Italian Americans
Americans of Italian birth or descent: origins, waves of immigration, regional roots, population distribution, cultural contributions, and community identity in the United States.
Italian Americans are people in the United States who trace their origins to Italy or who were born in Italy and later became U.S. residents. Some are native-born Americans whose parents or grandparents emigrated from Italy, while others are immigrants who arrived later in life. Legal status and generational identity can vary, but the broad category commonly includes both U.S.-born citizens and naturalized residents; see U.S. citizenship and heritage described as Italian descent.
Image gallery
1 Image
History and immigration
Large-scale Italian migration to the United States occurred from the late 19th century through the early 20th century. The period often cited as the peak of this movement is the early 1900s, when millions left Italy in search of work and opportunity; historians note a dramatic rise around the early 1900s, with heavy flows between 1900 and 1914. Compared with other groups, only the Irish and the Germans emigrated to the United States in greater numbers during those decades. These migrants responded to economic hardship, land pressure, and changes in transportation and labour demand.
Regional roots and settlement
Many Italian immigrants came from southern regions of Italy; prominent places of origin include Sicily, the area around Naples, and Calabria. There was also a significant minority from northern Italy, often from industrial or alpine areas referred to collectively as Northern Italy. Once in the United States, newcomers clustered in cities and industrial regions where labor was available.
Geographic distribution
By the turn of the 21st century, estimates based on census data placed the Italian American population in the tens of millions; official counts from around 2000 recorded millions claiming Italian ancestry. The largest single concentration is in and around New York City, with well over a million residents of Italian background in the metropolitan area. Other states and cities with long-established Italian American communities include:
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- California
- Florida
- Massachusetts
- Major cities such as Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit and areas of Ohio.
Scholars and community organizations also track regional population patterns and concentrations of Italian-American culture and institutions; see links on community and demographic topics via population studies.
Culture, professions, and public life
Italian Americans have contributed prominently to many areas of American life. Individuals of Italian heritage have been elected to public office and served in government as noted in records on politicians. They have been inventors and industrial innovators (inventors), worked in scientific fields (scientists), served in the armed forces (soldiers), and influenced music and performance (see accounts of musicians and actors). At the same time, public attention has sometimes focused on crime; the historical presence of organized crime is a complex topic often referenced simply as the Mafia, but scholars emphasize that criminal activity involved a tiny fraction of the wider community.
Identity, adaptation, and notable facts
Over generations, Italian Americans have experienced assimilation, cultural retention, and renewal. Family, cuisine, religious practice, language use, and festivals remain important to many communities. Distinctions among regional Italian origins—such as differences between migrants from Sicily or Naples and those from northern provinces—shape local traditions. Contemporary Italian-American life blends pride in heritage with participation in broader American civic, cultural, and economic institutions. For further reading and community resources, researchers and readers can follow links to demographic records and historical overviews represented here by a range of topical anchors such as citizenship, migration studies (early 1900s), and regional profiles (Calabria, California).
Known Italian Americans
Politicians and Chief Justices
- Samuel Alito (* 1950)
- Mario Cuomo (1932-2015)
- Andrew Cuomo (* 1957)
- Geraldine Ferraro (1935-2011)
- Rudolph Giuliani (* 1944)
- Eric Garcetti (* 1971)
- Ella T. Grasso (1919-1981)
- Fiorello LaGuardia (1882-1947)
- Janet Napolitano (* 1957)
- William Paca (1740-1799)
- Leon Panetta (* 1938)
- Nancy Pelosi (* 1940)
- Mike Pompeo (* 1963)
- Gina Raimondo (* 1971)
- Caesar Rodney (1728-1784)
- Nicola Sacco (1891-1927)
- Rick Santorum (* 1958)
- Antonin Scalia (1936-2016)
- Alfred E. Smith (1873-1944)
- Bartolomeo Vanzetti (1888-1927)
Actors and directors
- Anne Bancroft (1931-2005)
- Steve Buscemi (* 1957)
- Nicolas Cage (* 1964, Nicholas Kim Coppola)
- Francesco "Frank" Capra (1897-1991)
- Richard S. Castellano (1933-1988)
