Nicaraguan Americans
Nicaragua’s History & Culture – Careli Tours Nicaragua
Meneses Jacobs – Eve Torres – Gabriel
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Nicaraguan American (Spanish: Nicaragüense Estadounidense) are Americans of Nicaraguanancestry who were born in or have immigrated to the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 177,684 Americans of full or partial Nicaraguan ancestry living in the U.S. in 2000 and an estimated 281,167 in 2005.
Nicaraguans have immigrated to the United States in small groups since the early 1900’s, but their presence was especially felt over the last three decades of the 20th century. The Nicaraguan community has concentrated in three major urban areas: Miami, Los Angeles, and New York City. And also in the state of Texas. More specifically Houston. According to the U.S. Census 1997 yearbook, more than 50 percent of Nicaraguans lived in Florida, 35 percent reported living in California, mostly around Los Angeles; and only 7 percent were registered in the New York–New Jersey area. In general, the Nicaraguan-American community is financially better off than most Central American groups.
Nevertheless, there are major differences amongst the Nicaraguan American community: the most affluent community is located in the New York–New Jersey area, and the poorest are found in the Miami area. Nicaraguan Americans are Spanish-speaking and predominately Catholic. They celebrate the patron saints of the Roman Catholic Church with festivals and processions, which also provide a context for artistic and cultural expressions of the local identity. The most important patronal festivals for communities in Florida include Santa Ana, San Sebastian, La Purisima, San Jeronimo and La Griteria.