|
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| Kevin Kouzmanoff • Mike S. Zafirovski • Mike Vrabel |
| Total population |
|---|
| 51,733 [1] roughly 0.018% of US population |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Michigan, Indiana, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Florida |
| Languages |
| Religion |
Macedonian Americans (Macedonian: Македонски Американци, Makedonski Amerikanci) are Americans of ethnic Macedonian descent.
Contents |
Origins
The first Macedonian American immigrants came from the border regions in the north of Greek Macedonia, primarily the regions near Kastoria (Kostur), Florina (Lerin), and the south-west of the Republic of Macedonia, notably around Bitola. It is estimated that around 50,000 Macedonians emigrated to the United States between 1903 and 1906, but the outbreak of the Balkan Wars and World War I stopped the flow. Around 20,000 remained in the US and the rest returned home. The immigrants were predominately peasants, with the remainder including craftsmen, workers and intellectuals. Immigration restarted after the wars; most of the new immigrants were ethnic Macedonians from Greece, many of whom had been expelled from Greek Macedonia in the 1920s. Around 50,000-60,000 Macedonians had emigrated to the US by the end of World War II. At that time and later they were largely classified as Bulgarians.[2][3][4] Most of the Americans born of Macedonian Bulgarian descent have hardly any knowledge of Bulgaria and increasingly identify themselves simply as Macedonians.[5]
Post World War II
The aftermath of the war led to a fresh round of Macedonian immigration, primarily from Greece, as a consequence of ethnic Macedonians being expelled by the post-war Greek government or otherwise encouraged to leave after the Greek civil war of 1946-49. 70,000 emigrated to Canada, Australia, the US and other European countries. After Yugoslavia liberalised its emigration policies in 1960, another 40,000 Macedonians emigrated during the period 1960-77. Most have been economic migrants rather than political dissidents. In contrast, Bulgaria historically kept a tight rein on its ethnic Macedonians and allowed very few of them to emigrate.
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Demographics
Most Macedonian Americans live in the Midwest, with the largest community being in Detroit, Michigan, where some 15,000-20,000 Macedonians are reported to be living. Other large communities are in Gary, Indiana, Chicago, Illinois, Cleveland, Ohio, and New York City.[6]
Notable Macedonian-Americans
- George Alan, television actor
- George Atanasoski, businessman, politician, and founder of Makedonsko Sonce magazine
- Vladimir Četkar, jazz guitarist in New York City
- Dino Delevski, indoor soccer player
- Peter George, three-time Olympic medalist in weightlifting
- Tim Goeglein, Deputy Director of Public Liaison, Office of Public Liaison, Executive Office of the President under George W. Bush
- Marian Bayoff Ilitch, wife of Mike Ilitch and owner of Detroit's MotorCity Casino
- Christopher Ilitch, co-President and CEO of Ilitch Holdings, Inc.
- Mike Ilitch, entrepreneur and owner of the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers
- Jovan Kirovski, US soccer player
- Kevin Kouzmanoff, San Diego Padres third baseman
- George Nanchoff, indoor and outdoor soccer player
- Louis Nanchoff, indoor and outdoor soccer player
- Sandre Naumovski, indoor soccer player and member of the Republic of Macedonia soccer team
- Traian Stoianovich, professor of history at the Rutgers University
- Pete Stoyanovich, footballer
- Mike Vrabel, linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs
- Mike Zafirovski, president and CEO of Nortel Networks and Board of Directors at Boeing
See also
References
- ^ 2006 factfinder.census.gov
- ^ Elizabeth Shostak, Macedonian americans
- ^ South Slavic immigration in America, Twayne Publishers. A division of G. K. Hall & Co., Boston, George Prpic, John Carroll University, 1976, Chapter 18, The Bulgarians and Macedonians. p. 212 ..."The smallest of the South Slavic ethnic groups in America are the Bulgarians. One branch of them are the Macedonians."...
- ^ Illinois Historical Journal, Vol. 84 (Spring, 1991) The Bulgarian Colony of Southwestern Illinois, 1900-1920, D. E. CASSENS. ..."Bulgarians who settled in the tri-city area were overwhelmingly male and had come predominately from the Bulgarian-speaking parts of Macedonia...".
- ^ Macedonians in the USA, Politics. Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups, p. 692, edited by Stephan Thernstrom 1980, Belknap Press of Harvard University, Reproduced 2001 with permission of the publisher.
- ^ Stephan Thernstrom, Ann Orlov, Oscar Handlin. Harvard encyclopedia of American ethnic groups, pp. 690-94. Harvard University Press, 1980. ISBN 0674375122.
External links
- United Macedonian Diaspora
- Macedonian Community of New Jersey (MCNJ)
- Macedonian Festival in New Jersey
- Makedonski Glas-Macedonian Newspaper in USA
- Macedonian Yellow Pages
- St. Nativity of the Virgin Mary, Sterling Heights, MI
- St. George of Kratovo, Farmington Hills, MI
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