Српски Американци Srpski Amerikanci | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Total population | |
| 181,469 (2023)[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Illinois,California,Pennsylvania,Ohio,Florida,Indiana,New York,Michigan,Wisconsin,Arizona | |
| Languages | |
| American English andSerbian | |
| Religion | |
| PredominatelyEastern Orthodoxy (Serbian Orthodox Church), minorityProtestantism andCatholicism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Serbian Canadians,Montenegrin Americans,Croatian Americans,Bosnian Americans,Macedonian Americans,Yugoslav Americans |
| Part of a series on |
| Serbs |
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Native Titular nation
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Related nations OtherSouth Slavs |
Serbian Americans orAmerican Serbs,[a] areAmericans ofethnic Serb ancestry. As of 2023, there were slightly more than 181,000 American citizens who identified as having Serb ancestry, though broader estimates include many of those withYugoslav ancestry.[1] Serbian Americans represent one of the largest groups within the globalSerb diaspora.
One of the first Serb immigrants to theUnited States was the settlerGeorge Fisher, who arrived inPhiladelphia in 1815, fought in theTexan Revolution, and became a judge in California. Another notable early Serb in America was Basil Rosevic, who founded a shipping company, the Trans-Oceanic Ship Lines, around the year 1800.[2] In the early 1800s, many Serbs immigrated toNew Orleans seeking employment. In 1841, Serbs founded theGreek Orthodox parish with Greek immigrants in New Orleans, further solidifying their presence in the region.[3]
Serbian Americans fought in theAmerican Civil War, primarily on the side of theConfederacy, as most Serbs living in America at the time were inLouisiana andMississippi. Several Confederate military units were formed by Serbian and Croatian immigrants in Louisiana, such as the Cognevich Company (named for Stjepan Konjeviç, who immigrated to Louisiana in the 1830s), and the First and Second Slavonian Rifles. At least 400 Serbs fought in these three units during the Civil War.[4] Several other known Serb soldiers in the Civil War came fromAlabama andFlorida, specifically fromPensacola.
Serb immigrants first came in significant numbers to the United States in the late 19th century from theLika,Dalmatia, andBay of Kotor regions.[5] During this time, most Serb immigrants to the United States settled in mid-western industrial cities.[6]
Other Serbs often found employment in mines, and numerous Serb families moved tomining towns inCalifornia, mostly in theSierra Nevada.[7][5]Amador County, in particular, had a large Serb population in the late 1880s and 1890s due to theCalifornia Gold Rush. TheSaint Sava Serbian Orthodox Church inJackson, built in 1894, was the first Serbian Orthodox church in America.
Serbian miners, especially fromMontenegro, and their families also settled in great numbers inAlaska, during theKlondike Gold Rush in the late 1890s with the primary areas of settlement beingJuneau,Douglas,Fairbanks, andSitka. ByWorld War I there were two Serbian societies established, one in Juneau and other in Douglas (around Serbian Orthodox Churhc of Saint Sava) for the preservation of Serbian customs heritage in Alaska.[8] In 1905 a newspaper called "The Serbian Montenegrin" was founded inDouglas.[9] Serbs also made up a large number of the miners at theTreadwell gold mine until its collapse in 1917 and subsequent closure in 1922. In 1910, there was a massive explosion on the 1,100 foot level of the Mexican mine at Treadwell. 39 men were killed, 17 of whom were Serbian.[10]
Serbian-Americans volunteered in theFirst Balkan War.[11] DuringWorld War I, as many as 15,000 Serbian-American volunteers returned to the Balkans to fight for theAllied causein their homeland, especially from Alaska and California.[12] Serbs in the United States who did not volunteer to fight marched for the creation ofYugoslavia, sent aid to the Balkans through theRed Cross, formed a Serbian Relief Committee, and urged notable Americans to support the Serbian cause. Distinguished Serbian American scientistMihajlo Pupin, a friend of U.S.PresidentWoodrow Wilson, led the Serbian National Defence (SND), a Serbian-American organization which collected money and attempted to influence American public opinion with regard to the Balkans.[13] During World War I, Pupin's Consulate in New York served as a center of Serbian-American diplomacy and volunteering of Serbian Americans to the Serbian front.[14]
FollowingWorld War II, a significant wave of Serb immigration to the United States began, including members of the royalistChetnik movement, after the country came under the authoritarian rule ofCommunist leaderJosip Broz Tito.[15] These waves primarily settled in industrial midwestern cities likeChicago,Milwaukee, andPittsburgh, as well as coastal areas such as Los Angeles and New York City, building on earlier Serbian communities. Many Serbian American cultural and religious organizations have been formed at that time.
