Norwegian Dakotan
| Total population | |
|---|---|
|
312,697 21.4% of the Dakotan population |
|
| Regions with significant populations | |
 North Dakota |
'199,154' |
| Fargo | 37,343 |
| Grand Forks | 17,438 |
| Bismarck | 13,095 |
| Minot | 10,945 |
| West Fargo | 8,839 |
 South Dakota |
'113,543' |
| Sioux Falls | 26,630 |
| Rapid | 7,584 |
| Watertown | 4,137 |
| Brookings | 4,082 |
| Aberdeen | 3,809 |
| Languages | |
| American English, Norwegian | |
| Religion | |
| Lutheran Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Norwegian American | |
A Norwegian Dakotan is a Norwegian American (a person with Norwegian ancestry) in the U. S. states of North and South Dakota. One in three of all North Dakotans is of Norwegian heritage, which is the highest among all U.S. states. South Dakota is number three, behind Minnesota. The immigrants settled primarily between 1870 and 1920.
As of 2009, 312,697 Dakotans claim Norwegian ancestry, 21.4% of the region's population (30.8% of North Dakota's population and 14.0% of South Dakota's population), or 6.7% of the total Norwegian American population.
The first Norwegians arrived in the Dakotas as early as 1859, shortly after the treaty with the Yankton Sioux was signed July 10, 1859. It took another ten years before the greater influx of Norwegians took place.
Mike Jacobs of WDAY observed that two Governors of North Dakota (Ragnvald Nestos and John Moses) "were born in Norway, almost as good politically as being a native North Dakotan". Norwegian immigrants began arriving in North Dakota in the 1870s. They settled mainly in the eastern and northern parts of the state, but today they're found everywhere in the state. Because of the lack of farmland in Norway, the Norwegian immigrants sought the wonderful fertile farmland of North Dakota. Some of the immigrants had spent a few years in other states before they finally arrived in North Dakota. In 1880 the census recorded 8,814 Norwegians in North Dakota, and by 1900 there were 73,744.
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Wikipedia