago, Detroit, or Pittsburgh 2. In addition, they also formed enclaves on the West Coast since they worked in the lumber, mining, and construction industries. However, anti-immigration laws passed in the early twentieth century resulted in four decades of declining Greek immigration to the United States 3. The second wave took place in the years to , as a result of the Hart-Heller Act that removed ethnic quotas.

Although the numbers of that period did not reach the peak of the earlier period, about , Greeks entered the United States, showing a settlement pattern favoring the large urban centers. The number of immigrants has hovered at one to two thousand annually, with almost an equal number returning to Greece 4. However, due to the economic crisis in the beginning of the twenty-first century, which is evident in the countries of the European Union, and Greece in particular, it is possible there will be another wave of immigration to the United States.

The abolition of discriminatory laws by the Immigration Act not only contributed to another wave of immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe, but also ignited a mass influx of immigrants from Asia and other non-European countries.

Indeed, between and more than twenty-eight million immigrants entered the United States, the overwhelming majority of them more than 85 percent from non-European countries. More specifically, from all the post immigrants, about 25 percent originated from Asian countries 5 , 60 percent from other countries, and only 15 percent from Europe. Therefore, although post immigration to the U. As a result, Greek Americans revitalized their ethnic populations, while many new Asian and Hispanic ethnic groups emerged.

The influx of Greek immigrants since the s has expanded the Greek population in the United States from fewer than one million in to about 1. The most striking demographic characteristic of this current Greek American population is that the number of the American born of full Greek parentage is double the number of the immigrant group: , to ,, respectively. As far as concerns the remaining , Greek Americans, , have at least one Greek immigrant grandparent and , are of mixed parentage.

The post immigrants showed residential patterns similar to the earlier Greek immigrants; Greek Americans are dispersed throughout the United States but they have settled in large urban cities.

Traditionally, Greek Americans have been concentrated in New York. It has been well documented that New York has been a preferable place of initial disembarkation and permanent settlement since the early period of Greek mass immigration to the United States, slightly over a hundred years ago.

They settled by hundreds in the city. Greek towns appeared in all parts of the U. Lowell, Massachusetts, had one of the first and most extensive Greek towns. Greeks who went to the large Northern cities, principally New York and Chicago and worked in factories, or as busboys, dishwashers, bootblacks and peddlers, mostly in the big cities of the Middle Atlantic and Great Lakes states.

Many Greeks in Chicago worked in meatpacking plants, steel mills and factories. But many others took the entrepreneurial route. It was in this capacity that the Greek immigrant was to make his most distinguishing mark on American society. Newly arrived and often still boys, Greek immigrants, who started out as bootblacks, busboys or peddlers of fruit, candy and flowers, somehow managed to set aside a portion of their meager profits, their mercantile future almost predestined.

Once they settled in, the immigrants began developing a social life initially based around Greek coffee shops. Soon schools and churches were set up followed by the first Greek newspapers. Tarpon Springs, Florida The first Greek immigrants arrived to this city during the s, to work as divers in the sponge harvesting industry.

In , John Cocoris introduced a new technique of sponge diving to Tarpon Springs and recruited Greek divers from the Dodecanese Islands and Halki in particular. By the s, there was a very productive sponge industry in Tarpon Springs, generating millions of dollars a year.

After a red tide algae bloom in that wiped out the sponge fields, most of the sponge boats and divers switched to fishing and shrimping. Today, the town is mostly shops, restaurants, and museums dedicated to the memory of Tarpon Springs' earlier industry.

The American government curtailed immigration policy and quotas, commencing an extensive campaign to 'Americanize' the immigrants and assimilate the millions of immigrants who had arrived in the previous two decades, particularly those from Eastern and Southeastern Europe. In general terms, the Greeks reacted positively to assimilation. There were other similar organizations that worked to achieve a balance between Americanization and preserving Greek identity such as GAPA and the Archdiocese, which acquired considerable prestige from the s onwards following the enthronement of Archbishop Athinagoras.

Around the same time various other organizations also helped Greek overcome the financial crisis of When the Greek-Italian War started in , Greek-Americans mobilized in support of Greece, and Greeks were viewed in a particularly positive light by American popular opinion. The s saw the coming of age of the second generation of Greek-Americans, and with it social improvement for them and further integration of the Greek Diaspora into American society.

At the same time, the climate of radicalism and reflection in America at that time helped thenew generation of Greeks abroad, and in particular women, break free of traditional, patriarchal family structures within the Greek-American family. The turn towards Hellenism became all the stronger with the arrival of new immigrants after World War II while the reputation acquired by Greeks in America strengthened the sense of pride in their Greek roots.

Immigration flows increased in the period from to leading to the establishment of 'Greek town' in the Astoria area of New York. The two-sided development of the Greek presence in America - assimilation coupled with a retention of Greek identity - found its perfect form of expression in the demonstrations over the Cyprus question after All the Diaspora organizations participated, including the Church led by Archbishop Iakovos, who had made the Archdiocese even more powerful after assuming the throne in , never hesitating to express progressive views, such as his public support for the Civil Rights Movement in the Southern States.

A key element in the success of these demonstrations and the imposition of sanctions on Turkey by the USA in the period — was the role of the Greek-American members of Congress such as Representative John Brademas and Senator Paul Sarbanes. The s can be characterized as the start of a return to historical memory, a review of the path taken by Greeks in America.

The original colony disbanded by but many of the colonists moved to neighboring Saint Augustine and set up a successful settlement. New Orleans is the first city in the US where a stable Greek community was established and by it had the first Greek consulate in the U. The Great Migration from Europe began in the s when cheap manual labor was needed in America and convenient immigration legislation encouraged such migration. Greeks were among the last of the Europeans to immigrate to America during this period.

Greeks were among the last of the Europeans to immigrate to America during the Great Migration, and their numbers are small compared to neighboring nations of Southern Europe, like Italy, for example. Immigration and Naturalization Services data provide documentation that approximately , Greeks immigrated to the United States between and Their pattern of settlement shows that the majority settled on the East Coast, primarily in Florida and New York, and the industrial Midwest, in Chicago, Detroit, and Pittsburg.

Greeks also formed enclaves on the West Coast as they worked in the construction, lumber, and mining industries. However, anti-immigration laws passed in the early twentieth century resulted of four decades of declining Greek immigration to the United States. The first wave of mass Greek immigration coincides with the first phase of American Industrialization.

Therefore, the overwhelming majority of Greeks arrived as a source of cheap labor, unlike previous Hellenic Diasporas in other parts of the world, starting in the 8 th Century BCE.