Paraguayan Americans (, 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.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

an 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 the largest by area of the five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn and by Nassau County to ...

Westchester County, NY Westchester County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York, bordering the Long Island Sound and the Byram River to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The county is the seventh most populous county ...

, 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 coun ...

and

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat is Rockville, Maryland ...

. 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, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, and

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

. 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 considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. 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 that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

). 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 Paraguayan Americans speak 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 (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Paraguayan Americans also have population importance in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

and

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

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

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

or states like

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

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

States and residence areas

The 10 states with the largest population of Paraguayans (Source: 2000 Census): #

- 5,940 #

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

- 2,222 #

- 1,964 #

- 1,228 #

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

- 1,161 #

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

- 924 #

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

- 763 #

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

- 500 #

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

- 494 #

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

- 423 The largest population of Paraguayans are situated in the following areas (Source: Census 2000): #

New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA MSA The New York metropolitan area, also called the Tri-State area and sometimes referred to as Greater New York, is the largest metropolitan economy in the world, with a gross metropolitan product of over US$2.6 trillion. It is also the lar ...

- 7,492 #

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV MSA The Washington metropolitan area, also referred to as the National Capital Region, Greater Washington, or locally as the DMV (short for District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia), is the metropolitan area comprising Washington, D.C., the fed ...

- 1,793 # Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL MSA - 1,531 # Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA MSA - 509 # Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL-IN-WI MSA - 375 # Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD MSA - 358 # Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT MSA - 336 # Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH MSA- 301 # Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA MSA - 267 # Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX MSA - 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, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

- 191 # Baltimore-Towson, MD MSA - 158 # Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL MSA - 144 #

Richmond, VA MSA The Greater Richmond Region, also known as 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 ...

- 131 # Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ MSA - 128 # Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL MSA - 113 # Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA - 109 # Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA MSA - 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 (NYC), is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harb ...

- 3,534 # Bernardsville, NJ - 266 #

White Plains, NY White Plains is a city in and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, and a commercial hub of Westchester County, a densely populated suburban county that is home to about one milli ...

- 260 # Harrison, NY - 235 #

Los Angeles, CA Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. With an estimated 3,878,704 residents within the city ...

- 180 #

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

- 161 # Raritan, NJ - 147 # Greenburgh, NY - 144 # Peapack-Gladstone, NJ - 142 #

Miami, FL Miami is a coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a population of 6.14 million, is the second-largest metropolitan ...

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

Houston, TX Houston ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the seat of Harris County, as well as the principal city of ...

- 119 #

Somerville, NJ Somerville is a borough in and the county seat of Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Arlington, VA Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

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

Chicago, IL Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and

Rockville, MD Rockville is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, and is part of the Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fourth-largest incorporated city ...

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

Miami Beach, FL Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and ...

- 87 # Bridgewater Township, NJ - 82 # Bedminster Township, NJ - 81 #

Yonkers, NY Yonkers () is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York and the most-populous city in Westchester County. A centrally located municipality within the New York metropolitan area, Yonkers had a population of 211,569 at the 20 ...

- 79 # North Bethesda, MD - 78 #

Aspen Hill, MD Aspen Hill is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is located 6 miles north of Washington D.C. Its population as of the 2020 census was 51,063. Etymology The community name is d ...

- 77 #

Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and

Dallas, TX Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

- 74 #

Greenwich, CT Greenwich ( ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 63,518. It is the largest town on Gold Coast (Connecticut), Connectic ...

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 - 2.14% # 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

Sports

Aldo Cubilla Aldo Sebastián Cubilla Bogado (born January 8, 2001) is an American soccer player who plays as a left midfielder. Career Club career Born in the United States, however of Paraguayan origin, Cubilla is a product of Sol de América which he jo ...

, footballer *

Daniel Farrar Daniel Farrar (born November 8, 1985) is an American soccer coach. Career Born in Los Angeles, California to a Uruguayan father and a Bolivian mother, Farrar was raised in Paraguay, where he never played professionally. After switching to a ma ...

, football manager *

Sofia García Sofia Linette García Peralta (born 22 June 1998) is a Paraguayan professional golfer on the LPGA Tour. Early life and amateur career García was born in Asunción and enjoyed a successful amateur career. In 2013, she won the South American Juni ...

, golfer * Juan Esteban Godoy, former footballer *

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 ...

, golfer * Gerardo "Jerry" Laterza. former footballer * Bryan López, former football goalkeeper * Julia Marino, Olympic freestyle skier *

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

, former footballer * Benny Ricardo, former American football placekicker *

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

, former tennis player *

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 co- ...

, former golfer

Politics

Lisa Cano Burkhead Lisa Cano Burkhead (born 1970/1971) is an American educator and politician who served as the 36th lieutenant governor of Nevada from 2021 to 2023. She was nominated by Governor Steve Sisolak to replace Kate Marshall in December 2021. Prior to ser ...

, former Lieutenant Governor of Nevada *

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 Assembly member for the 34th District, having been elected in 2020 after defeating incumbent Michael DenDekker in ...

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

member for the 34th district (

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

) *

Angelita Morillo Angelita Morillo is an American politician serving as a member of Portland City Council (Oregon), Portland City Council from Portland's 3rd City Council district (Oregon), District 3. She was elected in 2024 Portland, Oregon City Council election ...

, Portland City Council member *

Andrés Rodríguez Pedotti Andres or Andrés may refer to: *Andres, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Will County, Illinois, US *Andres, Pas-de-Calais, a commune in Pas-de-Calais, France *Andres (name) *Hurricane Andres * "Andres" (song), a 1994 song by L7 See also ...

, former president of Paraguay

Other

Ser Anzoategui Ser Anzoategui is an American actor, best known for portraying Eddy on the Starz drama ''Vida'' (2018—2020), and Daysi Cantu on ''East Los High'' (2015–2016). Early life Anzoategui was born in Huntington Park, California, and raised in seve ...

, actor * Raquel Brailowsky-Cabrera, anthropologist * Juan Carlos Campuzano, physicist * Ingrid Rimland, novelist *

Sharlene Wells Hawkes Sharlene Wells (born March 16, 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 Defe ...

, Miss America 1985 *

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 activi ...

, multidisciplinary artist