TheAmish (/ˈɑːmɪʃ/ⓘ, also/ˈæmɪʃ/ or/ˈeɪmɪʃ/;Pennsylvania German:Amisch), formally theOld Order Amish, are a group of traditionalistAnabaptist Christianchurch fellowships withSwiss andAlsatian origins.[2] As they maintaina degree of separation from surrounding populations, and hold their faith in common, the Amish have been described by certain scholars as anethnoreligious group, combining features of an ethnicity and a Christian denomination.[3][4] The Amish are closely related toOld Order Mennonites andConservative Mennonites, denominations that are also a part of Anabaptist Christianity.[5] The Amish are known forsimple living,plain dress,Christian pacifism, and slowness to adopt many conveniences of modern technology, with a view neither to interrupt family time, nor replace face-to-face conversations whenever possible, and a view to maintain self-sufficiency. The Amish value rural life, manual labor, humility andGelassenheit (submission to God's will).
The Amish church began with aschism in Switzerland within a group of Swiss and Alsatian Mennonite Anabaptists in 1693 led byJakob Ammann.[6] Those who followed Ammann became known as Amish.[7] In the second half of the 19th century, the Amish divided into Old Order Amish andAmish Mennonites; the latter do not abstain from using motor cars, whereas the Old Order Amish retained much of their traditional culture. When people refer to the Amish today, they normally refer to the Old Order Amish, though there are othersubgroups of Amish.[8] The Amish fall into three main subgroups—the Old Order Amish, theNew Order Amish, and theBeachy Amish—all of whom wear plain dress and live their life according to the Bible as codified in their church'sOrdnung.[9][10][11] The Old Order Amish and New Order Amish conduct their worship in German, speakPennsylvania Dutch, and usebuggies for transportation, in contrast to the Beachy Amish who use modern technology (inclusive of motor cars) and conduct worship in the local language of the area in which they reside.[10] Both the New Order Amish and the Beachy Amish emphasize theNew Birth,evangelize to seek converts, and haveSunday Schools.[12][9]
In the early 18th century, many Amish and Mennonites immigrated to Pennsylvania for a variety of reasons. Most Old Order Amish, New Order Amish and theOld Beachy Amish speak Pennsylvania Dutch, but Indiana'sSwiss Amish also speakAlemannic dialects.[13] As of 2024[update], the Amish population surpassed the 400,000 milestone,[14] with about 405,000 Old Order Amish living in the United States, and over 6,000 in Canada:[1] a population that is rapidly growing.[15] Amish church groups seek to maintain a degree of separation from the non-Amish world. Non-Amish people are generally referred to as "English" by the Amish, and outside influences are often described as "worldly".
Amish church membership begins withadult baptism, usually between the ages of 16 and 23. Church districts have between 20 and 40 families, and Old Order Amish and New Order Amishworship services are held every other Sunday in a member's home or barn, while the Beachy Amish worship every Sunday in churches.[16] The rules of the church, theOrdnung, which differs to some extent between different districts, are reviewed twice a year by all members of the church. TheOrdnung must be observed by every member and covers many aspects of Old Order Amish day-to-day living, including prohibitions or limitations on the use of power-line electricity, telephones, and automobiles, as well as regulations on clothing. Generally, a heavy emphasis is placed on church and family relationships. The Old Order Amish typically operate their ownone-room schools and discontinue formal education after grade eight (age 13–14). Most Amish do not buy commercial insurance or participate inSocial Security. As present-day Anabaptists, Amish church members practicenonresistance and will not perform any type of military service.[17]
The term Amish was first used as aSchandename (a term of disgrace) in 1710 by opponents ofJakob Amman, an Anabaptist leader. The first informal division between Swiss Brethren was recorded in the 17th century betweenOberländers (those living in theBernese Oberland) andEmmentalers (those living in theEmmental). TheOberländers were a more extreme congregation; their zeal pushed them into more remote areas.[citation needed]
Swiss Anabaptism developed, from this point, in two parallel streams, most clearly marked by disagreement over the preferred treatment of "fallen" believers. The Emmentalers (sometimes referred to as Reistians, after bishopHans Reist, a leader among the Emmentalers) argued that fallen believers should only be withheld fromcommunion, and not regular meals. The Amish argued that those who had been banned should be avoided even in common meals. The Reistian side eventually formed the basis of theSwiss Mennonite Conference. Because of this common heritage, Amish and conservative Mennonites from southern Germany and Switzerland retain many similarities. Those who leave the Amish fold tend to join various congregations ofConservative Mennonites.[20][21]
Amish began migrating to Pennsylvania, then-regarded favorably due to the lack of religious persecution and attractive land offers, in the early 18th century as part of a larger migration from thePalatinate and neighboring areas. Between 1717 and 1750, approximately 500 Amish migrated to North America, mainly to the region that becameBerks County, Pennsylvania, but later moved, motivated by land issues and by security concerns tied to theFrench and Indian War. Many eventually settled inLancaster County. A second wave of around 1,500 arrived around the mid-19th century and settled mostly in Ohio, Illinois, Iowa and southern Ontario. Most of these late immigrants eventually did not join the Old Order Amish but more liberal groups.[22]
1850–1878: Division into Old Orders and Amish Mennonites
Most Amish communities that were established in North America did not ultimately retain their Amish identity. The major division that resulted in the loss of identity of many Amish congregations occurred in the third quarter of the 19th century. The forming of factions worked its way out at different times at different places. The process was rather a "sorting out" than a split. Amish people are free to join another Amish congregation at another place that fits them best.[citation needed]
In the years after 1850, tensions rose within individual Amish congregations and between different Amish congregations. Between 1862 and 1878, yearlyDienerversammlungen (ministerial conferences) were held at different places, concerning how the Amish should deal with the tensions caused by the pressures of modern society.[23] The meetings themselves were a progressive idea; for bishops to assemble to discuss uniformity was an unprecedented notion in the Amish church.[citation needed] By the first several meetings, the more traditionally minded bishops agreed to boycott the conferences.[citation needed]
The more progressive members, comprising roughly two-thirds of the group, became known by the name Amish Mennonite, and eventually united with theMennonite Church, and other Mennonite denominations, mostly in the early 20th century. The more traditionally minded groups became known as the Old Order Amish.[24] TheEgli Amish had already started to withdraw from the Amish church in 1858. They soon drifted away from the old ways and changed their name to "Defenseless Mennonite" in 1908.[25] Congregations who took no side in the division after 1862 formed theConservative Amish Mennonite Conference in 1910, but dropped the word "Amish" from their name in 1957; in the year 2000 many congregations left to organize theBiblical Mennonite Alliance in order to continue the practice of traditional Anabaptist ordinances, such asheadcovering.[26][27]
Because no division occurred in Europe, the Amish congregations remaining there took the same way as the change-minded Amish Mennonites in North America and slowly merged with theMennonites. The last Amish congregation in Germany to merge was theIxheim Amish congregation, which merged with the neighboring Mennonite Church in 1937. Some Mennonite congregations, including most inAlsace, are descended directly from former Amish congregations.[28][29]
