German Americans

German Americans (Deutschamerikaner). Americans who have full or partial German ancestry.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, German Americans make up roughly 41 million people in the U.S., which is approximately 12% of the population. This represents a decrease from the 2012 census where 50.7 million Americans identified as German. The census is conducted in a way that allows this total number to be broken down in two categories.

In the 2020 census, roughly two thirds of those who identify as German also identified as having another ancestry, while one third identified as German alone. German Americans account for about one third of the total population of people of German ancestry in the world.

The first significant groups of German immigrants arrived in the British colonies in the 1670s, and they settled primarily in the colonial states of Pennsylvania, New York, and Virginia.

The Mississippi Company of France later transported thousands of Germans from Europe to what was then the German Coast, Orleans Territory in present-day Louisiana between 1718 and 1750. Immigration to the U.S. ramped up sharply during the 19th century.

There is a German belt consisting of areas with predominantly German American populations that extends across the United States from eastern Pennsylvania, where many of the first German Americans settled, to the Oregon coast.

Pennsylvania, with 3.5 million people of German ancestry, has the largest population of German-Americans in the U.S. and is home to one of the group’s original settlements, the Germantown section of present-day Philadelphia, founded in 1683. Germantown is also the birthplace of the American antislavery movement, which emerged there in 1688.

German Americans were drawn to colonial-era British America by its abundant land and religious freedom, and were pushed out of Germany by shortages of land and religious or political oppression. Many arrived seeking religious or political freedom, others for economic opportunities greater than those in Europe, and others for the chance to start fresh in the New World.

The arrivals before 1850 were mostly farmers who sought out the most productive land, where their intensive farming techniques would pay off. After 1840, many came to cities, where German-speaking districts emerged.

German Americans established the first kindergartens in the U.S., introduced the Christmas tree tradition, and introduced popular foods such as hot dogs and hamburgers to America.

The great majority of people with some German ancestry have become Americanized; fewer than five percent speak German. German-American societies abound, as do celebrations that are held throughout the country to celebrate German heritage of which the German-American Steuben Parade in New York City is one of the most well-known and is held every third Saturday in September.

Oktoberfest celebrations and the German-American Day are popular festivities. There are major annual events in cities with German heritage including Chicago, Columbus, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, San Antonio, and St. Louis.

The Easter Bunny. The playful side of Easter eggs blossomed in Germany in the 17th century, where the tradition of the Easter egg hunt began. Inspired by folklore about the Osterhase (Easter Hare), a mythical creature said to lay colorful eggs for good children, families would hide eggs for children to find on Easter morning. German immigrants brought these joyful customs to America, where the tradition flourished.

The Pied Piper of Hamelin is a legendary figure from German folklore well known to American children. Thisis the story of a piper who lured rats and then children away from the town of Hamelin with his music. The legend centers on the town’s inability to pay him for ridding them of the rat infestation, leading him to lead away the town’s children.

Around 180,000 permanent residents from Germany were living in the United States in 2020.

Many German Americans were Germans forced to flee Europe when the Nazis came to power, often Jewish Germans, but also gay and lesbian Germans and others.

Notable German Americans: The Easter Bunny, Norbert Heerman

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