 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 181,469 (2023)[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Languages | |
| American English andSerbian | |
| Religion | |
| Serbian Orthodox Church | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Serbian Canadians and other Slavic Americans,European Americans |
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| Serbs |
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Serbian Americans[a] (Serbian:српски Американци /srpski Amerikanci) orAmerican Serbs (амерички Срби /američki Srbi), areAmericans ofethnic Serb ancestry. As of 2023, there were slightly more than 181,000 American citizens who identified as havingSerb ancestry.[1] However, the number may be significantly higher, as there were some 290,000 additional people who identified asYugoslavs[b] living in the United States.[2]
The group includes Serbian Americans living in the United States for one or several generations, dual Serbian–American citizens, or any other Serbian Americans who consider themselves to be affiliated with both cultures or countries.[citation needed]
One of the first Serb immigrants to theUnited States was the settlerGeorge Fisher, who arrived inPhiladelphia in 1815, moved toMexico, fought in theTexan Revolution, and became a judge inCalifornia. Another notable early Serb in America was Basil Rosevic, who founded a shipping company, the Trans-Oceanic Ship Lines, around the year 1800.[3] In the early 1800s, many Serb sailors and fishermen fromMontenegro andHerzegovina immigrated toNew Orleans seeking employment. In 1841, Serbs founded theGreek Orthodox parish withGreek immigrants in New Orleans, further solidifying their presence in the region.[4]
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 Serbs in Louisiana, such as the Cognevich Company (named for Stjepan Konjevic, 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.[5] Several other known Serbian soldiers in the Civil War came fromAlabama andFlorida, specifically fromPensacola.
Other Serbs settled inAlabama, Illinois,[6]Mississippi andCalifornia, where they joined theGold Rush.[7] Serb immigrants first came in significant numbers to the United States in the late 19th century from the Adriatic regions ofAustria-Hungary and areas of theBalkans.[8] During this time, most Serb immigrants to the United States settled in mid-western industrial cities or in California, which had a climate similar to that of theDalmatian coast.[2] Serb men often found employment in mines, and numerous Serb families moved tomining towns throughout the country.[8] Serbian miners and their families also settled in great numbers inAlaska, and the primary hub of Alaskan Serbs was inJuneau. In 1943, many Serbian-American miners were killed in theSmith Mine disaster inMontana.[8]
The number of Serbs who immigrated to the United States is difficult to determine as Serb immigrants were often variously classified by their country of origin, thus asTurks,Croats,Slovenes, Montenegrins, Dalmatians, Bosnians, Herzegovinians and Austro-Hungarians.[2] In the 1910 census, there were 16,676 Serbs from Austria-Hungary, 4,321 from Serbia, and 3,724 from Montenegro.[9]
Serbian-Americans volunteered in theFirst Balkan War.[10] DuringWorld War I, as many as 15,000 Serbian-American volunteers returned to the Balkans to fight for theAllied causein their homeland. 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.[11] 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.[12] In the 1912–18 period, thousands of Serbian-American volunteers came from Alaska and California.[13]
AfterWorld War II many Serbs immigrated to the United States from Yugoslavia after the country came under the authoritarian rule ofCommunist leaderJosip Broz Tito.[14] Since then, many Serbian American cultural and religious organizations have been formed in the United States. A number of Serbian American engineers worked on the Apollo program.[15][16][17]
With thefall of Communism and thedisintegration of Yugoslavia, Serbs in the United States have established several interest groups, the most organized of which is theSerbian Unity Congress (SUC).[18]
 Members of the Serbian Society inJuneau in 1928 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| Juneau,Sitka,Fairbanks,Ketchikan | |
| Languages | |
| English,Serbian | |
| Religion | |