Although splits happened among the Old Order in the 19th century in Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, a major split occurred inWorld War I. At that time, two very conservative affiliations emerged – theSwartzentruber Amish inHolmes County, Ohio, and theBuchanan Amish in Iowa. The Buchanan Amish soon were joined by like-minded congregations all over the country.[30]
With Germany's aggression toward the US in World War I came thesuppression of the German language in the US that eventually led to language shift of most Pennsylvania German speakers, leaving the Amish and otherOld Orders as almost the only speakers by the end of the 20th century. This created a language barrier around the Amish that did not exist before in that form.[31]
In the late 1920s, the more change-minded faction of the Old Order Amish, that wanted to adopt the car, broke away from the mainstream and organized under the nameBeachy Amish.[32]
During theSecond World War, the old question of military service for the Amish came up again. Because Amish young men in general refused military service, they ended up in theCivilian Public Service (CPS), where they worked mainly in forestry and hospitals. The fact that many young men worked in hospitals, where they had a lot of contact with more progressive Mennonites and the outside world, had the result that many of these men never joined the Amish church.[33]
In the 1950s, the Beachy Amish laid heavy emphasis on theNew Birth, personal holiness andSunday School education.[34][35] The ones who wanted to preserve the old way of the Beachy became theOld Beachy Amish.[32]
In 1966, theNew Order Amish were formed after certain congregations left the Old Order Amish due to issues regarding salvation and "the use of modern agricultural methods".[36] The Old Order Amish believe that they have a "hope for salvation", believing that "joining with other church members to live according to the Ordnung and the Bible will give them the strength to lives worthy of salvation".[37] The New Order Amish, on the other hand, affirm that a believer can haveassurance—"that one can know the state of his soul while on earth".[37][38]
Until about 1950, almost all Amish children attended small, rural, non-Amish schools, but then school consolidation and mandatory schooling beyond eighth grade caused Amish opposition. Amish communities opened their own Amish schools. In 1972, the United States Supreme Court exempted Amish pupils from compulsory education past eighth grade. By the end of the 20th century, almost all Amish children attended Amish schools.[39]
In the last quarter of the 20th century, a growing number of Amish men left farm work and started small businesses because of increasing pressure on small-scale farming. Though a wide variety of small businesses exists among the Amish, construction work and woodworking are quite widespread.[40] In many Amish settlements, especially the larger ones, farmers are now a minority.[41] Approximately 12,000 of the 40,000 dairy farms in the United States are Amish-owned as of 2018.[42][43]
Until the early 20th century, Old Order Amish identity was not linked to the limited use of technologies, as the Old Order Amish and their rural neighbors used the same farm and household technologies. Questions about the use of technologies also did not play a role in the Old Order division of the second half of the 19th century. Telephones were the first important technology that was rejected, soon followed by the rejection of cars, tractors, radios, and many other technological inventions of the 20th century.[44]
Old Order Mennonites, Old Colony Mennonites and the Amish are often grouped together in North America's popular press. This is incorrect, according to a 2017 report byCanadian Mennonite magazine:[45]
The customs of Old Order Mennonites, the Amish communities and Old Colony Mennonites have a number of similarities, but the cultural differences are significant enough so that members of one group would not feel comfortable moving to another group. The Old Order Mennonites and Amish have the same European roots and the language spoken in their homes is the same German dialect. Old Colony Mennonites use Low German, a different German dialect.
A scan of the historical documentDiß Lied haben die sieben Brüder im Gefängnüß zu Gmünd gemacht
Two key concepts for understanding Amish practices are their rejection ofHochmut (pride, arrogance, haughtiness) and the high value they place onDemut (humility) andGelassenheit (calmness, composure, placidity), often translated as "submission" or "letting be".Gelassenheit is perhaps better understood as a reluctance to be forward, to be self-promoting, or to assert oneself. The Amish's willingness to submit to the "Will of Jesus", expressed through group norms, is at odds with the individualism so central to the wider American culture. The Amish anti-individualist orientation is the motive for rejecting labor-saving technologies that might make one less dependent on the community. Modern innovations such as electricity might spark a competition for status goods, or photographs might cultivate personal vanity. Electric power lines would be going against the Bible, which says that you shall not be "conformed to the world" (Romans 12:2).[citation needed]
Amish church membership begins withbaptism, usually between the ages of 16 and 23. It is a requirement for marriage within the Amish church. Once a person is baptized within the church, he or she may marry only within the faith. Church districts have between 20 and 40 families and worship services are held every other Sunday in a member's home or barn. The district is led by abishop and severalministers anddeacons who are chosen by a combination of election andcleromancy (lot).[46]
The rules of the church, the so-calledOrdnung, which differs to some extent between different districts, is reviewed twice a year by all members of the church. Only if all members give their consent to it,Lord's supper is held. TheOrdnung must be observed by every member and covers many aspects of day-to-day living, including prohibitions or limitations on the use of power-line electricity, telephones, and automobiles, as well as regulations on clothing. As present-day Anabaptists, Amish church members practicenonresistance and will not perform any type of military service. The Amish value rural life, manual labor, humility, andGelassenheit, all under the auspices of living what they interpret to be God's word.[citation needed]
Members who do not conform to these community expectations and who cannot be convinced to repent faceexcommunication and shunning. The modes of shunning vary between different communities.[47] On average, about 85 percent of Amish youth choose to be baptized and join the church.[48] During an adolescent period ofrumspringa (lit.'running around',[49] fromPennsylvania Germanrumschpringe'to run around; to gad; to be wild';[50] compare Standard Germanherum-,rumspringen'to jump around') in some communities, nonconforming behavior that would result in the shunning of an adult who had made the permanent commitment of baptism, may be met with a degree of forbearance.[51][failed verification]
Amish youth learning about a church before considering membership
Amish lifestyle is regulated by theOrdnung ("rules"),[52] which differs slightly from community to community and from district to district within a community. There is no central Amish governing authority. Each Amish community makes its own decisions, and what is acceptable in one community may be unacceptable in another.[53] TheOrdnung is agreed upon – or changed – within the whole community of baptized members prior to Communion which takes place two times a year. The meeting where theOrdnung is discussed is calledOrdnungsgemeine in Standard German andOrdningsgmee in Pennsylvania Dutch. TheOrdnung includes such matters as dress, permissible uses of technology, religious duties, and rules regarding interaction with outsiders. In these meetings, women also vote in questions concerning theOrdnung.[54]
Bearing children, raising them, and socializing with neighbors and relatives are the greatest functions of the Amish family. Amish typically believe that large families are a blessing from God. Farm families tend to be larger, because sons are needed to perform farm labor.[55] Community is central to the Amish way of life.
