Nicaraguan American
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| Nicaraguan American Nicaragüense Americano
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Nicaraguan American (Spanish: Nicaragüense Americano) are Americans of Nicaraguan ancestry who were born in or have immigrated to the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 177,684 Americans of full or partial Nicaraguan ancestry living in the U.S. in 2000 and an estimated 281,167 in 2005.
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[edit] Early immigration
The earliest documents of immigration from Nicaragua to the United States was combined in total with those of other Central American countries. However, according to the U.S. Census Bureau some 7,500 Nicaraguans legally immigrated from 1967 to 1976. An estimated 28,620 Nicaraguans were living in the U.S. in 1970, 90% of which self-reported as white on the 1970 census. Most Nicaraguan immigrants during the late 1960s were women: there were only 60 male Nicaraguan immigrants for every 100 female immigrants during this period.[3] In 1998 more than two million Nicaraguans were left homeless due to hurricane Mitch, as a result many Nicaraguans received permanent residence or temporary protected status (TPS) in the late 1990s.[4]
According to the 1990 U.S. Census 168,659 of the total 202,658 documented Nicaraguans in the U.S. were born in Nicaragua.[5] In 1992 approximately 10–12% of the Nicaraguan population had emigrated. These emigrants tended to be disproportionately of working age, better educated, and more often white-collar workers than nonmigrants. In addition, emigrants were more likely to come from larger premigration households and higher income households.[6]
[edit] Motives for emigration
During the 1979 uprising, many wealthy families left Nicaragua. The Sandinista revolution during the 1980s brought a wave of Nicaraguan refugees into the U.S.[7] and the largest wave of documented immigrants. Over 62 percent of the total documented immigration from 1979 to 1988 occurred after 1984.[6] Another motive for emigration during the 80s was the Contra war.
Many Nicaraguans who immigrated did so to escape poverty, in Santa Clara County, California, the Nicaraguan public benefits recipients reported that in their families, 43% have one self-employed person or business owner, and 14% of the families have two such persons.[4]
However, nearly all of the estimated 200,000 Nicaraguans who fled to the U.S. (and other nearby Central American countries) between 1978–1979 returned after the victory of the Sandinistas in 1979.[8]
[edit] Demographics
As of the United States 2000 population census, the number of Nicaraguan Americans was 177,684. Approximately 83,533 males and 94,151 females. Of the population, about 76% was 18 or older and just 5% was 65 or older.[1]
Approximately 68% of the Nicaraguan Americans that were 25 or older were high school graduates or higher and another 11% had received a bachelor's degree or higher. The number of Nicaraguan Americans who had received a bachelor's degree was higher than all other Central American groups in the United States, with the exception of Salvadorans who made up 655 thousand, compared to 177 thousand Nicaraguan Americans. The percentage of the population with a bachelor's degree is higher: 16% of Nicaraguan Americans compared to 5.5% of Salvadoran Americans.[9]
[edit] Areas of greatest concentration
The largest concentration of Nicaraguan Americans, about 79,559, is in Miami, Florida, most notably around the "Little Managua" area. Sweetwater, Florida also has a high concentration of Nicaraguan American, in 2000 16.63% of Sweetwater residents identified as being of Nicaraguan heritage. This was the highest percentage of Nicaraguan Americans of any place in the country. As a result, Sweetwater is also locally known as "Little Managua" after Managua, the Nicaraguan capital.[1]
California hosts the second largest concentration, most notably in the metropolitan areas of Los Angeles and San Francisco. The number of Nicaraguan Americans living in California was 51,336 in 2000.[1]
[edit] Nicaraguan Americans
- Patrick Argüello, participated in the Dawson's Field hijackings and is considered a martyr of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
- Marvin Benard, a Major League Baseball player
- Maurice Benard, an actor on American soap operas All My Children and General Hospital.
- Claudia Bermúdez, politician, ran for the United States Congress
- Róger Calero, ran for U.S. President in the 2004 election.
- Oswaldo Castillo, actor, most notable role includes the one in The Hammer.
- Michael Cordúa (1961), restaurateur, entrepreneur, businessman, award winning self-taught chef.
- DJ Craze, only DJ in history to win 3 consecutive World DMC Champion titles.
- Salomón de la Selva, poet, author of Tropical Town and Other Poems
- Miguel D'Escoto, Roman Catholic priest and former foreign minister.
- Steven Lopez, two time Olympic gold medalist in the sport of taekwondo
- Omar D'Leon, a painter and poet.
- Edward'O, an astronalyst and co-host of 12 Corazones.
- Camilo Mejía, a former Staff Sergeant of the Florida National Guard and anti-war activist
- Bianca Jagger, human rights advocate and ex-wife of Mick Jagger.
- Tony Meléndez, singer, composer, writer and musician who was born with no arms.
- Christianne Meneses Jacobs, publisher of Iguana, the United State's only Spanish-language magazine for children.[10]
- Franck de Las Mercedes, a painter
- David Obregon, a professional boxer
- Horacio Peña, professor, writer, and poet.
- Hope Portocarrero, former First Lady of Nicaragua (1967–1972).
- Mari Ramos, weather anchor for CNN.
- James Quesada, anthropologist and professor.
- J Smooth, a bi-lingual hip hop and reggaeton singer.
- Claudia Poll, Nicaraguan born swimmer.
- Torombolo, a reggaeton singer.
- Gabriel Traversari, actor, director, writer, singer, songwriter and painter.
- Dennis Martinez, a Major League Baseball Player (1976–1998).
[edit] See also
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[edit] External links
- Historical Museum; Folklife of Miami's Nicaraguan Communities
[edit] References and notes
- ^ a b c d "= 2005 American Community Survey: Race and Hispanic or Latino", U.S. Census Bureau, 2000. Retrieved on 2007-05-24.
- ^ The U.S. Census Bureau put the "Margin of Error" at +/-17,444
- ^ Orlov, Ann; Reed Veda (1980). "Central and South Americans," Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups. Harvard University Press, 210–217.
- ^ a b "Context for Nicaraguan Immigration". Retrieved on 2007-05-24.
- ^ "1990 U.S. Census", U.S. Census Bureau, 1990. Retrieved on 2007-05-24.
- ^ a b Funkhouser, Edward (1992). Migration from Nicaragua: Some Recent Evidence, 1210.
- ^ H. Lundquist, Jennifer; Douglas S. Massey (2005). [n The Contra War and Nicaraguan Migration to the United States], 29–53. Retrieved on 2007-05-24.
- ^ Y. Hamamoto, Darrell; Rodolfo D. Torres (1997). New American Destinies: A Reader in Contemporary Asian and Latino Immigration. Routledge, 108. ISBN 0415917689.
- ^ "Demographic Profile Highlights:", U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-11-18.
- ^ Sowers, Carol. "Children's magazine creator receives entrepreneur award", The Arizona Republic. Retrieved on 2007-09-27.
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