In 2021, the Burmese American population stood at 233,347.[4] Indiana had both the largest Burmese community[6] and highest percentage of Burmese of any state.[7]Indianapolis, Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and Fort Wayne are home to the largest Burmese American populations.[8] As of August 2023, the Burmese population stands at 322,000, according to the Burmese American Community Institute.[9]
History
The first Burmese to study in the United States was Maung Shaw Loo, of Mon descent, who came in 1858 to study at the University at Lewisburg (now Bucknell University) in Pennsylvania. He graduated with a medical degree in 1867 and returned to Burma the following year.[10]
In 1894, the case of In re Po ruled that Burmese are not white according to common knowledge and legal precedent.[11]
The first major wave of immigrants from Burma (now Myanmar) occurred from the 1960s to the late 1970s, after Ne Win established military rule in 1962, following the 1962 Burmese coup d'état.[12] Most immigrants were primarily of Sino-Burmese descent, who arrived in increasing numbers following the 1967 anti-Chinese riots.[13] The Burmese Chinese were the first major group of Theravada Buddhists to immigrate to the United States and were largely educated professionals, business entrepreneurs and technically skilled workers.[13][12] A minority were of Anglo-Burmese and Indian descent. Some Burmese immigrated to the United States after the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 abolished the previously existing quota on Asian immigrants.[14]
A second wave occurred from the late 1980s to the early 1990s after the national uprising in 1988.[12] This wave was more diverse, including Bamars, Karens, and other ethnic minorities, including political refugees involved in the 8888 Uprising.[12] They are concentrated in Fort Wayne, Indiana.[15] Between 1977 and 2000, 25,229 Burmese immigrated to the United States, although the figure is inaccurate because it does not include Burmese who immigrated via other countries to the U.S.[16]
A third wave of immigration, from 2006 to date, has been primarily of ethnic minorities in Myanmar, in particular Karen refugees from the Thai-Burmese border.[14][16] From October 2006 to August 2007, 12,800 Karen refugees resettled in the United States.[16]
Burmese in far smaller numbers continue to immigrate to the United States today mainly through family sponsorships and the "green card lottery". Thousands of Burmese each year apply for a Diversity Immigrant Visa (previously known as "OP" and now called "DV"), a lottery-based program that grants visas to those who wish to reside in the United States.
The Burmese American population has significantly increased since the beginning of the 21st century, due to an ongoing wave of immigration, and changes in self-identification. From 2000 to 2010, the population increased by a factor of 5.[17]
In the lead-up to the 2010 census, an awareness campaign was conducted by the Burmese Complete Count Committee, which consisted of Burmese American organizations, to convince Burmese Americans to self-identify as "Burmese" on their census forms.[18]
Following the 2010 census, "Burmese" became a distinct ethnic category (previously they were categorized as "other Asians.")[19] From 2010 to 2021, the population more than doubled. Following the 2021 February Coup, waves of Burmese have fled the junta, contributing to a surge in growth. According to the Burmese American Community Institute, as of August 2023, the Burmese American population stands at 322,000.
Communities
Drummers of the Rakhine minority performing on the Burmese New Year, Thingyan, in New York City
Many Burmese join already large immigration populations in mid-sized cities, especially those in the Rust Belt and Great Plains. In 2023, the top 20 cities with the most residents reporting Burmese ancestry were as follows:[20]
Chicago, Illinois – The West Ridge area alone is home to over 2,000 Rohingya refugees and may have the highest concentration of that ethnic group in the U.S.[33] 1,355 Burmese live in Chicago.
As most Burmese are Buddhists, many Burmese Buddhist monasteries (kyaung), most of which also serve as community centers, have sprouted across most major cities in the United States. A few ethnic Mon and Rakhine monasteries serve their respective ethnic populations.
Burmese Christian churches consisting mainly of ethnic Karen, Chin, Kachin, and Anglo-Burmese congregations can also be found in large metropolitan areas. Many Burmese Christians were granted asylum in the U.S. as refugees.
Languages
Professional immigrants from the first and second waves of Burmese migration are generally bilingual in Burmese and English.[14] Others from more recent waves of Burmese migration tend to struggle in English, due to lack of exposure, especially refugees from more remote communities.[14] More recent immigrants tend to speak ethnic minority languages, not Burmese, as their primary mother tongue. Some Burmese Americans of Chinese descent speak some Chinese (typically Mandarin, Minnan, or Cantonese). Likewise, Burmese Americans of Indian descent may speak some Indic languages, usually Tamil or Hindi/Urdu.
This is a list of notable Burmese Americans including both Burmese immigrants who obtained American citizenship, as well as their American descendants.
In 2019, approximately 25% of Burmese Americans lived under the poverty line, compared to the average of 10% for Asian Americans.[8] Burmese Americans had a homeownership rate of 45% in 2020 (compared to a national average of 64%), while 23% were college graduates (compared to a national average of 34%).[35]
Household income
In 2019, Burmese Americans had an average median household income of US$44,400 (equivalent to $52,912 in 2023) which is much lower than the Asian American average of US$85,800 (equivalent to $102,250 in 2023).[8] In 2020, the 5% of Burmese American households had an income above $200,000, lower than the national average of 8%, while 45% of households had an income below $40,000, higher than the national average of 33%.[35]
In 2014, when Americans' per capita income was divided by ethnic groups, Burmese Americans were found to be the second lowest-earning ethnic group per capita in the country, with a per capita income of $12,764, less than half of the American average of $25,825.[36]
^ abcCheah, Joseph (2008). Huping Ling (ed.). Emerging voices: experiences of underrepresented Asian Americans. Rutgers University Press. pp. 199–217. ISBN978-0-8135-4342-0.
Cooper, Amy. "Burmese Americans." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 1, Gale, 2014), pp. 373–380. online