| Serbian Orthodox | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Serbian American,Montenegrin Americans,Serbian Canadians |
Serbs (andMontenegrins) have lived inAlaska since the earliest days of American settlement in the 19th century. Many Serbs came in theKlondike Gold Rush in the late 1890s to seek fortune, just like they had done in the earlierCalifornia Gold Rush.[citation needed]
The primary areas of Serbian and Montenegrin settlement wereJuneau,Douglas,Fairbanks, andSitka. Many Serbs settled inthe Canadian Yukon during the gold rush as well, such as legendary prospectorBlack Mike Vojnić.[citation needed]
In 1893, Serbian miners in Alaska built theOrthodox Church in Juneau alongside the native OrthodoxTlingit people, who had been converted to Orthodoxy by theRussians decades before.[19][20] ByWorld War I there were two Serbian societies established in Juneau and in Douglas (Saint Sava Church) for the preservation of Serbian and Russian customs and heritage in Alaska.[21] In 1905 a newspaper called "The Serbian Montenegrin" was founded inDouglas.[22]
St. Sava Church (also spelled "Savva") was a church of theRussian Mission that was located in Douglas, Alaska. Its construction was due, in no small part, to Fr.Sebastian Dabovich (now St. Sebastian of Jackson and San Francisco), who, in 1902, had been appointed Dean of the Sitka Deanery and the superintendent of Alaskan missions. Although under the Russian Orthodox Church, and a "daughter" parish ofSt. Nicholas Church in Juneau, St. Sebastian found it important that the Serbians that had come to the area— mostly to work in mining— had a church that was "home" to them. OnJuly 23, 1903, Fr. Sebastian, along with Hieromonk Anthony (Deshkevich-Koribut) and the priest Aleksandar Yaroshevich,consecrated the Church of St. Sava in Douglas. However, the sparse records that remain of this church indicate that by the 1920s it may have been sitting empty, and in 1937 a fire swept through Douglas, destroying most of the town, including St. Sava Church. It was not rebuilt.
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 1907, during the union conflicts involving theWestern Federation of Miners, two Serb miners were killed in an underground shaft; one was a union member, one was not. The funeral procession for the nonunion man was accompanied by a march from the Serbian Slavonic Hall and they ran into the union group of Serbs. The union Serbs demanded the nonunion deceased not be buried in the same cemetery, and some two hundred Serbs of both sides filled the streets. TheU.S. Marshal and neutral townsmen had to calm the group in order for the funeral procession to continue.[23] 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.[24]
During the World War I, many Serbian Americans volunteered to fight overseas, with thousands coming from Alaska.[13]
In 1930s and 40s Fairbanks,Yugoslav immigrants, mainly Serbs and Montenegrins, owned a great number of businesses and bars in the city. In between the world wars, many Serbian Alaskan men returned toYugoslavia to find brides and bring them back to Alaska to start families.[25]
Today there is a vibrant Serbian community, particularly inJuneau, but Serbs can be found across the state.[26]
Recently, it has become commonplace for Serbian workers to come to Alaska annually to work for a few months in canneries, where food and accommodation is provided. These workers stay on temporary work visas, and speak English.[27]
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.[28]
| Year | Number |
|---|---|
| 1980[29] | 100,941 |
| 1990[30] | 116,975 |
| 2000[31] | 140,337 |
| 2010[32] | 187,739 |
| 2023[1] | 181,469 |
A total of 187,738 citizens of the United States declared Serb ethnicity in 2010 (while the 2012 American Community Survey has an estimate of 199,080). It is highly likely that among the citizens who declared Yugoslavian ethnicity (328,547 in 2010; 310,682 in 2012 estimation) are additional ethnic Serbs.[2]
Major centers of Serbian settlement in the United States includeChicago,Los Angeles,New York City,Milwaukee (12,000[33]),Pittsburgh,Phoenix, andJackson, California.[2] 2018-2022 Census estimates establish Illinois as the primary destination for Serbian immigrants to the US, with approximately 8,600 or 1 in 5 Serbian immigrants living in the state.[34]
Various ethnic organizations put the number of Serbian Americans at more than 350,000.[2]
Serbian-born population in the U.S. since 2010:[35]
