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America - Europe

A Transatlantic Diary 1961 - 1989

Klaus Lanzinger


[In the Bicentennial Year 1976 the attention of America was markedly concentrated on immigration and ethnic groups. And it was also a year of a presidential election with its primaries.]

South Bend, January 18, 1976

The Immigration from Europe

According to the tabulation of the local daily newspaper, 46.7 million people immigrated between 1820 and 1974 to the United States [for comparison see entry above of middle of May, 1975]. Of these, 35.8 million came from Europe. Their numbers are distributed over the following countries of origin:

Germany 6.9 m(illion); Italy 5.2 m; Great Britain 4.8 m; Ireland 4.7 m; Austria-Hungary 4.3 m; Russia 3.3 m; Sweden 1.2 m; Norway 850 th(ousand); France 740 th; Greece 620 th; Poland 500 th; Portugal 400 th; Denmark 360 th; Netherlands 360 th; Switzerland 350 th; and from the remaining parts of Europe altogether about 1 million.

[These are general guiding figures, which may differ according to the interpretation of the immigration statistics. But they provide an overview of the size of the various immigration groups.]


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