Working hard is considered godly, and some technological advancements have been considered undesirable because they reduce the need for hard work. Amish also avoid using technologies they believe will disrupt their traditional lives. Machines, such as automatic floor cleaners in barns, have historically been rejected as this provides young farmhands with too much free time.[56]
Amish communities are known for traveling byhorse and buggy because they feel horse-drawn vehicles promote a slow pace of life. Many Amish communities do also allow riding in motor vehicles, such as buses and cars.[57] They also are allowed to travel by train.[58][59] In recent years many Amish people have taken to usingelectric bicycles as they are faster than either walking or harnessing up a horse and buggy.[53]
The Amish are known for their plain attire. Men wear solid colored shirts, broad-brimmed hats, and suits that signify similarity amongst one another. Amish men grow beards to symbolize manhood and marital status, as well as to promote humility. They are forbidden from growing mustaches because mustaches are seen by the Amish as being affiliated with the military, to which they are strongly opposed, due to their pacifist beliefs. Women have similar guidelines on how to dress, which are also expressed in theOrdnung, the Amish version of legislation. They are to wear calf-length dresses, muted colors along withbonnets and aprons.Prayer kapps and bonnets are worn by the women because they are a visual representation of their religious beliefs and promote unity through the tradition of every woman wearing one. The color of the bonnet signifies whether a woman is single or married. Single women wear black bonnets and married women wear white. The color coding of bonnets is important because women are not allowed to wear jewelry, such as wedding rings, as it is seen as drawing attention to the body which can induce pride in the individual.[60][page needed]
All clothing is sewn by hand, but the way to fasten the garment widely depends on whether the Amish person is a part of the New Order or Old Order Amish.[61][page needed] The Old Order Amish seldom, if ever, use buttons because they are seen as too flashy; instead, they use thehook and eye approach to fashion clothing or metal snaps. The New Order Amish are slightly more progressive and allow the usage of buttons to help attire clothing.[citation needed]
Amish cuisine is noted for its simplicity and traditional qualities. Food plays an important part in Amish social life and is served atpotlucks, weddings, fundraisers, farewells, and other events.[62][63][64][65] Many Amish foods are sold at markets, including pies, preserves, bread mixes, pickled produce, desserts, and canned goods. Many Amish communities have also established restaurants for visitors. Amish meat consumption is similar to the American average though they tend to eat more preserved meat.[66]
Amish cuisine is often mistaken for the similarcuisine of the Pennsylvania Dutch with some ethnographic and regional variances,[67] as well as differences in what cookbook writers and food historians emphasize about the traditionalfoodways and intertwined religious culture and celebrations of Amish communities. While myths about the diffusion ofshoofly pie are common subject matter for studies ofAmerican cuisine, food anthropologists point out that the culinary practices of Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish are innovative and dynamic, evolving across time and geographic spaces, and that not all the Pennsylvania Dutch are Amish, and not all Amish live in Pennsylvania. Distinguishing local myths from culinary fact is accomplished by dedicated anthropological field studies in combination with studies of literary sources, usually newspaper archives, diaries, and household records.[68]
Historically, Amish communities were primarily agrarian, with most families engaged in farming. However, rapid population growth and the resulting social and economic pressures have led to significant diversification in Amish employment patterns since the mid-20th century.[69]
In the Greater Holmes County settlement area of Ohio—the largest Amish community—approximately 75% of married males were full-time farmers in 1965. By contrast, only about 40% remained so by 1996, indicating a marked shift toward non-farming occupations. The ratio of farmers to non-farmers in the region declined from 2.41 to 0.61 during this period.[69]
More recent analyses of theHolmes County Amish Directory show that this move away from farming continues. In a 2015 census-level study, only 16% of male family heads who listed an occupation were farmers, while the remainder worked in other sectors.[70]
Common non-farming occupations include roofing, carpentry, construction, metalworking, and small-scale manufacturing.[70]
Despite the shift away from farming in recent decades, Amish communities still regard farming as a key occupation that strengthens household and community ties. Small farms provide a social foundation for family structures and the socialization of children. Through these shared agricultural experiences, farming families build a collective identity, reinforcing social, ethnic, and religious bonds.[71]
Amish andMennonite communities across many states have turned todog breeding as a lucrative source of income. According to the USDA list of licensees, over 98% of Ohio'spuppy mills are run by the Amish, as are 97% of Indiana's, and 63% of Pennsylvania's.[72][failed verification] InLancaster County, Pennsylvania, there are roughly 300 licensed breeders, and an estimated further 600 unlicensed breeding facilities.[73]
Reports of poor standards of care and treatment of dogs as a cash crop by members of the Amish community has led to calls for puppy mills and auctions to be closed, with one breeder being issued with a restraining order from the practice for numerous violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act. At the time the restraining order was issued, the breeder had at least 1,000 dogs in their care.[74]
The Amish fall into three main subgroups—the Old Order Amish, theNew Order Amish, and theBeachy Amish—all of whom wearplain dress and live their life according to the Bible as codified in their church'sOrdnung.[9][8] The Old Order Amish and New Order Amish conduct their worship in German, speakPennsylvania German, and usebuggies for transportation, in contrast to the Beachy Amish who use modern technology (inclusive of motor cars) and conduct worship in the local language of the area in which they reside (with exception of theOld Beachy Amish who continue to use Pennsylvania German).[10] Both the New Order Amish and the Beachy Amish emphasize theNew Birth,evangelize to seek converts, and haveSunday Schools.[12][9]
Over the years, the Amish churches have divided many times mostly over questions concerning the Ordnung, but also over doctrinal disputes, mainly about shunning. The largest group, the "Old Order" Amish, a conservative faction that separated from other Amish in the 1860s, are those who have most emphasized traditional practices and beliefs. The New Order Amish are a group of Amish whom some scholars see best described as a subgroup of Old Order Amish, despite the name.[citation needed]
Amish woman from Lancaster County serving pretzels
As of 2011, about 40 different Old Order Amish affiliations were known to exist. The eight major affiliations of the Old Order Amish are listed below, with Lancaster as the largest one in number of districts and population:[75]
The table below indicates the use of certain technologies by different Amish affiliations. The use of cars is not allowed by any Old and New Order Amish, nor are radio, television, or in most cases the use of the Internet. Three affiliations—"Lancaster", "Holmes Old Order" and "Elkhart-LaGrange"—are not only the three largest affiliations but also represent the mainstream among the Old Order Amish. The most conservative affiliations are at the top, the most modern ones at the bottom. Technologies used by very few are on the left; the ones used by most are on the right. The percentage of all Amish who use a technology is also indicated approximately.[timeframe?] The Old Order Amish culture involves lower greenhouse gas emissions in all sectors and activities with the exception of diet, and their per-person emissions has been estimated to be less than one quarter that of the wider society.[76]
