Paraguayan Americans ( es, paraguayo-americano, or ) are

Americans Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Although direct citizens and nationals make up the majority of Americans, many Multi ...

Paraguayan Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

descent. The Paraguayan population in the United States at the 2010 Census was 24,933. Paraguayans are the smallest Latino group in the United States. The Paraguayan population is concentrated mainly in

Queens, NY Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

Westchester County, NY Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population of ...

, and Somerset County, NJ. Additional areas of concentration include

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

and

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous county in the state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat and largest municipality is Rockville, although the census-design ...

. The highest concentration of Paraguayans in the U.S. reside in Somerset County, NJ.Olivia Miller, "Paraguayan Americans." ''Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America,'' edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 3, Gale, 2014), pp. 459-466
online
/ref>

History

The first Paraguayans emigrated between the years of 1841 and 1850. At that time, Paraguayans were not coming directly to the United States from Paraguay, but through other countries such as

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

. The Paraguayan residents in the U.S. were included in the early records in the group of "other"

South Americans South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. During those years, 3,579 "other" immigrants arrived. In 1979, close to 11,000 Paraguayans went to live in the United States, but the numbers declined rapidly. In 1982, 4,000 Paraguayans immigrated to the United States. The reasons of migration were varied, but many immigrants were young people that wanted study in American universities. Paraguayan Americans
Countries and Their Cultures: Paraguayan Americans by Olivia Miller. Retrieved July 21, 2011, to 13:50 pm. Additionally, some of the immigrants arrived for political persecutions or to escape civil riots. More women than men migrated to the United States, although the numerical difference was not significant, and most of them lacked jobs. In addition, many American marriages adopted Paraguayan infants. More than a thousand Paraguayan infants were adopted in this country. Of these, 254 were adopted in 1989, 405 in 1993 and 351 in 1995.

Socioeconomics

Paraguayan American women generally work in hotel housekeeping and in the agriculture (in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

). Paraguay and Kansas founded Partners of the Americas, a non-profit exchange program. This is because of the similarities between the two regions, as they both make a living from raising livestock and growing wheat, both are landlocked, and both are the same size and population. Most of Paraguayan Americans spoke Spanish, Guarani (indigenous language of Paraguay) and English very well.

Demographics

The large populations of Paraguayan Americans are in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Paraguayan Americans also have population importance in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

and

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. Many Paraguayan Americans have jobs in the service industry in urban zones such as

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

or states like

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

States and residence areas

The 10 states with the largest population of Paraguayans (Source: 2010 Census): #

- 5,940 #

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

- 2,222 #

- 1,964 #

- 1,228 #

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

- 1,161 #

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

- 924 #

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

- 763 #

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

- 500 #

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

- 494 #

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

- 423 The largest population of Paraguayans are situated in the following areas (Source: Census 2010): #

New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA MSA The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban landmass, at , and one of the most populous urban agglomerations in the world. The vast metropolitan area ...

- 7,492 #

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV MSA The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgi ...

- 1,793 #

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL MSA The Miami metropolitan area (also known as Greater Miami, the Tri-County Area, South Florida, or the Gold Coast) is the ninth largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States and the List of largest cities, 34th largest metropolitan ar ...

- 1,531 #

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA MSA Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...

- 509 #

Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL-IN-WI MSA The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hi ...

- 375 #

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD MSA The Delaware Valley is a metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan region on the East Coast of the United States that comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the List of United States cities by population, sixth most populous city in the nation ...

- 358 # Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT MSA - 336 #

Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH MSA Greater Boston is the metropolitan region of New England encompassing the municipality of Boston (the capital of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the most populous city in New England) and its surrounding areas. The region forms the northern ar ...

- 301 # Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA MSA - 267 #

Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX MSA Greater Houston, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States, encompassing nine counties along the Gulf Co ...

- 264 # Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX MSA - 236 # Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI MSA - 229 #

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA MSA The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

- 191 #

Baltimore-Towson, MD MSA The Baltimore–Columbia–Towson Metropolitan Statistical Area, also known as Central Maryland, is a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) in Maryland as defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB). As of the 2010 Census, t ...

- 158 #

Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL MSA The Orlando metropolitan area, commonly referred to as Greater Orlando, Metro Orlando, Central Florida as well as for U.S. Census purposes as the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, is a metropolitan area in the ...

- 144 #

Richmond, VA MSA The Greater Richmond Region, the Richmond metropolitan area or Central Virginia, is a region and metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Virginia, centered on Richmond. The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) defines the area as the Richm ...

- 131 #

Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ MSA The Phoenix Metropolitan Area – also the Valley of the Sun, the Salt River Valley, or Metro Phoenix (known by most locals simply as “the Valley”) – is the largest United States metropolitan area, metropolitan area in the Southwestern Uni ...

- 128 #

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL MSA The Tampa Bay area is a major populated area surrounding Tampa Bay on the west coast of Florida in the United States. It includes the main cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater. It is the 18th largest metropolitan area in the United S ...

- 113 # Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA - 109 #

Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA MSA The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the cities ...

