Norwegian Americans
 |
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (Norwegian Americans 4,642,526 Up from 13,000 in 1850 1.5% of the US population ) |
|
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Midwest | 2,273,683 |
| West | 1,552,462 |
| South | 545,699 |
| Northeast |
266,881 |
 Minnesota
|
868,361 |
 Wisconsin
|
466,469 |
 California
|
412,177 |
 Washington
|
410,818 |
 North Dakota
|
199,154 |
 Iowa
|
173,640 |
 Illinois
|
171,745 |
 Oregon
|
164,676 |
 Texas
|
129,081 |
 Arizona
|
124,618 |
 Colorado
|
119,164 |
 Florida
|
117,444 |
 South Dakota
|
113,543 |
 New York
|
92,796 |
 Montana
|
90,425 |
| Languages | |
| English, Norwegian | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod with some in other denominations. |
|
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Norwegians, Norwegian Canadians, Scandinavian Americans, Danish Americans, Norwegian Australians, Norwegian New Zealanders | |
266,881
Norwegian Americans (Norwegian: norskamerikanere) comprise Americans with ancestral roots from Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the later half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the 20th century. There are more than 4.5 million Norwegian Americans according to the most recent U.S. census, and most live in the Upper Midwest. Norwegian Americans currently comprise the 10th largest European ancestry group in the United States.
Norsemen from Greenland and Iceland were the first Europeans to reach North America. Leif Ericson reached North America via Norse settlements in Greenland around the year 1000. Norse settlers from Greenland founded the settlement of L'Anse aux Meadows and Point Rosee in Vinland, in what is now Newfoundland, Canada. These settlers failed to establish a permanent settlement because of conflicts with indigenous people and within the Norse community.
There was a Norwegian presence in New Amsterdam (New York after 1664) in the early part of 17th century. Hans Hansen Bergen, a native of Bergen, Norway, was one of the earliest settlers of the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam having immigrated in 1633.
Another of the first Norwegian settlers was Albert Andriessen Bradt who arrived in New Amsterdam in 1637. Pieter Van Brugh, Mayor of Albany, New York was the grandson of Norwegian immigrants. His mother's parents were Roelof Janse (1602–1637), born in Marstrandsön, a small island situated in Båhuslen province in Norway (it was ceded to Sweden in 1658) and Anneke Jans (1605–1663), born on Flekkerøy, an island situated outside the town of Kristiansand, Vest-Agder county, Norway.
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