A select group of seven pioneering Serbian American engineers, affectionately dubbed the "Serbo 7", played pivotal roles inNASA'sApollo program during the 1960s, leveraging their expertise in systems engineering, avionics, and project management to help propel humanity's first lunar landing in 1969. Their contributions spanned critical phases of spacecraft design, testing, and mission coordination, including troubleshooting during the dramatic Apollo 13 crisis.[16][17][18]
The 1990s saw another surge due to theYugoslav Wars, as Serb immigrants escaped ethnic conflicts inBosnia and Herzegovina andCroatia as well as economic collapse in Serbia.[19] Demographically, the Serbian American population grew steadily during this period; census data shows 100,941 people declaring Serbian descent in 1980, rising to 140,337 by 2000.
According to data from the 2023American Community Survey, 181,469 people stated that they had Serb ancestry (whether alone or in combination with another ancestry), out of which 42,968 were Serbia-born.[1][20] Serbian Americans comprise 0.05% of total U.S. population. Some 210,935 declaredYugoslav as their ancestry in 2023 with estimates that many of those were of ethnic Serb origin.[21]
The Serbian American community is concentrated (over one-third of the total) inGreat Lakes region, with major hubs inChicago,Cleveland, andMilwaukee metro areas.
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Serbian Americans predominantly belong to theEastern Orthodoxy with theSerbian Orthodox Church as the traditional church. There are three Serbian Orthodox dioceses (Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of Eastern America,Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of New Gračanica and Midwestern America, andSerbian Orthodox Eparchy of Western America) encompassing 122 parishes across the United States, with 68,800 adherents, of which some 15,400 regularly attended services.[26]: 84
Significant portion of Serbian Americans also adhere toProtestantism or various Christian denominations, as well asCatholicism, while the rest are mainlyirreligious.
There are 139 Serbian Orthodox churches in 34 states across the country, many of which stand as representations ofSerbo-Byzantine architecture that include unique characteristic elements from the Middle Ages.[27][26] Consecrated in 1894, the Saint Sava Church inJackson, California, is believed to be the oldest Serbian Orthodox church in the United States. TheNew Gračanica Monastery inThird Lake, Illinois, is an impressive architectural replica of the Serbian Orthodox monastery ofGračanica inKosovo, the famous church that was continually destroyed and rebuilt in the course of the history.
The United States has at least seven places named Belgrade, making it one of the most duplicated foreign city names in the country. All are tributes to the Serbian capital ofBelgrade, largest of which isBelgrade inMontana with population of 12,509 and named after the Serbian capital, as an expression of appreciation to the Serbian investors who helped finance a portion of theNorthern Pacific Railway.[28]
Serbian Americans have historically published and continue to publish a number of newspapers in both theSerbian andEnglish languages. The oldest Serbian American newspaper currently in publication is thePittsburgh-based bilingualAmerican Srbobran, which has been in circulation since 1906.[29]
There are Serbian-language radio programs available in the United States, not as full-time dedicated FM/AM stations but as brokered-time shows on multilingual outlets, most prominent of which isSerbian Radio Chicago, a daily one-hour program onWNWI Chicago-area radio station.[30]
Serbian Television USA is a Chicago-based media production company focused on producing content that promotes Serbian culture, values, language, and customs while covering Serbian-American community events. Its flagship show,Serb View, airs weekly onXfinity cable channel 19 in the Chicago area.
The Serbian American community has developed a rich network of organizations focused on cultural preservation, mutual aid, religious life, political advocacy, and humanitarian efforts.
The Serbian American organizationSerbian National Defense Council, founded in 1914, is aSerb diaspora community organization whose goal is promoting interest of Serbs and Serbia abroad as well as the interests of the Serbian Orthodox Church.[31] It is based in Chicago, and also has chapters inHamilton (Canada) andSydney (Australia).
The Serb National Federation is the oldest Serbian American community organization, founded 1901. It publishesAmerican Srbobran newspaper.
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