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Greek Americans

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Greek Americans
Jennifer AnistonFile:Callas knowing look.jpg
Notable Greek Americans:
Jennifer Aniston
Maria Callas
Maria Menounos
Pete Sampras
GreeceUnited States
Regions with significant populations
Northeast, West, South
Languages
American English, Greek
Religion
Christianity

A Greek American is a citizen of the United States, who is of Greek heritage or descent. According to the 2000 U.S. Census Report, there were 1,153,295 people of Greek heritage living in the United States that year and 365,435 Americans spoke Greek at home.[2] According to the State Department in 2005, an estimated 3,000,000 residents in the United States claim Greek descent.[3] Greek Americans have a heavy concentration in New York City - most notably in Astoria, in the NYC borough of Queens, Detroit, Boston, Cleveland, and Chicago. Tarpon Springs, Florida is also home to a large Greek American community.

History

The first Greek known to have arrived on U.S. soil was a man named Don Theodoro, who landed on Florida with the Narváez expedition in 1528[4][5]. He died during the expedition, as did most of his companions.

In 1592, Greek captain Juan de Fuca (Ioannis Fokas or Apostolos Valerianos) sailed up the Pacific coast in search of the fabled Northern Passage between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. He reported discovering a body of water that was later identified as the strait that today bears his name. The Strait of Juan de Fuca forms part of the International Boundary between the United States and Canada.

In 1768, about 500 Greeks from Smyrna, Crete and Mani settled in New Smyrna, Florida. The colony was unsuccessful, and the settlers moved to St. Augustine, Florida in 1776, where their traces were lost to history[6][7].

The first significant Greek community to develop was in New Orleans, Louisiana during the 1850s. By 1866, the community was numerous and prosperous enough to have a Greek consulate and the first Greek Orthodox Church in the United States[8]. During that period, most Greek immigrants to the New World came from Asia Minor, and those Aegean Islands still under Ottoman rule. By 1890, there were almost 15,000 Greeks living in the U.S.

Immigration picked up in the 1890s, mostly because economic opportunity in the U.S., displacement caused by the hardships of Ottoman rule, the Balkan Wars and World War I. 450,000 Greeks arrived to the States between 1890 and 1917, most working in the cities of the Northeast and smaller numbers hired labor for the railroads and mines of the Western United States; another 70,000 arrived between 1918 and 1924.

A young Greek immigrant on Ellis Island, New York City late 19th early 20th century - Hulton Archive

Greek immigration at this time was over 90% male, contrasted with most other European immigration to the US like Italian and Irish immigration which averaged 50% to 60% male. Many Greek immigrants expected to work and return to their homeland after earning capital and dowries for their families. Two factors changed attitudes and facilitated permanent immigration: 1) Loss of homeland: In 1913 at the conclusion of the Balkan Wars, the home towns of 60,000 Greeks in America were converted to Bulgarian territory, and, in 1923, the homes of approximately 250,000 Greeks in America were converted from Ottoman to Turkish territory and, in both cases, these Greeks were de jure denaturalized from those homelands and lost the right to return and their families were made refugees. 2) The first widely implemented U.S. immigration limits against Europeans were made in 1923, creating an impetus for immigrants to apply for citizenship, bring their families and permanently settle in the U.S. Less than 30,000 arrived between 1925 and 1945, many of whom were "picture brides" for single Greek men[9].

The events of the early 1920s also provided the stimulus for the first permanent national Greek American religious and civic organizations. Greeks again began to arrive in large numbers after 1945, fleeing the economic devastation caused by World War II and the Greek Civil War. From 1946 until 1982, approximately 211,000 Greeks emigrated to the United States. These later immigrants were less influenced by the powerful assimilation pressures of the 1920s and 1930s and revitalized Greek American identity, especially in areas such as Greek language media.

After the 1981 admission of Greece to the European Union, numbers fell to an average of less than 2,000 annually. In recent years, Greek immigration to the United States has been minimal; in fact, net migration has been towards Greece. Over 72,000 U.S. citizens currently live in Greece (1999); most of them are Greek Americans.

The predominant religion among Greeks and Greek Americans is Eastern Orthodox Christianity. There are also a number of Americans who descend from Greece's smaller Sephardic and Romaniote Jewish communities.

American and Greek flags in Tarpon Springs, Florida

Major Greek American organizations

Distribution of Greek Americans according to the 2000 census

There are hundreds of regional, religious and professional Greek American organizations. Some of the largest and most notable include:

  • The American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association is the largest community organization of Greek Americans. It was founded in Atlanta, Georgia in 1922 during a period of anti-Greek attacks by the Ku Klux Klan. Its current membership exceeds 18,000.
  • The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America is the religious organization most closely associated with the Greek American community. It was established in 1921, and is under the leadership of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The church operates the Greek Orthodox Youth of America, the largest Orthodox Christian youth group in the United States.
  • The American Hellenic Institute, a lobbying group for Greek Americans.
  • The Council of Hellenes Abroad is a Greek government sponsored umbrella organization for Greek immigrant organizations worldwide.
  • The PAIDEIA organization - USA is an organization promoting the preservation of Hellenic education and culture in the United States.
  • The National Hellenic Student Association is a PAIDEIA sponsored University based organization promoting Hellenic culture on university campuses.
  • Many topika somatea or clubs representing the local regional homeland of Greeks in America. Among the scores of such clubs, larger ones include the Pan Macedonian Association, the Panepirotic Federation, the Pan Cretan Association, the Pan Pontian Federation of U.S.A-Canada and several associations of refugees from areas in the former Ottoman territories.

Famous Greek Americans

the symbol of the greeks is a flying rat greeks fuck hard core

See also

References

  1. ^ "US demographic census". Retrieved 2006-11-19. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ Euroamericans
  3. ^ US Department of State
  4. ^ http://www.library.txstate.edu/swwc/cdv/book/25.html
  5. ^ http://www.library.txstate.edu/swwc/cdv/book/29.html
  6. ^ http://www.floridahistory.org/floridians/british.htm
  7. ^ Error in Webarchive template: Empty url.
  8. ^ http://www.greekfestnola.com/churchhistory.html
  9. ^ Error in Webarchive template: Empty url.
  • KUED - Tribute to Utah's Greek-Americans
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