| Year | Number |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 30,715 |
| 2011 |  30,758 |
| 2012 | 35,765 |
| 2013 | 36,160 |
| 2014 |  33,628 |
| 2015 | 36,969 |
| 2016 | 37,654 |
| 2017 | 38,203 |
Population with Serbian ancestry in the U.S. since 2010:[1]
| Year | Number |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 187,739 |
| 2012 | 199,080 |
| 2014 | 181,171 |
| 2016 | 181,607 |
| 2018 | 199,632 |
| 2020 | 193,844 |
| 2022 | 191,538 |
| 2023 | 181,469 |
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Notable Serbian Americans among others include recipients of theMedal of Honor such asWorld War I veteransJake Allex andJames I. Mestrovitch.[36] In 1905,Rade Grbitch, a Serb from South Chicago, was awarded the Medal of Honor by the United States Navy for heroic action on the Pacific Coast (Interim Awards, 1901–1911). The most decorated Serbian veterans of World War II wereMitchell Paige andJohn W. Minick, both recipients of theMedal of Honor, andGeorge Musulin, an officer of theOffice of Strategic Services and naval intelligence, better known forOperation Halyard. In Vietnam,Lance Sijan, received theMedal of Honor posthumously.Butch Verich,Mele "Mel" Vojvodich, andMilo Radulovich are other notable veterans. George Fisher was a 19th-century Serb settler who played an important role in the Texan Revolution.[7]
Rose Ann Vuich was the first female member of the California State Senate.Helen Delich Bentley is a formerRepublican member of theU.S. House of Representatives from the State ofMaryland (1985–95). The port ofBaltimore was namedHelen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore after her in 2006.Mike Stepovich was the last appointed governor of theTerritory of Alaska in the 1950s.Many notable Serbian Americans have been active in the fields of film and art, such asSlavko Vorkapić,Brad Dexter andPeter Bogdanovich.Karl Malden won anOscar as Best Supporting Actor whileSteve Tesich was Oscar-winning screenwriter, playwright and novelist. He won theAcademy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1979 for the movieBreaking Away.Predrag Bjelac is mostly known for his roles inHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire andThe Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.Catherine Oxenberg is an actress who is a daughter of Princess Jelisaveta Karađorđević, from Karađorđević Dynasty.Darko Tresnjak is a theatre and opera director born inZemun, who won four Tony Awards in 2014.[37]
Charles Simic andDejan Stojanovic are notable poets.Gerald Petievich is a writer of crime novels (turned into movies) andWalt Bogdanich (1950) is an investigative journalist. He won thePulitzer Prize for Specialized Reporting in 1985, thePulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2005 and thePulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting in 2008. Bogdanich led the team that won the 2008 Gerald Loeb Award for their story "Toxic pipeline".Branko Mikasinovich is a scholar of literature as well as a noted Slavist and journalist. He has appeared as a panelist on Yugoslav press on ABC's "Press International" in Chicago and PBS's "International Dateline" in New Orleans. Alex N. Dragnich is the recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Award for distinguished service toVanderbilt University, and he is author of numerous books on Serbian/Yugoslav history.
Nikola Tesla andMihajlo Idvorski Pupin are world-known scientists. Another accomplished Serbian-American scientist,Miodrag Radulovački, was named the 2010 Inventor of the Year at the University of Illinois[38] for producing a dozen potential therapies forsleep apnea. Hall of fame basketball player,Pete Maravich (1947–1988) is listed among the50 Greatest Players in NBA History.Sasha Knezev: is a Serbian American filmmaker known for American Addict, American Addict 2, Fragments of Daniela and Welcome to San Pedro.[39]
Bill Vukovich was a renowned racing driver, who won theIndianapolis 500 twice - in1953 and1954 - and is considered by some the greatest driver in the history of American auto racing.[40]Predrag Radosavljević is a renowned former Serbian-American soccer player and famous for scoring a goal againstBrazil, the then-no. 1 team, to help the United States defeat Brazil for the first time with a 1–0 win in1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[41]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