Most Old Order Amish, New Order Amish and the Old Beachy Amish speak Pennsylvania Dutch, and refer to non-Amish people as "English", regardless of ethnicity.[78][79] Two Amish subgroups – called Swiss Amish – whose ancestors migrated to the United States in the 1850s speak a form ofBernese German (Adams County, Indiana, and daughter settlements) or aLow AlemannicAlsatian dialect (Allen County, IN and daughter settlements).[80]
Contrary to popular belief, the word "Dutch" in "Pennsylvania Dutch" is not a mistranslation, but rather a corruption of the Pennsylvania GermanendonymDeitsch, which means "Pennsylvania Dutch / German" or "German".[81][82][83][84] Ultimately, the terms Deitsch, Dutch,Diets andDeutsch are allcognates and descend from theProto-Germanic word*þiudiskaz meaning "popular" or "of the people".[85] The continued use of "Pennsylvania Dutch" was strengthened by the Pennsylvania Dutch in the 19th century as a way of distinguishing themselves from later (post 1830) waves of German immigrants to the United States, with the Pennsylvania Dutch referring to themselves asDeitsche and to Germans asDeitschlenner (literally "Germany-ers", compareDeutschländ-er) whom they saw as a related but distinct group.[86]
According to one scholar, "today, almost all Amish are functionally bilingual in Pennsylvania Dutch and English; however, domains of usage are sharply separated. Pennsylvania Dutch dominates in most in-group settings, such as the dinner table and preaching in church services. In contrast, English is used for most reading and writing. English is also the medium of instruction in schools and is used in business transactions and often, out of politeness, in situations involving interactions with non-Amish. Finally, the Amish read prayers and sing inStandard German (which, in Pennsylvania Dutch, is calledHochdeitsch[a]) at church services. The distinctive use of three different languages serves as a powerful conveyor of Amish identity.[87] "Although 'the English language is being used in more and more situations,' Pennsylvania Dutch is 'one of a handful of minority languages in the United States that is neither endangered nor supported by continual arrivals of immigrants.'"[88]
The Amish largely share a German or Swiss-German ancestry.[89] They generally use the term "Amish" only for members of their faith community and not as an ethnic designation. However some Amish descendants recognize their cultural background knowing that their genetic and cultural traits are uniquely different from other ethnicities.[90][91] Those who choose to affiliate with the church, or young children raised in Amish homes, but too young to yet be church members, are considered to be Amish. Certain Mennonite churches have a high number of people who were formerly from Amish congregations. Although more Amish immigrated to North America in the 19th century than during the 18th century, most of today's Amish descend from 18th-century immigrants. The latter tended to emphasize tradition to a greater extent, and were perhaps more likely to maintain a separate Amish identity.[92] There are a number of Amish Mennonite church groups that had never in their history been associated with the Old Order Amish because they split from the Amish mainstream in the time when the Old Orders formed in the 1860s and 1870s. The former Western Ontario Mennonite Conference (WOMC) was made up almost entirely of former Amish Mennonites who reunited with the Mennonite Church in Canada.[93] Orland Gingerich's bookThe Amish of Canada devotes the vast majority of its pages not to the Beachy or Old Order Amish, but to congregations in the former WOMC.[citation needed]
Several other groups, called "para-Amish" byG. C. Waldrep and others, share many characteristics with the Amish, such as horse and buggy transportation, plain dress, and the preservation of the German language. The members of these groups are largely of Amish origin, but they are not in fellowship with other Amish groups because they adhere to theological doctrines (e.g.,assurance of salvation) or practices (community of goods) that are normally not accepted among mainstream Amish. TheBergholz Community is a different case; it is not seen as Amish anymore because the community has shifted away from many core Amish principles.[citation needed]
Because the Amish are usually baptized no earlier than 18 and children are not counted in local congregation numbers, estimating their numbers is difficult. Rough estimates from various studies placed their numbers at 125,000 in 1992, 166,000 in 2000, and 221,000 in 2008.[95] Thus, from 1992 to 2008, population growth among the Amish in North America was 84 percent (3.6 percent per year). During that time, they established 184 new settlements and moved into six new states.[99] In 2000, about 165,620 Old Order Amish resided in the United States, of whom 73,609 were church members.[100][page needed] The Amish are among the fastest-growing populations in the world, with an average of seven children per family in the 1970s[101] and a total fertility rate of 5.3 in the 2010s.[102] Due to this, their population doubles in size roughly every 20 years.[103]
In 2010, a few religious bodies, including the Amish, changed the way their adherents were reported to better match the standards of the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies. When looking at all Amish adherents and not solely Old Order Amish, about 241,000 Amish adherents were in 28 U.S. states in 2010.[104]
The Amish added 100,000 more adherents in just 9 years, reaching 411,000 in 2025 in comparison with the 308,000 figure from 2016,[105] at the same time the total number of settlements grew from 509 to 684 (+34%), and the number of districts went from 2,259 to 3,114 (+38%).[1]
The United States is the home to the overwhelming majority (over 98 percent) of Amish people. In 2025, Old Order communities were present in 32 U.S. states. The total Amish population in the United States as of June 2025[update] has stood at 404,575[1] up 9,855 or 2.5 percent, compared to the previous year. Pennsylvania has the largest population (95.4 thousand), followed by Ohio (86.3 thousand) and Indiana (67.3 thousand), as of June 2025[update].[1] The largest Amish settlements are inLancaster County in southeastern Pennsylvania (44.7 thousand),Holmes County and adjacent counties in northeastern Ohio (39.0 thousand), andElkhart andLaGrange counties in northeastern Indiana (29.9 thousand), as of June 2025[update].[1] The highest concentration of Amish in the world is in the Holmes County community; nearly 50 percent of the entire population of Holmes County is Amish as of 2010.[106]
Amish settlements as of 2022 inPennsylvania, the state with the largest Amish population in the U.S.
The largest concentration of Amish west of theMississippi River is inMissouri, with other settlements in eastern Iowa andsoutheast Minnesota.[107] The largest Amish settlements in Iowa are located nearKalona andBloomfield.[108] The largest settlement in Wisconsin is nearCashton with 13 congregations, i.e. about 2,000 people in 2009.[109]
Because of the rapid population growth of the Amish communities, new settlements in the United States are being established each year, thus: 18 new settlements were established in 2016, 22 in 2017, 17 in 2018, 26 in 2019, 26 in 2020, 18 in 2021, 19 in 2022, 39 in 2023 and 19 in 2024.[110][97][111][112][113] The main reason for the continuous expansion is to obtain enough affordable farmland, other reasons for new settlements include locating in isolated areas that support their lifestyle, moving to areas with cultures conducive to their way of life, maintaining proximity to family or other Amish groups, and sometimes to resolve church or leadership conflicts.[99]
The adjacent table shows the eight states with the largest Amish population in the years 1992, 2000, 2010, 2020 and 2025.[114][56][115][116][97][1]
TheAmish of Canada settled insouthwestern Ontario, having come from theUnited States in 1815 and directly fromEurope in 1822. They numbered about 1,000 people in 1991.[117] Today, the Canadian Amish population exceeds 6,000 people, living in 20 different communities.[118]
Rising land prices are causing some Amish families to leave Ontario.[119] Since 2015, some Amish families have settled in provinces other than Ontario, includingManitoba,New Brunswick, andPrince Edward Island, primarily due to farmland prices, the geography of existing Amish settlements in both Canada and the United States, and the political hospitality of certain provinces.[120][121] Since 2017, some Amish families originally from Ontario have settled in Manitoba'sRural Municipality of Stuartburn.[122]
