Countries of Birth of the Foreign-Born Population, 1850–2009
Updated February 21, 2017 | Factmonster Staff 
(resident population)
| Ten leading countries by rank1 | 1850 | 1880 | 1900 | 1930 | 1960 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ireland 962,000 | Germany 1,967,000 | Germany 2,663,000 | Italy 1,790,000 | Italy 1,257,000 |
| 2. | Germany 584,000 | Ireland 1,855,000 | Ireland 1,615,000 | Germany 1,609,000 | Germany 990,000 |
| 3. | Great Britain 379,000 | Great Britain 918,000 | Canada 1,180,000 | United Kingdom 1,403,000 | Canada 953,000 |
| 4. | Canada 148,000 | Canada 717,000 | Great Britain 1,168,000 | Canada 1,310,000 | United Kingdom 833,000 |
| 5. | France 54,000 | Sweden 194,000 | Sweden 582,000 | Poland 1,269,000 | Poland 748,000 |
| 6. | Switzerland 13,000 | Norway 182,000 | Italy 484,000 | Soviet Union 1,154,000 | Soviet Union 691,000 |
| 7. | Mexico 13,000 | France 107,000 | Russia 424,000 | Ireland 745,000 | Mexico 576,000 |
| 8. | Norway 13,000 | China 104,000 | Poland 383,000 | Mexico 641,000 | Ireland 339,000 |
| 9. | Holland 10,000 | Switzerland 89,000 | Norway 336,000 | Sweden 595,000 | Austria 305,000 |
| 10. | Italy 4,000 | Bohemia 85,000 | Austria 276,000 | Czechoslovakia 492,000 | Hungary 245,000 |
| Ten leading countries by rank1 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Italy 1,009,000 | Mexico 2,199,000 | Mexico 4,298,000 | Mexico 7,841,000 | Mexico 11,478,234 |
| 2. | Germany 833,000 | Germany 849,000 | China 921,000 | China 1,391,000 | Philippines 1,733,864 |
| 3. | Canada 812,000 | Canada 843,000 | Philippines 913,000 | Philippines 1,222,000 | India 1,665,055 |
| 4. | Mexico 760,000 | Italy 832,000 | Canada 745,000 | India 1,007,000 | China 1,425,814 |
| 5. | United Kingdom 686,000 | United Kingdom 669,000 | Cuba 737,000 | Cuba 952,000 | El Salvador 1,157,217 |
| 6. | Poland 548,000 | Cuba 608,000 | Germany 712,000 | Vietnam 863,000 | Vietnam 1,149,355 |
| 7. | Soviet Union 463,000 | Philippines 501,000 | United Kingdom 640,000 | El Salvador 765,000 | Korea 1,012,911 |
| 8. | Cuba 439,000 | Poland 418,000 | Italy 581,000 | Korea 701,000 | Cuba 982,862 |
| 9. | Ireland 251,000 | Soviet Union 406,000 | Korea 568,000 | Dominican Republic 692,000 | Canada 814,122 |
| 10. | Austria 214,000 | Korea 290,000 | Vietnam 543,000 | Canada 678,000 | Dominican Republic 791,593 |
1. In general, countries as reported at each census. Data are not totally comparable over time due to changes in boundaries for some countries. Great Britain excludes Ireland. United Kingdom includes Northern Ireland. China in 1990 includes Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Source: Profile of the Foreign-Born Population in the United States: 2000, U.S. Census Bureau, 2001. Statistical Portrait of the Foreign-Born Population in the United States, 2009; Table 5. Country of Birth: 2009, Pew Hispanic Center.
