Ghanaian Americans
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Ghanaian Americans 119,789 (2013 American Community Survey)[1] 136,967 (Ghanaian-born, 2014)[2] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| New York City, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Boston, Providence, Newark, Worcester, Hartford, Miami, Orlando, Atlanta, Chicago, Columbus, New Jersey, Denver, California | |
| Languages | |
| English, French, Akan, Kwa, Twi, Ga, Ewe, other languages of Ghana | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly Christian, Islam, other minorities.[3] | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Ghanaians |
Ghanaian Americans are an ethnic group of Americans of full or partial Ghanaian ancestry or Ghanaian immigrants who became naturalized citizen of the United States.
History[]
Early history[]
The first people to arrive from the region then known as the Gold Coast were brought as slaves via the Atlantic slave trade. Several ethnic groups such as the Gonja[4] people were imported as well to the modern United States and the second these groups appear to have an influence on the language of the Gullah people.[5][6] Because Ghanaian ports were major routes for European slave traders. Captives from ethnic groups and tribes from all over West Africa were brought there to be held and sent to the New World. Most them were imported to South Carolina, Virginia and Georgia, although other places in the United States, such as Spanish Florida and French Louisiana also had many slaves of this origin.[4]
Recent immigration[]
Ghanaians began arriving in the United States en masse after the 1960s and in the 1970s amidst the civil rights movement and the decolonization of Africa. In 1957, Ghana became the first African country to gain independence from colonial rule. Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, studied at American universities and worked with black American leaders for the rights of Black people around the world. Notable African-American intellectuals and activists such as W. E. B. Du Bois and Malcolm X used Ghana as a symbol of black achievement. Most of the early immigrants from Ghana to the United States were students who came to get a better education and planned on using the education acquired in the United States to better Ghana.[7] However, many Ghanaians that migrated in the 1980s and 1990s, came to get business opportunities. In difficult economic times, the number of Ghanaians who emigrated to the United States was small. However, when these economic problems were paralyzed, they built resources for their emigration to the United States.[7]
Demography[]
According to the 2010 Census there are 91,322 Ghanaian Americans living in the United States.[8] Locations with large populations include (in order of size): Atlanta; Chicago; Detroit; Washington, D.C.;New York City; Philadelphia; Boston; Newark; Providence; Hartford; Worcester; Denver; Columbus, Ohio; Florida and Maryland.
Education and languages[]
African immigrants to the U.S. are among the most educated groups in the United States. Some 48.9 percent of all African immigrants hold a college diploma. This is more than double the rate of native-born white Americans and nearly four times the rate of native-born African Americans.[9]
Ghanaian immigrants arrive with high educational statistics and this is attributable to Ghana's English-speaking school system.[10] Ghanaians are well represented in top universities across the United States and schools such as Cornell, Tufts, Yale, the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University have groups specifically devoted to Ghanaian students, in addition to general African student associations.[10]
Languages[]
Ghanaian Americans speak English, and often also speak Akan, Ga, Ewe and Twi.[7] Ghanaians have an easier time adapting to life in the United States than other immigrants because their homeland of Ghana has the English language as the official language and it is spoken by the majority of Ghana's population.[7]
Notable people[]
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Sports[]
- Joseph Addai, former American football runningback of the National Football League
- Xavier Adibi, former American football linebacker
- Freddy Adu, soccer player of the Las Vegas Lights FC for the United Soccer League
- Ezekiel Ansah, American football defensive end for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League
- Jon Asamoah, former offensive guard for the National Football League
- Larry Asante, American football safety
- Joshua Clottey, professional boxer who held the IBF welterweight title from 2008-2009
- Ebenezer Ekuban, American football defensive end of the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys
- Kofi Kingston
- Nana Kuffour
- Nazr Mohammed
- Prince Nana
- Akwasi Owusu-Ansah
- Charlie Peprah
- Robbie Russell
- C. J. Sapong
- Visanthe Shiancoe
- Clint Sintim
- Jeremy Zuttah
- Orleans Darkwa
- Eli Apple
Music, arts and entertainment[]
- Virgil Abloh
- Naki Akarobettoe
- Rhian Benson
- Michael Blackson
- Sufe Bradshaw
- William Chapman Nyaho
- Jay Ghartey
- Lance Gross
- Boris Kodjoe
- Ofie Kodjoe
- Peter Mensah
- Vic Mensa
- Ian Jones-Quartey
- Kwei Quartey
- Sam Richardson
- Kofi Siriboe
- Moses Sumney
- Forest Whitaker
Other[]
- Akwasi Aidoo
- Desmond Daniel Amofah
- Kwame Anthony Appiah
- Kwabena Boahen
- Paul Cuffee
- Ave K. P. Kludze, Jr.
- Samuel Koranteng-Pipim
- Monica Owusu-Breen
- Jonathan Corbblah
- Emmanuel K. Akyeampong
- Oral Ofori
- Daniel A. Wubah
- Aaron Andoh aka KingCeazar
See also[]
- Ghanaians
- Ghana
- African immigrants to the United States
- Ghanaian Australians
References[]
- ^ "Total ancestry categories tallied for people with one or more ancestry categories reported 2013 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 12 February 2020. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ^ "PLACE OF BIRTH FOR THE FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION IN THE UNITED STATES, Universe: Foreign-born population excluding population born at sea, 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 16 July 2013.[dead link]
- ^ US Census Bureau, International Religious Freedom Report 2009, Ghanaian-American
- ^ Jump up to: a b Darlene Clark Hine, Earnestine Jenkins (eds), A Question of Manhood: A Reader in U.S. Black Men's History and Masculinity, Volume 1, pp. 103–104.
- ^ African American culture Archived 2011-12-22 at the Wayback Machine, African Diaspora. Retrieved September 10, 2012, 23:26 pm.
- ^ Pilgrim, David (July 2005). "Question of the Month. Cudjo Lewis: Last African Slave in the U.S.?". Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia. Retrieved 2017-03-02.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d EveryCulture — Ghanaian-Americans. Posted by Drew Walker. Retrieved December 10, 2011, 12:04.
- ^ "Total ancestry categories tallied for people with one or more ancestry categories reported in 2010 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 18 January 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
- ^ "African Immigrants in the United States are the Nation's Most Highly Educated Group". The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, No. 26 (Winter 1999-2000), pp. 60-61 doi:10.2307/2999156
- ^ Jump up to: a b "The Educational System of Ghana". ghana.usembassy.gov. Archived from the original on March 1, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
Further reading[]
- Attah-Poku, Agyemang. The SocioCultural Adjustment Question: The Role of Ghanaian Immigrant Ethnic Associations in America (Brookfield, VT: Avebury, 1996).
- Walker, Drew. "Ghanaian Americans." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2014), pp. 225–236. Online
External links[]
- National Council of Ghanaian Associations
- news about Ghana and Ghanaian Americans
- EveryCulture — Ghanaian-Americans
| show Ghanaian diaspora |
|---|
- West Africans in the United States
- American people of Ghanaian descent
- Ghanaian American
- Ghanaian-American history