TheOld Order Amish in Canada trace their origins to two distinct waves of AmishMennonite migration. The first wave occurred in the 1880s, when a group of Amish Mennonites from Europe settled in Ontario. The second wave of Old Order Amish migration occurred in the 1950s, when Amish communities from states such asOhio,Pennsylvania, andIowa established settlements in Ontario.[123]
In 2016, several dozen Old Order Amish families founded two new settlements inKings County in the province of Prince Edward Island. Increasing land prices in Ontario had reportedly limited the ability of members in those communities to purchase new farms.[124] At about the same time a new settlement was founded nearPerth-Andover in New Brunswick, only about 12 km (7.5 mi) from Amish settlements in Maine. In 2017, an Amish settlement was founded in Manitoba nearStuartburn.[125] In 2024 this colony ceased to exist, as the Amish have sold their properties and moved to Minnesota.[126]
There is only one colony left in Latin America, in Bolivia. The Argentina colony ceased to exist as of 2024.[113] The first attempt by Old Order Amish to settle in Latin America was in Paradise Valley, nearGaleana, Nuevo León, Mexico, but the settlement lasted from only 1923 to 1929.[28] An Amish settlement was tried in Honduras from about 1968 to 1978, but this settlement failed too.[127] In 2015, new settlements of New Order Amish were founded east ofCatamarca, Argentina, and Colonia Naranjita, Bolivia, about 75 miles (121 km) southwest ofSanta Cruz.[128] Most of the members of these new communities come fromOld Colony Mennonite background and have been living in the area for several decades.[129]
In Europe, no split occurred between Old Order Amish and Amish Mennonites; like the Amish Mennonites in North America, the European Amish assimilated into the Mennonite mainstream during the second half of the 19th century through the first decades of the 20th century. Eventually, they dropped the word "Amish" from the names of their congregations and lost their Amish identity and culture. The last European Amish congregation joined the Mennonites in 1937 in Ixheim, today part ofZweibrücken in thePalatinate region.[130]
Only a few hundred outsiders, so-called seekers, have ever joined the Old Order Amish.[131] Since 1950, only some 75 non-Anabaptist people have joined and remained lifelong members of the Amish.[132] Since 1990, some twenty people ofRussian Mennonite background have joined the Amish inAylmer, Ontario.[133]
More people have tested Old Order Amish life for weeks, months, or even years, but in the end decided not to join. Others remain close to the Amish, but never think of joining.[132]
On the other hand, theBeachy Amish, many of whom conduct their services in English and allow for a limited range of modern conveniences, regularly receive seekers into their churches as visitors, and eventually, as members.[137][138]
Various congregations belonging to Old Order Anabaptism and Conservative Anabaptism lend support to Christian Aid Ministries, a missionary arm of these movements, along with Iron Curtain and Freiheit Messengers Prison Ministry.[139]
Amish farm near Morristown, New YorkA 2016 study on Amish community funding for health care
Amish populations have higher incidences of particular conditions, includingdwarfism,[140]Angelman syndrome,[141] and variousmetabolic disorders,[142] as well as an unusual distribution of blood types.[143][further explanation needed] The Amish represent a collection of differentdemes or genetically closed communities.[144] Although the Amish do not have higher incidence of genetic disorders than the general population,[3] since almost all Amish descend from a few hundred 18th-century founders, some recessive conditions are more prevalent (an example of thefounder effect).[145][146][147] Some of these disorders are rare or unique, and are serious enough to increase the mortality rate among Amish children. The Amish are aware of the advantages ofexogamy, but for religious reasons, marry only within their communities.[148] The majority of Amish accept these asGottes Wille (God's will); they reject the use of preventive genetic tests prior to marriage and genetic testing of unborn children to discover genetic disorders. When children are born with a disorder, they are accepted into the community and tasked with chores within their ability.[149] However, Amish are willing to participate in studies of genetic diseases.[147] Their extensive family histories are useful to researchers investigating diseases such asAlzheimer's,Parkinson's, andmacular degeneration.[citation needed]
While the Amish are at an increased risk for some genetic disorders, researchers have found their tendency for clean living can lead to better health. Overall cancer rates in the Amish are reduced and tobacco-related cancers in Amish adults are 37 percent and non-tobacco-related cancers are 72 percent of the rate for Ohio adults. Skin cancer rates are lower for Amish, even though many Amish make their living working outdoors where they are exposed to sunlight. They are typically covered and dressed by wearing wide-brimmed hats and long sleeves which protect their skin.[150]
Treating genetic problems is the mission ofClinic for Special Children inStrasburg, Pennsylvania, which has developed effective treatments for such problems asmaple syrup urine disease, a previously fatal disease. The clinic is embraced by most Amish, ending the need for parents to leave the community to receive proper care for their children, an action that might result in shunning. Another clinic is DDC Clinic for Special Needs Children, located inMiddlefield, Ohio, for special-needs children with inherited or metabolic disorders.[151] The DDC Clinic provides treatment, research, and educational services to Amish and non-Amish children and their families.[citation needed]
People's Helpers is an Amish-organized network of mental health caregivers who help families dealing with mental illness and recommend professional counselors.[152] Suicide rates for the Amish are about half that of the general population.[b]
The Old Order Amish do not typically carry private commercial health insurance.[154][155] A handful of American hospitals, starting in the mid-1990s, created special outreach programs to assist the Amish. In some Amish communities, the church will collect money from its members to help pay for medical bills of other members.[149] Although the Amish are often perceived by outsiders as rejecting all modern technologies, this is not the case and modern medicine is employed by Amish communities, including hospital births and other advanced treatments. As they go without health insurance and pay up front for services, Amish individuals will often travel to Mexico for non-urgent care and surgery to reduce costs.[156][157]
Amish typically have a large number of children, not because of any lack of birth control but because of their beliefs and because large families are useful in agrarian communities.[15]: 156 Comparing the number of children per family across multiple communities, it is clear that some Amish seem to practice some form offamily planning, a subject that generally is not discussed among the Amish, because the size of families increases in correlation with the conservatism of a congregation—the more conservative, the more children.[15]: 157–158 Some communities openly allow access to birth control to women whose health would be compromised by childbirth.[149] The Amish are against abortion and also find "artificial insemination, genetics,eugenics, andstem cell research" to be "inconsistent with Amish values and beliefs".[158]
As time has passed, the Amish have felt pressures from the modern world. Issues such as taxation, education, law and its enforcement, and occasional discrimination and hostility are areas of difficulty.[citation needed][159]
The modern way of life in general has increasingly diverged from that of Amish society. On occasion, this has resulted in sporadic discrimination and hostility from their neighbors, such as throwing of stones or other objects at Amish horse-drawn carriages on the roads.[160][161][162]
