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Venezuelan American

Mariah Carey · Nick Verreos Carolina Herrera · Wilmer Valderrama
Total population
Venezuelan 177,866 Americans 0.06% of the US population[1]
Regions with significant populations
Florida (Miami, Orlando) · New York (New York City) · Texas (Houston, Dallas)
Languages
American English · Venezuelan Spanish · Italian · German · French
Religion
Roman Catholic (Predominantly) · Protestant · Islam  · Jewish
Related ethnic groups
fellow Hispanic and Latino Americans · Italians · Spaniards · Germans · French · Portuguese · Jews

Venezuelan Americans are citizens and residents of the United States who trace their heritage to the South American nation of Venezuela.

Venezuela is a small– to medium–sized Hispanic country located in South America. It is one of over 20 Hispanic nations in the world, and Venezuelan Americans are one of 20 Hispanic or Latino groups in the U.S.

While other U.S. citizens or residents with national origins in any of the Hispanic American countries may be closely related to Spaniards in language and culture, Venezuelan Americans also reflect their diversified culture, which includes influences from Italians, Portuguese, Germans, and the French, along with influences from African and indigenous Amerindian elements. Venezuelan Spanish is the group's spoken form of the Spanish language.

The largest concentration of Venezuelans in the United States is in South Florida, especially the suburbs of Doral and Weston. In recent years, more Venezuelans opposing the economic and political policies of the president Hugo Chávez are migrating to the U.S. (mostly to Florida, but New York City and Houston are other destinations).

The Venezuelan American population is highly educated. Its members have bachelor's, graduate, and professional degrees at nearly double (48.5%) the total national percentage (27%), while only 6% of the group's adults did not complete high school, compared to 15.9% of the total national population.^[1]

Population distribution

By Venezuelan ancestry

Among U.S. communities in 2000 wherein one thousand or more people indicated their ancestry, those where at least 1% of people claimed Venezuelan ancestry were:^[2]

1. Doral, Florida 8.22%
2. Weston, Florida 4.1%
3. Fountainbleau, Florida 3.14%
4. The Hammocks, Florida 3.14%
5. Key Biscayne, Florida 2.36%
6. North Bay Village, Florida 2.15%
7. Sunny Isles Beach, Florida 1.96%
8. Miami Beach, Florida 1.79%
9. Virginia Gardens, Florida 1.58%
10. Kendale Lakes, Florida 1.54%
11. Kendall, Florida 1.47%
12. Surfside, Florida 1.41%
13. Richmond West, Florida 1.36%
14. Aventura, Florida 1.31%
15. Country Club, Florida 1.26%
16. Bal Harbour, Florida 1.21%
17. Coral Gables, Florida 1.17%
18. Bay Harbor Islands, Florida 1.15%
19. Miami Lakes, Florida 1.06%
20. Tamiami, Florida 1.06%
21. Miami Springs, Florida 1.01%

By Venezuelan birth

The top 25 U.S. communities with the most residents born in Venezuela are:^[3]

1. Doral, FL 11.1%
2. North Westside, FL 5.0%
3. Fountainbleau, FL 4.2%
4. Weston, FL 4.0%
5. The Hammocks, FL 3.3%
6. Chambers Estates, Florida 2.8%
7. Kendall West, Florida 2.8%
8. The Crossings, Florida 2.7%
9. Three Lakes, Florida 2.7%
10. Key Biscayne, FL 2.6%
11. Sunny Isles Beach, FL 2.4%
12. Kendale Lakes-Lindgren Acres, FL 2.2%
13. Virginia Gardens, FL 2.1%
14. Richmond West, FL 2.0%
15. Golden Beach, Florida 2.0%
16. Broadview-Pompano Park, Florida 2.0%
17. Ramblewood East, Florida 2.0%
18. Kendale Lakes, FL 1.9%
19. Kendall, FL 1.9%
20. St. Regis Park. Kentucky 1.9%
21. Coldstream. Kentucky 1.9%
22. Country Walk, Florida 1.8%
23. Celebration, Florida 1.8%
24. Meadow Woods, Florida 1.8%
25. Country Club, FL 1.7%

Notable Venezuelan Americans

• Tina Ramirez, dancer and choreographer
• Mariah Carey, singer
• Majandra Delfino, actress
• Wilmer Valderrama, actor
• Gabriela Montero, pianist
• Carolina Herrera, fashion designer

See also

• Venezuelan British
• Venezuelan Canadian

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "S0201. Selected Population Profile in the United States; Population Group: Venezuelan". 2006 American Community Survey. United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/IPTable?_bm=y&-context=ip&-reg=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201:422;ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201PR:422;ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201T:422;ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201TPR:422&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201PR&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201T&-qr_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_S0201TPR&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-tree_id=306&-redoLog=true&-geo_id=01000US&-geo_id=NBSP&-search_results=01000US&-format=&-_lang=en. Retrieved 2008-06-02.  
2. ^ "Venezuelan ancestry by city - ePodunk". Epodunk.com. http://www.epodunk.com/ancestry/Venezuelan.html. Retrieved 2008-12-01.  
3. ^ "Top 101 cities with the most residents born in Venezuela (population 500+)". city-data.com. http://www.city-data.com/top2/h159.html. Retrieved 2008-08-01.