- Francis Ford Coppola (* 1939)
- Robert De Niro (* 1943)
- Brian De Palma (* 1940)
- Danny DeVito (* 1944)
- Leonardo DiCaprio (* 1974)
- Bradley Cooper (* 1975)
- Ashley Judd (* 1968)
- Susan Sarandon (* 1946)
- Rudolph Valentino (1895-1926)
- Gina Philips (* 1970)
- Jason Biggs (* 1978)
- Peter Facinelli (* 1973)
- James Gandolfini (1961-2013)
- Ariana Grande (* 1993)
- Anjelica Huston (* 1951)
- Joe Mantegna (* 1947)
- Justin Long (* 1978)
- Alyssa Milano (* 1972)
- Vincente Minnelli (1903-1986)
- Sal Mineo (1939-1976)
- Al Pacino (* 1940)
- Joe Pesci (* 1943)
- Leah Remini (* 1970)
- Kelly Ripa (* 1970)
- Larry Romano (* 1963)
- Ray Romano (* 1957)
- Vincent Schiavelli (1948-2005)
- Martin Scorsese (* 1942)
- Brooke Shields (* 1965)
- Tony Sirico (* 1942)
- Vincent Spano (* 1962)
- Sylvester Stallone (* 1946)
- Quentin Tarantino (* 1963)
- Marisa Tomei (* 1964)
- John Travolta (* 1954)
- Stanley Tucci (* 1960)
- John Turturro (* 1957)
- Bobby Cannavale (* 1970)
- Maria Bello (* 1967)
- Paul Giamatti (* 1967)
- Ellen Pompeo (* 1969)
- Lou Ferrigno (* 1951)
- Rene Russo (* 1954)
- Mark Ruffalo (* 1967)
- Liv Tyler (* 1977)
Musician and entertainer
- Tony Bennett (* 1926, Anthony Dominick Benedetto)
- Jon Bon Jovi (* 1962, John Francis Bongiovi jr. )
- Sonny Bono (1935-1998)
- Chris Botti (* 1962)
- John Frusciante (* 1970)
- Lady Gaga (* 1986, Stefani Germanotta)
- Michael Giacchino (* 1967)
- Madonna (* 1958, Madonna Louise Ciccone)
- David Mancuso (1944-2016)
- Dean Martin (1917-1995, Dino Crocetti)
- Liza Minnelli (* 1946)
- Gwen Stefani (* 1969)
- Ariana Grande (* 1993)
- Mario Lanza (1921-1959)
- Louis Prima (1910-1978)
- Frank Sinatra (1915-1998)
- Marc Terenzi (* 1978)
- Steven Tyler (* 1948, Stephen Victor Tallarico)
- Steven Van Zandt (* 1950)
- Frank Zappa (1940-1993)
Author
- Mario Puzo (1920-1999)
- Pietro di Donato (1911-1992)
Athlete
- Joe DiMaggio (1914-1999)
- Jake LaMotta (1922-2017)
- Rocky Marciano (1923-1969)
- Mike Eruzione (* 1954)
- Mike Modano (* 1970)
- Vince Lombardi (1913-1970)
- Mark Calcavecchia (* 1960)
- Alexa Bliss (* 1991)
Entrepreneur
- Domingo Ghirardelli (1817-1894)
- Robert Mondavi (1913-2008)
- Bob Guccione (1930-2010)
- Dennis Tito (* 1940)
- Gil Amelio (* 1943)
- Fred DeLuca (1947-2015)
- Robert Nardelli (* 1948)
- Louis Rossetto (* 1949)
- Paul Otellini (1950-2017)
Other
- Francis Xaviera Cabrini (1850-1917), nun and saint
- Enrico Fermi (1901-1954), nuclear physicist
- Andrew J. Viterbi (* 1935), electrical engineer and computer scientist
- Walter Schirra (1923-2007), astronaut
- Dominic A. Antonelli (* 1967), astronaut
- Charles Camarda (* 1952), astronaut
- Michael James Massimino (* 1962), astronaut
- Richard Mastracchio (* 1960), astronaut
- Ronald A. Parise (1951-2008), astronaut
- Mario Runco (* 1952), astronaut
- Albert Sacco (* 1949), astronaut
- Nicole Passonno Stott (* 1962), astronaut
- Anthony Fauci (* 1940), immunologist
- Jay Leno (* 1950), comedian and television host
- Jimmy Kimmel (* 1967), comedian and television host
- Al Capone (1899-1947), mobster
- Lucky Luciano (1897-1962), Mobster
- Frank Costello (1891-1973), mobster
- Vito Genovese (1897-1969), mobster
- John Gotti (1940-2002), mobster
See also
- American Cosa Nostra
- Little Italy
- Unione Siciliana
Questions and answers
Q: What is an Italian American?
A: An Italian American is a U.S. citizen of Italian descent, either born in the United States with Italian parents or grandparents, or someone born in Italy who moved to the United States.
Q: How many Italians moved to the United States between 1900 and 1914?
A: Two million Italians moved to the United States between 1900 and 1914.
Q: How many Italian Americans were counted by the government in 2000?
A: In 2000, the government counted 15.6 million Italian Americans in the United States. This means that for every 1000 Americans, 56 of them were Italian Americans.
Q: What have been some important contributions made by Italian Americans?
A: Many great politicians, inventors, scientists, soldiers, musicians and film makers (actors and directors) have been of Italian American descent and have contributed greatly to building up the United States.
Q: Where do most of these Italians come from?
A: Most of these Italians come from southern Italy such as Sicily, Naples and Calabria; only a sizeable minority have ancestral roots in Northern Italy.
Q: Which cities are home to large populations of Italian-Americans?
A: New York City has more than 3 million Italians living there or near it; other states with large populations include New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California, Florida and Massachusetts; Chicago, Boston Philadelphia Detroit Ohio each also have over a half million Italians living there as well.
Related articles
Author
AlegsaOnline.com Italian Americans Leandro Alegsa
URL: https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/48583