The Amish do not usually educate their children past the eighth grade, believing that the basic knowledge offered up to that point is sufficient to prepare one for the Amish lifestyle. Almost no Amish go to high school and college. In many communities, the Amish operate their own schools, which are typically one-room schoolhouses with teachers (usually young, unmarried women) from the Amish community. On May 19, 1972, Jonas Yoder and Wallace Miller of the Old Order Amish, and Adin Yutzy of the Conservative Amish Mennonite Church were each fined $5 for refusing to send their children, aged 14 and 15, to high school. InWisconsin v. Yoder (1972), the Wisconsin Supreme Court overturned the conviction,[163] and the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed this, finding the benefits of universal education were not sufficient justification to overcome scrutiny under theFree Exercise Clause of theFirst Amendment.[164]
The Amish are subject to sales and property taxes. As they seldom own motor vehicles, they rarely have occasion to pay motor vehicle registration fees or spend money on the purchase of fuel for vehicles.[165] Under their beliefs and traditions, generally the Amish do not agree with the idea of Social Security benefits and have a religious objection to insurance.[166][167] On this basis, the United StatesInternal Revenue Service agreed in 1961 that they did not need to paySocial Security-related taxes. In 1965, this policy was codified into law.[168] Self-employed individuals in certain sects do not pay into or receive benefits from the United States Social Security system. This exemption applies to a religious group that is conscientiously opposed to accepting benefits of any private or public insurance, provides a reasonable level of living for its dependent members, and has existed continuously since December 31, 1950.[169] The U.S. Supreme Court clarified in 1982 that Amish employers are not exempt, but only those Amish individuals who are self-employed.[170]
In 1964, Pathway Publishers was founded by two Amish farmers to print more material about the Amish and Anabaptists in general. It is located inLaGrange, Indiana, andAylmer, Ontario. Pathway has become the major publisher of Amish school textbooks, general-reading books, and periodicals. Also, a number of private enterprises publish everything from general reading to reprints of older literature that has been considered of great value to Amish families.[171] Some Amish read the Pennsylvania German newspaperHiwwe wie Driwwe, and some of them even contribute dialect texts.[172]
Conservative "Russian" Mennonites andHutterites who also dress plain and speak German dialects emigrated from other European regions at different times with different German dialects, separate cultures, and related but different religious traditions.[175] Particularly, the Hutterites live communally[176] and are generally accepting of modern technology.[177]
In Ukraine there is anameless movement of Baptists that has been compared to the Amish, due to their similar beliefs of plain living and pacifism.[178][179]
The few remainingPlain Quakers are similar in manner and lifestyle, including their attitudes toward war, but are unrelated to the Amish.[180] Early Quakers were influenced, to some degree, by the Anabaptists, and in turn influenced the Amish in colonial Pennsylvania. Almost all modern Quakers have since abandoned their traditional dress.[181]
TheNorthkill Amish Settlement, established in 1740 inBerks County, Pennsylvania, was the first identifiable Amish community in the New World. During theFrench and Indian War, the Hochstetler Massacre occurred: Local tribes attacked the Jacob Hochstetler homestead in the Northkill settlement on September 19, 1757. The sons of the family took their weapons but father Jacob did not allow them to shoot due to the Anabaptist doctrine ofnonresistance.[17] Jacob Sr.'s wife, Anna (Lorentz) Hochstetler, a daughter (name unknown) and Jacob Jr. were killed by the Native Americans. Jacob Sr. and sons Joseph and Christian were taken captive. Jacob escaped after about eight months, but the boys were held for several years.[182] When freed, both of these sons joined the church and one of them became a minister.[17]
As early as 1809 Amish were farming side by side with Native American farmers in Pennsylvania.[183] According to Cones Kupwah Snowflower, aShawnee genealogist, the Amish and Quakers were known to incorporate Native Americans into their families to protect them from ill-treatment, especially after theRemoval Act of 1832.[clarification needed][184][better source needed]
The Amish, as pacifists, did not engage in warfare with Native Americans, nor displace them directly, but were among the European immigrants whose arrival resulted in their displacement.[185]
In 2012, the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society collaborated with the Native American community to construct a replica Iroquois Longhouse.[186] The following years saw continuous efforts to meet with local Indigenous in a series of reconciliation meetings, a process started by Lancaster Mennonites more than a decade prior.[187]
^Harry, Karen; Herr, Sarah A. (April 2, 2018).Life beyond the Boundaries: Constructing Identity in Edge Regions of the North American Southwest. University Press of Colorado.ISBN978-1-60732-696-0.The Amish were one of many Anabaptist groups that grew from the Radical Reformation in sixteenth-century Europe (Hostetler 1993).
^abNolt, Steven M. (2016).The Amish: A Concise Introduction. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 1–21, 106.ISBN978-1421419565.
^"Anabaptists". Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College. RetrievedMay 11, 2022.The Amish are one of many Anabaptist groups that trace their roots to the Anabaptist movement in sixteenth-century Europe at the time of the Protestant Reformation. Other groups include Mennonites, Hutterites, the Brethren in Christ, and Brethren groups that began in Schwarzenau, Germany, in 1708.
^abMisiroglu, Gina (March 26, 2015).American Countercultures: An Encyclopedia of Nonconformists, Alternative Lifestyles, and Radical Ideas in U.S. History: An Encyclopedia of Nonconformists, Alternative Lifestyles, and Radical Ideas in U.S. History. Routledge.ISBN978-1-317-47728-0.There are various sects of Amish. Old Order Amish maintain the practices best known in mainstream society. These practices include rigorous restrictions on the use of modern conveniences such as electricity automobiles, and telephones. Other groups, such as theBeachy Amish and New Order Amish, use electricity and automobiles, among other modern conveniences, but they still consider themselves Amish.
^abcdMeyers, Thomas J.; Nolt, Steven M. (2005).An Amish Patchwork: Indiana's Old Orders in the Modern World. Indiana University Press. p. 22.ISBN978-0-253-34538-7.Groups that today identify themselves as Amish include not only the Old Orders but also the so-called New Order Amish and the Beachy Amish ... TheNew Order Amish share much with their Old Order Amish religious kin, including horse-and-buggy culture and identifiably traditional dress patterns, but the New Orders employ a more explicit language of personal salvation and are also somewhat less wary of technology—for example, permitting telephones in homes. TheBeachy Amish ... are plain in their appearance but clearly less traditional than Old Orders in lifestyle. Beachy Amish members drive cars, use English in worship, and place emphasis on evangelism and missions.
^abcJohnson-Weiner, Karen M. (May 2, 2017).New York Amish: Life in the Plain Communities of the Empire State. Cornell University Press.ISBN978-1-5017-0813-8.
^Kraybill, Donald B. (May 1, 2003).The Riddle of Amish Culture. JHU Press.ISBN978-0-8018-7631-8....the Old Order Amish, New Order Amish, and Beachy Amish represent three different affiliations.
^abGerlach, Horst (June 1, 2013).My Kingdom Is Not of This World: 300 Years of the Amish, 1683-1983. Masthof Press & Bookstore. p. 376.ISBN978-1-60126-387-2.
^abcKraybill, Donald B.; Johnson-Weiner, Karen M.; Nolt, Steven M. (2013).The Amish. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 156–158.ISBN9781421409146.
^Kroeker, Marvin E."Amish".Oklahoma Historical Society. The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. RetrievedApril 25, 2024.The Clarita and Chouteau Amish are identified by the typical Old Order markers of buggies, beards, and bonnets. They speak Pennsylvania German, are schooled through the eighth grade, wear plain attire, worship in homes, and do not use electricity. ... By comparison, the Beachy Amish are less conservative than the Old Order. They install electricity, drive cars, own computers and cell phones, use church buildings, allow secondary schooling, and have less stringent dress codes. They engage in evangelistic outreach. More than any other European ethnic group in Oklahoma, the Amish have retained a distinct cultural identity by consciously drawing symbolic boundaries between themselves and the society around them.
