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 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 1,294,789 (2019)[1] 0.39% of the US population | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Texas,Nebraska,The Dakotas,Wisconsin,Iowa,Minnesota,Illinois,Michigan,Maryland,Ohio,New York Metropolitan Area,California,Florida,Oregon,Wisconsin | |
| Languages | |
| American English,Czech | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholicism,Protestantism,Judaism,irreligion | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| OtherCzechs • Moravians • Czech Jews • Texan Silesians • Slovak Americans • Sorbian Americans • Austrian Americans • Polish Americans • Kashubian Americans |
| Year | Number |
|---|---|
| 1980[2] | 1,892,456 |
| 1990[3] | 1,296,411 |
| 2000[4] | 1,262,527 |
| 2010[5] | 1,533,826 |
| Part ofa series on |
| Czechs |
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Czech Americans (Czech:Čechoameričané), known in the 19th and early 20th century asBohemian Americans, are citizens of the United States whose ancestry wholly or partly originates from theCzech lands, a term which refers to the majority of the traditionallands of the Bohemian Crown, namelyBohemia,Moravia andCzech Silesia. These lands over time have been governed by a variety of states, including theKingdom of Bohemia, theAustrian Empire,Czechoslovakia, and theCzech Republic, also known by its short-form name, Czechia. Germans from the Czech lands who emigrated to the United States are usually identified asGerman Americans, or, more specifically, as Americans ofGerman Bohemian descent.[6] According to the2000 U.S. census, there are 1,262,527 Americans of full or partial Czech descent, in addition to 441,403 persons who list their ancestry asCzechoslovak. Historical information about Czechs in America is available thanks to people such asMila Rechcigl.
The first documented case of the entry ofCzechs to the North American shores is ofJoachim Gans ofPrague, aBohemian Jewishmining engineer who came toRoanoke,North Carolina in 1585 with an expedition of explorers organized by SirWalter Raleigh (1552–1618).
Augustine Herman (1621–1686) was the first documented Czech settler. He was asurveyor and skilleddraftsman, successful planter and developer of new lands, a shrewd and enterprising merchant, a bold politician and effective diplomat, fluent in several languages. After coming toNew Amsterdam (presentNew York), he became one of the most influential people in the Dutch Province, which led to his appointment to the Council of Nine to advise the New Amsterdam GovernorPeter Stuyvesant. One of his greatest achievements was his celebrated map ofMaryland andVirginia commissioned by Lord Baltimore, which he began working on in earnest after removing to the English Province ofMaryland.Lord Baltimore was so pleased with the map that he rewarded Herman with a large estate, named by Herman "Bohemia Manor", and the hereditary titleLord.
Another Bohemian living in New Amsterdam at that time,Frederick Philipse (1626–1720), also became quite famous. He was a successful merchant who eventually became the wealthiest person in the entire Dutch Province. Philipse was originally fromBohemia, from an aristocraticProtestant family who had to flee from their homeland due to popish persecution after theThirty Years' War.
The first significant wave of Czech colonists was of theMoravian Brethren who began arriving on the American shores in the first half of the 18th century.Moravian Brethren were the followers of the teachings of the Czech religious reformer and martyrJan Hus (1370–1415),Petr Chelčický and BishopJohn Amos Comenius (1592–1670). They were true heirs of the ancient "Unitas fratrum bohemicorum" -Unity of the Brethren, who found a temporary refuge inHerrnhut (Czech:Ochranov) in Lusatia under the patronage of CountNikolaus Zinzendorf (1700–1760). Because of the worsening political and religious situation inSaxony, the Moravian Brethren, as they began calling themselves, decided to emigrate to North America.
This group started coming in 1735, when they first settled inSavannah, Georgia, and then inPennsylvania, from which they spread to other states after theAmerican Revolution, especiallyOhio. The Moravians established a number of settlements, such asBethlehem andLititz in Pennsylvania andSalem inNorth Carolina. Moravians made great contributions to the growth and development of the United States. Cultural contributions of Moravian Brethren from the Czech lands were distinctly notable in the realm of music. The trumpets and horns used by the Moravians inGeorgia are the first evidence of Moravian instrumental music in America.