- 108

U.S. communities with largest population of people of Paraguayan ancestry

The top 25 U.S. communities with the highest populations of Paraguayans (Source: Census 2010) #

New York, NY New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

- 3,534 # Bernardsville, NJ - 266 #

White Plains, NY (Always Faithful) , image_seal = WhitePlainsSeal.png , seal_link = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivision_name1 = , subdivisi ...

- 260 #

Harrison, NY Harrison is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States, northeast of Manhattan. The population was 28,218 at the 2020 census. History Harriso ...

- 235 #

Los Angeles, CA Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

- 180 #

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

- 161 #

Raritan, NJ Raritan is a borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 6,881,Greenburgh, NY Greenburgh is a town in western Westchester County, New York. The population was 95,397 at the time of the 2020 census. History Greenburgh developed along the Hudson River, long the main transportation route. It was settled by northern Europeans ...

- 144 # Peapack-Gladstone, NJ - 142 #

Miami, FL Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at the ...

- 131 # Mamaroneck (Village), NY - 130 #

Houston, TX Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

- 119 # Somerville, NJ - 114 #

Arlington, VA Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

- 113 # Rye (Town), NY - 102 #

Chicago, IL (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

and

Rockville, MD Rockville is a city that serves as the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fifth-largest community in ...

- 101 # Mamaroneck (Town), NY - 88 #

Miami Beach, FL Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...

- 87 #

Bridgewater Township, NJ Bridgewater Township is a township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. The township is both a regional commercial hub for Central New Jersey (home to Bridgewater Commons and different corporate headquarters) and is a bedroom suburb ...

- 82 # Bedminster Township, NJ - 81 #

Yonkers, NY Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...

- 79 # North Bethesda, MD - 78 # Aspen Hill, MD - 77 #

Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

and

Dallas, TX Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County wit ...

- 74 #

Greenwich, CT Greenwich (, ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 63,518. The largest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast (Conne ...

and Wheaton, MD - 71

U.S. communities with high percentages of people of Paraguayan ancestry

U.S. communities with the highest percentages of Paraguayans as a percent of total population (Source: Census 2010) # Far Hills, NJ - 5.77% # Peapack-Gladstone, NJ - 5.50% # Bernardsville, NJ - 3.45% #

Raritan, NJ Raritan is a borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 6,881,Bedminster Township, NJ - 1.00% Paraguayans are more than 1% of the entire population in only five communities in the United States. All of these communities are located in Somerset County, NJ.

Notable people

Benny Ricardo Benito Concepcion "Benny" Ricardo (born January 4, 1954 in Asunción, Paraguay) is a former American football placekicker in the NFLMiller, Bryce.Life of former Aztec, Charger Benny Ricardo is a kick, The San Diego Union-Tribune, November 18, 2 ...

Bryan López Bryan may refer to: Places United States * Bryan, Arkansas * Bryan, Kentucky * Bryan, Ohio * Bryan, Texas * Bryan, Wyoming, a ghost town in Sweetwater County in the U.S. state of Wyoming * Bryan Township (disambiguation) Facilities and structur ...

Celeste Troche Celeste Troche (pronounced "say-LESS-tay TROH-shay") (born 13 February 1981) is a Paraguayan professional golfer. Troche was born in Asunción. She attended Auburn University in the United States, and was a two time All-American. She was the c ...

Faith Wilding Faith Wilding (born 1943) is a Paraguayan American multidisciplinary artist - which includes but is not limited to: watercolor, performance art, writing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, and digital art. She is also an author, educator, and activ ...

* Gerardo Laterza *

Gustavo Neffa Gustavo Alfredo Neffa Rodríguez (born 30 November 1971 in Asunción) is a retired footballer from Paraguay. He started his career on Olimpia Asunción, and at the age of 18, noted by Juventus, Neffa moved on loan to Serie A club U.S. Cremones ...

Juan Carlos Campuzano Juan Carlos Campuzano (born July 25, 1949) is a Paraguayan American physicist. He is a Distinguished Professor of Physics at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was a Distinguished Fellow at Argonne National Laboratory (the equivalent of an e ...

* Julia Marino *

Julieta Granada Julieta Granada (born 17 November 1986) is a Paraguayan professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour. Amateur career Born in Asunción, Paraguay, Granada moved to the United States with her mother at the age of 1 ...

Lisa Cano Burkhead Lisa Cano Burkhead (born 1970/1971) is an American educator and politician serving as the 36th lieutenant governor of Nevada. She was nominated by Governor Steve Sisolak to replace Kate Marshall in December 2021. Prior to serving as lieutenant gov ...

Rossana de los Ríos Rossana Neffa de los Rios (born 16 September 1975) is a retired tennis player from Paraguay. She was born in the Paraguayan capital, Asunción, and now lives in Miami, Florida, with her daughter Ana Paula Neffa de los Ríos and her husband Gust ...

Sharlene Wells Hawkes Sharlene Wells (born 16 March 1964) is a Paraguayan-American author, singer, and reporter from Salt Lake City, Utah who was Miss America 1985. She worked with ESPN from 1987 to 2002 and was appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Defense to the Defens ...

Jessica González-Rojas Jessica González-Rojas (born May 19, 1976) is an American activist, politician, and academic. A Democrat, she is the New York State Assemblymember for the 34th District, having been elected in 2020 after defeating incumbent Michael DenDekker in t ...