^Gerlach, Horst (2013).My Kingdom Is Not of This World: 300 Years of the Amish, 1683–1983. Masthof Press & Bookstore. p. 376.ISBN978-1-60126-387-2.
^Camden, Laura L. (2006).Mennonites in Texas: The Quiet in the Land. Texas A&M University Press. p. 68.ISBN978-1-60344-538-2.
^Elise Schebler Roberts; Helen Kelley; Sandra Dallas; Jennifer Chiaverini; Jean Ray Laury (2010).The Quilt. Voyageur Press. p. 104.ISBN978-1-61060-536-6.
^abJohnson-Weiner, Karen M. (September 15, 2020).The Lives of Amish Women. JHU Press. p. 24.ISBN978-1-4214-3870-2.
^Kraybill, Donald B.; Johnson-Weiner, Karen M.; Nolt, Steven M. (2013).The Amish. JHU Press. p. 313.ISBN978-1-4214-0914-6.
^"10 things to know about Mennonites in Canada". Canadian Mennonite. January 12, 2017.Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. RetrievedDecember 6, 2020.it is in many ways, an option of last resort and it's something we only do when we think we have a critical threat to the community's safety and we need immediate action
^Nolt, Steven M.; Meyers, Thomas J. (2007).Plain Diversity: Amish Cultures and Identities (Young Center Books in Anabaptist and Pietist Studies). Johns Hopkins University Press.ISBN978-0801886058.
^Klein, H. M. J. (1946).History and customs of the Amish people. York, Pennsylvania: Maple Press Company.ASINB004UOJ17K.
^Sherry Gore Zondervan.Simply Delicious Amish Cooking.Zondervan, 2013.
^"The Amish Community".LLCER Anglais | Site d'aide à la phonologie anglaise, grammaire, linguistique et civilisations anglophones (in Canadian French). RetrievedDecember 6, 2022.
^Chad Thompson:The Languages of the Amish of Allen County, Indiana: Multilingualism and Convergence, in Anthropological Linguistics, Vol. 36, No. 1 (Spring, 1994), pp. 69–91
^Hughes Oliphant Old: The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church, Volume 6: The Modern Age. Eerdmans Publishing, 2007, p. 606.
^Mark L. Louden: Pennsylvania Dutch: The Story of an American Language. JHU Press, 2006, p. 2
^Hostetler, John A. (1993),Amish Society, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, p. 241
^Irwin Richman: The Pennsylvania Dutch Country. Arcadia Publishing, 2004, p. 16.
^W. Haubrichs, "Theodiscus, Deutsch und Germanisch – drei Ethnonyme, drei Forschungsbegriffe. Zur Frage der Instrumentalisierung und Wertbesetzung deutscher Sprach- und Volksbezeichnungen." In: H. Beck et al.,Zur Geschichte der Gleichung "germanisch-deutsch" (2004), 199–228
^Mark L. Louden:Pennsylvania Dutch: The Story of an American Language. JHU Press, 2006, pp. 3–4ISBN1421418282
^Hugh F. Gingerich and Rachel W. Kreider.Revised Amish and Amish Mennonite Genealogies. Morgantown, Penn.: 2007. This comprehensive volume gives names, dates, and places of births and deaths, and relationships of most of the known people of this unique sect from the early 1700s until about 1860 or so. The authors also include a five-page "History of the First Amish Communities in America".
^Hammond, Phillip E. (2000).The Dynamics of Religious Organizations: The Extravasation of the Sacred and Other Essays.Oxford University Press. p. 59.ISBN978-0198297628.1. Religion is the major foundation of ethnicity, examples include the Amish, Hutterites, Jews, and Mormons. Ethnicity in this pattern, so to speak, equals religion, and if the religious identity is denied, so is the ethnic identity. [Footnote: In actuality, of course, there can be exceptions, as the labels "jack Mormon," "banned Amish," or "cultural Jew" suggest.] Let us call this pattern "ethnic fusion." 2. Religion may be one of several foundations of ethnicity, the others commonly being language and territorial origin; examples are the Greek or Russian Orthodox and the Dutch Reformed. Ethnicity in this pattern extends beyond religion in the sense that ethnic identification can be claimed without claiming the religious identification, but the reverse is rare. Let us call this pattern "ethnic religion." 3. An ethnic group may be linked to a religious tradition, but other ethnic groups will be linked to it, too. Examples include Irish, Italian, and Polish Catholics; Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish Lutherans. Religion in this pattern extends beyond ethnicity, reversing the previous pattern, and religious identification can be claimed without claiming the ethnic identification. Let us call this pattern "religious ethnicity"
^"Amish Population Trends 1992–2013". Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College.Archived from the original on June 14, 2013. RetrievedJune 12, 2013.
^abc"Amish Population Profile, 2020".Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies. August 18, 2019.Archived from the original on January 11, 2021. RetrievedAugust 18, 2020.
^"The Amish Population in 2021".Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies. August 12, 2021.Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. RetrievedAugust 22, 2021.
^ab"Population Trends 1992–2008". Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College.Archived from the original on June 6, 2009. RetrievedJuly 8, 2009.
^Manns, Molly."Indiana's Amish Population".InContext. Indiana Business Research Center.Archived from the original on December 28, 2012. RetrievedJanuary 14, 2013.
^Hurst, Charles E. (2010).An Amish paradox : diversity & change in the world's largest Amish community. McConnell, David L. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.ISBN978-0801893995.OCLC647908343.
^"Amish Population by State". Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College. 2009.Archived from the original on January 19, 2012. RetrievedFebruary 4, 2012.
^"Iowa Amish".amishamerica.com. October 12, 2010.Archived from the original on October 13, 2010. RetrievedSeptember 18, 2015.
^"Amish Population Profile, 2023".Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies. September 2, 2023. RetrievedSeptember 2, 2023.
^ab"Amish Population Profile, 2024". Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies. August 19, 2024. RetrievedAugust 20, 2024.
^"Amish Population Change, 2000-2021"(PDF).Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies. August 12, 2021. RetrievedMarch 19, 2022.
^Wesner, Erik (November 7, 2017)."Amish Moving To Fourth Canadian Province".Amish America - Exploring Amish Culture and Communities. Archived fromthe original on October 6, 2018. RetrievedJuly 24, 2025. at amishamerica.com.
^Hurst, Charles E.; McConnell, David L. (April 5, 2010).An Amish Paradox: Diversity and Change in the World's Largest Amish Community. JHU Press.ISBN978-0-8018-9790-0.
^abFrancomano, Clair A.; McKusick, Victor A.; Biesecker, Leslie G. (August 15, 2003). "Medical genetic studies in the Amish: Historical perspective".American Journal of Medical Genetics.121C (1):1–4.doi:10.1002/ajmg.c.20001.ISSN0148-7299.PMID12888981.S2CID7688595.
^Ruder, Katherine 'Kate' (July 23, 2004)."Genomics in Amish Country". Genome News Network.Archived from the original on January 10, 2012. RetrievedJuly 2, 2009.
^abcShowalter, Anita (2000). "Birthing among the Amish".International Journal of Childbirth Education.15: 10.
