Ukrainian Americans


Ukrainian Americans are Americans who are of Ukrainian ancestry. According to U.S. census estimates, in 2006 there were 961,113 Americans of Ukrainian descent representing 0.33% of the American population. The Ukrainian population of the United States is thus the second largest outside the former Eastern Bloc; only Canada has a larger Ukrainian community under this definition. According to the 2000 U.S. census, the metropolitan areas with the largest numbers of Ukrainian Americans are: New York City with 160,000; Philadelphia with 60,000; Chicago with 46,000; Los Angeles with 34,000; Detroit with 33,000; Cleveland with 26,000; and Indianapolis with 19,000. In 2018, the number of Ukrainian Americans surpassed 1 million.

History

The first Ukrainian immigrant to America, Ivan Bohdan, sailed with John Smith to the Jamestown colony in 1607. Bohdan met Captain Smith during the Long Turkish War of 1593–1606 when the latter had fought the Turks, was captured, and escaped captivity by fleeing through Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, and other countries. Large-scale Ukrainian immigration to America did not begin, however, until the 1880s.
From 1955 to 1965, St. Andrew Memorial Church in South Bound Brook, New Jersey was constructed as a memorial honoring victims of the Holodomor of 1932–1933.
The largest wave of Ukrainians came in the early 1990s, after the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. A large number of those emigrating from Ukraine after the fall of the Soviet Union were Jewish or Protestant. Many Ukrainians of the newest immigration wave settled in large cities and regional centers, forming ethnic enclaves. In addition, many Ukrainian Americans arrived by way of Canada, which has a larger Ukrainian presence.
Ukrainian Americans living in Northern New Jersey and the remainder of the Northeastern United States have long been politically vocal about Ukrainian affairs, often traveling to Washington, D.C. to express their concerns.
On September 21, 2015, in Bloomingdale, Filaret, Patriarch of Kyiv and All Rus'-Ukraine, consecrated the first North American monument to the Euromaidan "Heavenly Hundred".

Demographics

As of the 2000 U.S. Census, there were 892,922 Americans of full or partial Ukrainian descent. The New York City Metropolitan Area contains by far the largest Ukrainian community in the United States, due to historically receiving the highest number of Ukrainian immigrants.
The American states with the largest Ukrainian populations are as follows:
The total number of people born in Ukraine is more than 275,155 residents.

Ukrainian-born population

Ukrainian-born population in the US since 2010:
YearNumber
2010326,493
2011340,468
2012342,971
2013345,187
2014332,145
2015345,620
2016347,759

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

The top 20 U.S. communities with the highest percentage of people claiming Ukrainian ancestry are:
  1. Cass Township, Pennsylvania 14.30%
  2. Belfield, North Dakota 13.60%
  3. Gulich Township, Pennsylvania 12.70%
  4. Gilberton, Pennsylvania 12.40%
  5. Wilton, North Dakota 10.30%
  6. Lumberland, New York 9.90%
  7. Saint Clair, Pennsylvania 8.80%
  8. Soap Lake, Washington 8.10%
  9. Frackville, Pennsylvania 7.60%
  10. Olyphant, Pennsylvania and Norwegian Township, Pennsylvania 7.00%
  11. Houtzdale, Pennsylvania 6.90%
  12. Harmony Township, Pennsylvania and Kerhonkson, New York 6.70%
  13. Baden, Pennsylvania and McAdoo, Pennsylvania 5.90%
  14. Branch Township, Pennsylvania and Postville, Iowa 5.70%
  15. Woodward Township, Pennsylvania and Northampton, Pennsylvania 5.60%
  16. Warren, New York and Independence, Ohio 5.50%
  17. West Leechburg, Pennsylvania 5.40%
  18. Ambridge, Pennsylvania, Mount Carmel Township, Pennsylvania, and Parma, Ohio 5.30%
  19. Ford City, Pennsylvania 5.20%
  20. Bigler Township, Pennsylvania and Kline Township, Pennsylvania 5.10%
  21. Mayfield Heights, Ohio 3.4%

    U.S. communities with the highest percentage of residents born in Ukraine

Top 20 U.S. communities with the highest percentage of residents born in Ukraine are:
  1. Delta Junction, AK 16.4%
  2. Deltana, AK 8.4%
  3. West Hollywood, CA 7.8%
  4. Lumberland, NY 6.3%
  5. Moses Lake North, WA 6.0%
  6. Soap Lake, WA 6.0%
  7. Postville, IA 5.9%
  8. Webster, NY 4.8%
  9. Peaceful Valley, WA 4.8%
  10. Pikesville, MD 4.5%
  11. Kerhonkson, NY 3.9%
  12. North Highlands, CA 3.6%
  13. Rancho Cordova, CA 3.3%
  14. Flying Hills, PA 3.2%
  15. Waverly, NE 3.2%
  16. Fair Lawn, NJ 3.1%
  17. Buffalo Grove, IL 2.8%
  18. Feasterville-Trevose, PA 2.6%
  19. Smallwood, NY 2.5%
  20. Solvay, NY 2.5%
  21. North Port, FL 2.4%

    Notable people