In 1776, at the time of theDeclaration of Independence, more than two thousandMoravian Brethren lived in the colonies. PresidentThomas Jefferson designated special lands to the missionaries to civilize the Indians and promote Christianity. The free uncultivated land in America encouraged immigration throughout the nineteenth century; most of the immigrants were farmers and settled in theMidwestern states.[7] The first major immigration of Czechs occurred in 1848 when the Czech "Forty Eighters" fled to the United States to escape the political persecution by theAustrian Habsburgs.[8] During theAmerican Civil War, Czechs served in both theConfederate and Union army, but as with most immigrant groups, the majority fought for theUnion.
Immigration resumed and reached a peak in 1907, when 13,554 Czechs entered the eastern ports. Unlike previous immigration, new immigrants were predominantlyCatholic. Although some of theanticlericalism of the Czechs in Europe came to the United States, Czech Americans are, on the whole, much more likely to be practicing Catholics than Czechs in Europe.
By 1910, the Czech population was 349,000, and by 1940 it was 1,764,000. TheU.S. Bureau of the Census reported that nearly 800,000 Czechs were residing in the U.S. in 1970. Since that figure did not include Czechs who had been living in the U.S. for several generations, it is reasonable to assume that the actual number was higher. Additionally, Czech immigrants in America often had different claims of origin in records. Before 1918, many Czechs would be listed as from Bohemia or Moravia or vaguely Austria or Silesia.[9] Some were also counted as from Germany if they were German-speakers or rarely Polish if the recorder could not distinguish the language.[10][11]Slovaks were often listed as fromHungary.[12] After the formation ofCzechoslovakia in 1918, Czechs and Slovaks were also listed under the new blanket category.[13]
The Czech American community gained a high public profile in 1911, with the kidnapping and murder in Chicago of the five-year oldElsie Paroubek. The Czech American community mobilized massively to help in the searches for the girl and support her family, and it gained much sympathy from the general American public.
While most Czech-Americans are white, some arepeople of color or are Latino/Hispanic. A small group of Black Czech-Americans of Ethiopian descent lives in Baltimore.[14] In Texas, many Tejanos have Czech ancestry. Czech immigrants to Texas had a deep influence on Tejano culture, particularlyTejano music.[15]
For the majority of 19th and 20th centuries the Upper East Side of Manhattan was a middle-class neighborhood inhabited by Czech, Slovak, Irish, Polish, German and Hungarian immigrants. Czechs began to migrate in larger numbers in the second half of the 19th century, many of them being political refugees who emigrated after the wave of revolutions that swept through Europe in the year1848.
Initially, they flocked to the Lower East Side, however due to the expansion of the German community, the Bohemians later started relocating together with the Hungarians toYorkville.
By the end of the 19th century, a large number of Czechs and Slovaks had already settled on the Upper East Side, most of them between 65th and 73th Streets – the area known as Little Bohemia. In 1900 the New York Times stated that there were about 75 000 Bohemians residing in New York, with about 55 000 of them living on the east side of Manhattan. The East 72nd Street was even nicknamed the “Bohemian Broadway”[16] because of all the Czechs who lived there. This area contained a lot of Czech shops, pubs, clubs and theatres.
A 1924 article named “New York City and the Czechs” argued that “No part of the city could as much resemble Prague as Fiftieth Street and thereabouts up to Seventieth Street”. The article goes on to describe that there are tunnels, and even streets, which one can reach only through stone stairs two stories high, and also speaks of cobblestone pavements and vaulted alleys.
Although most of the neighborhood's traces have since disappeared, many Czech institutions can still be found in the area, including a school established in 1867, a Czech Gymnastic Association and community center named Sokol[17] and also two churches.[18]
The top 50 U.S. communities with the highest percentage of people claiming Czech ancestry are:[19]
The top U.S. communities with the most residents born in the Czech Republic (former Czechoslovakia) are:[21]
The states with the largest Czech American populations are:[22]
| Texas | 155,855 |
| Illinois | 123,708 |
| Wisconsin | 97,220 |
| Minnesota | 85,056 |
| Nebraska | 83,462 |
| California | 77,673 |
| Ohio | 70,009 |
| Iowa | 51,508 |
| New York | 44,942 |
| Florida | 42,890 |
| Vermont | 38,000 |
However, these figures are grossly understated when second and third generation descendants are included.
The states with the top percentages of Czech Americans are:[23]
| Nebraska | 5.5% |
| South Dakota | 2.3% |
| North Dakota | 2.2% |
| Wisconsin | 2.1% |
| Iowa | 2.1% |
| Minnesota | 2.1% |
| Illinois | 1.2% |
| Montana | 1.0% |
| Wyoming | 1.0% |
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Many cities in the United States hold festivals celebrating Czech culture and cuisine.