^Kraybill (Autumn 1986), "Suicide Patterns in a Religious Subculture: The Old Order Amish",International Journal of Moral and Social Studies, vol. 1, et al
^"Amish Studies – Beliefs". Young Center for Anabaptist & Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College.Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. RetrievedFebruary 2, 2013.
^Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205, 32 L.Ed.2d 15, 92 S.Ct. 1526 (1972).
^"Rumble strips removed after the Amish say they're dangerous".WWMT television news. August 20, 2009. Archived fromthe original on September 28, 2011. RetrievedNovember 24, 2011.Dobberteen is one of a growing number of people in St. Joseph County who believes that the Amish shouldn't have a say in what happens with a state road. 'Some people are saying, "Well jeeze, you know the Amish people don't pay taxes for that, why are we filling them in" what do you think about that? We pay our taxes,' said Dobberteen. Roads are paid for largely with gas tax and vehicle registration fees, which the Amish have no reason to pay.
^"U.S. v. Lee, 102 S. Ct. 1051 (1982)". August 20, 2009. RetrievedNovember 24, 2011.On appeal, the Supreme Court noted that the exemption provided by 26 U.S.C. 1402(g) is available only to self-employed individuals and does not apply to employers or employees. As to the constitutional claim, the court held that since accommodating the Amish beliefs under the circumstances would unduly interfere with the fulfillment of the overriding governmental interest in assuring mandatory and continuous participation in and contribution to the Social Security system, the limitation on religious liberty involved here was justified. Consequently, in reversing the district court, the Supreme Court held that, unless Congress provides otherwise, the tax imposed on employers to support the Social Security system must be uniformly applicable to all.
^"Pathway Publishers".Gameo.org. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online.Archived from the original on November 12, 2017. RetrievedDecember 28, 2017.
^Werner, Michael (2021): Hiwwe wie Driwwe - Der Pennsylvania ReiseVERführer. Neustadt an der Weinstraße: 163.
^"7 News Belize".7newsbelize.com.Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. RetrievedDecember 13, 2014.
^"Stauffer Mennonite Church".Gameo.org. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online.Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. RetrievedDecember 28, 2017.
^"Hutterites".Encyclopædia Britannica.Archived from the original on December 11, 2011. RetrievedNovember 9, 2008.
^Laverdure, Paul (2006)."Hutterites".Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Canadian Plains Research Center. Archived fromthe original on October 13, 2008. RetrievedNovember 9, 2008.
Kraybill, Donald B (1994), Olshan, Marc A (ed.),The Amish Struggle with Modernity, Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, p. 304,ISBN0-87451-684-6.
Die Botschaft – Lancaster, PA – Newspaper for Old Order Amish and Old Order Mennonites; only Amish may place advertisements.
The Diary – Gordonville, PA – Monthly newsmagazine by and for Old Order Amish.
Beachy, Leroy (2011).Unser Leit ... The Story of the Amish. Millersburg, OH: Goodly Heritage Books.ISBN0-9832397-0-3
DeWalt, Mark W. (2006).Amish Education in the United States and Canada. Rowman and Littlefield Education.
Garret, Ottie A and Ruth Irene Garret (1998).True Stories of the X-Amish: Banned, Excommunicated and Shunned, Horse Cave, KY: Neu Leben.
Garret, Ruth Irene (1998).Crossing Over: One Woman's Escape from Amish Life, Thomas More.[ISBN missing]
Gehman Richard. "Plainest of Pennsylvania's Plain People Amish Folk".National Geographic, August 1965, pp. 226–53.
Good, Merle and Phyllis (1979).20 Most Asked Questions about the Amish and Mennonites. Intercourse, PA: Good Books.
Hostetler, John A. ed. (1989).Amish Roots: A Treasury of History, Wisdom, and Lore. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Igou, Brad (1999).The Amish in Their Own Words: Amish Writings from 25 Years of Family Life, Scottdale, PA: Herald Press.[ISBN missing]
Johnson-Weiner, Karen M. (2006).Train Up a Child: Old Order Amish and Mennonite Schools. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Johnson-Weiner, Karen M. (2017)New York Amish : Life in the Plain Communities of the Empire State (Cornell UP, 2017).
Keim, Albert (1976).Compulsory Education and the Amish: The Right Not to be Modern. Beacon Press.
Kraybill, Donald B., Karen M. Johnson-Weiner, and Steven M. Nolt,The Amish (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2013), 500 pp.
Kraybill, Donald B. "Amish." inGale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 1, Gale, 2014), pp. 97–112.onlineArchived April 28, 2021, at theWayback Machine
Kraybill, Donald B. (2008).The Amish of Lancaster County. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books.* Kraybill, Donald B. ed. (2003).The Amish and the State. Foreword by Martin E. Marty. 2nd ed.: Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Kraybill, Donald B. (2014).Renegade Amish: Beard Cutting, Hate Crimes, and the Trial of the Bergholz Barbers. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Kraybill, Donald B. & Carl D. Bowman (2002).On the Backroad to Heaven: Old Order Hutterites, Mennonites, Amish, and Brethren. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Kraybill, Donald B. & Steven M. Nolt (2004).Amish Enterprise: From Plows to Profits. 2nd ed. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Kraybill, Donald B., Steven M. Nolt & David L. Weaver-Zercher (2006).Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy. New York: Jossey-Bass.[ISBN missing]
Kraybill, Donald B., Steven M. Nolt & David L. Weaver-Zercher (2010).The Amish Way: Patient Faith in a Perilous World. New York: Jossey-Bass.[ISBN missing]
Luthy, David (1991).Amish Settlements That Failed, 1840–1960. LaGrange, IN: Pathway Publishers.[ISBN missing]
Mackall, Joe:Plain Secrets: An Outsider among the Amish, Boston, Mass. 2007.
Nolt, Steven M. and Thomas J. Myers (2007).Plain Diversity: Amish Cultures and Identities. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Schachtman, Tom (2006).Rumspringa: To be or not to be Amish. New York: North Point Press.[ISBN missing]
Schlabach, Theron F. (1988).Peace, Faith, Nation: Mennonites and Amish in Nineteenth-Century America. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press.[ISBN missing]
Schmidt, Kimberly D., Diane Zimmerman Umble, & Steven D. Reschly, eds. (2002)Strangers at Home: Amish and Mennonite Women in History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Scott, Stephen (1988).The Amish Wedding and Other Special Occasions of the Old Order Communities. Intercourse, PA: Good Books.[ISBN missing]
Smith, C Henry; Krahn, Cornelius (1981),Smith's Story of the Mennonites (revised & expanded ed.), Newton, Kansas: Faith and Life Press, pp. 249–356,ISBN978-0-87303-069-4.
Smith, Jeff (2016).Becoming Amish. Cedar, MI: Dance Hall Press[ISBN missing]
Stevick, Richard A. (2007).Growing Up Amish: the Teenage Years. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.[ISBN missing]
Umble, Diane Zimmerman (2000).Holding the Line: the Telephone in Old Order Mennonite and Amish Life. Johns Hopkins University Press.
Umble, Diane Zimmerman & David L. Weaver-Zercher, eds. (2008).The Amish and the Media. Johns Hopkins University Press
Weaver-Zercher, David L. (2001).The Amish in the American Imagination. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
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