Pacific Islands Americans

Pacific Islands Americans, also known as Oceanian Americans, Pacific Islander Americans, or Native Hawaiian and/or other Pacific Islander Americans, are Americans who have ethnic ancestry among the indigenous peoples of Oceania (viz. Polynesians, Melanesians and Micronesians). For its purposes, the U.S. Census also counts Indigenous Australians as part of this group.^[2][3]

Pacific Islander Americans make up 0.5% of the U.S. population including those with partial Pacific Islander ancestry, enumerating about 1.4 million people. The largest ethnic subgroups of Pacific Islander Americans are Native Hawaiians, Samoans, Chamorros, Fijians, Marshallese and Tongans. Native Hawaiians, Samoans, Tongans, and Chamorros have large communities in Hawaii, California, and Utah, with sizable communities in Washington, Texas, Nevada, Oregon, and Arkansas. Fijians are predominantly based in California.

American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam are insular areas (U.S. territories), while Hawaii is a state.

Population

In the 2000 and 2010 U.S. Census, the term "Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander" refers to people having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Tonga, Samoa, Fiji, the Marshalls or other Pacific Islands.

In the 2010 census 1,225,195 Americans claimed "'Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander'" as their race alone or in combination.

Pacific Islands Americans in the 2000^[4]–2010 U.S. Census^[5] (From over 1,000 people)

Ancestry	2000	2000 % of Pacific Islands American population	2010	2010 % of Pacific Islands American population
Native Hawaiians	401,162	45.9%	527,077	43.0%
Samoan	133,281	15.2%	184,440	15.1%
Chamorro	93,237 (Guamanian or Chamorro: 92,611; Saipanese: 475; Mariana Islander: 141)	10.7%	148,220 (Guamanian or Chamorro: 147,798; Saipanese: 1,031; Mariana Islander: 391)	12.2%
Tongan	36,840	4.2%	57,183	4.7%
Fijian	13,581	1.6%	32,304	2.6%
Marshallese	6,650	0.8%	22,434	1.8%
Palauan	3,469	0.4%	7,450	0.6%
French Polynesian	3,313	0.4%	5,062	0.4%
Polynesians with New Zealand citizenship (Māori, Tokelauans, Niueans, Cook Islanders)	2,422 (Māori: 1,994; Tokelauans: 574)	0.3%	925 (Tokelauans only)	0.1%
Micronesian (FSM)	1,948	0.2%	8,185	0.7%
"Micronesian" (not specified)	9,940	1.1%	29,112	2.4%
"Polynesian" (not specified)	8,796	1.0%	9,153	0.7%
Others	188,389	%	241,952	%
TOTAL	874,414	100.0%	1,225,195	100.0%

Location

State/territory	Pacific Islands Americans alone (2010 US Census)[6]	Percentage[note 1]
Alabama	5,208	0.1%
Alaska	7,662	1.0%
Arizona	16,112	0.2%
Arkansas	6,685	0.2%
California	181,431	0.8%
Colorado	8,420	0.1%
Connecticut	3,491	0.0%
Delaware	690	0.0%
District of Columbia	770	-
Florida	18,790	-
Georgia	10,454	0.1%
Hawaii	138,292	10.0%
Idaho	2,786	0.1%
Illinois	7,436	-
Indiana	3,532	0.1%
Iowa	2,419	0.1%
Kansas	2,864	0.1%
Kentucky	3,199	0.1%
Louisiana	2,588	-
Maine	377	-
Maryland	5,391	-
Massachusetts	5,971	-
Michigan	3,442	<0.1%
Minnesota	2,958	0.0%
Mississippi	1,700	-
Missouri	7,178	0.1%
Montana	734	0.1%
Nebraska	2,061	0.1%
Nevada	19,307	0.6%
New Hampshire	532	-
New Jersey	7,731	-
New Mexico	3,132	0.1%
New York	24,000	0.1%
North Carolina	10,309	0.1%
North Dakota	334	0.1%
Ohio	5,336	0.03%
Oklahoma	5,354	0.1%
Oregon	14,649	0.4%
Pennsylvania	7,115	-
Rhode Island	1,602	0.1%
South Carolina	3,957	0.1%
South Dakota	517	0.1%
Tennessee	5,426	0.1%
Texas	31,242	0.1%
Utah	26,049	1.3%
Vermont	175	-
Virginia	8,201	0.1%
Washington	43,505	0.6%
West Virginia	485	-
Wisconsin	2,505	-
Wyoming	521	0.1%
American Samoa	51,403[7]	91%
Guam	78,582 [8]	49%
Northern Mariana Islands	18,800 [9]	34.9%
USA	674,625	0.2%

State/territory	Pacific Islands Americans alone or in combination (2010 US Census)[10]
Alabama	7,984
Alaska	11,360
Arizona	28,431
Arkansas	8,597
California	320,036
Colorado	16,823
Connecticut	6,864
Delaware	1,423
District of Columbia	1,514
Florida	43,416
Georgia	18,587
Hawaii	358,951
Idaho	5,508
Illinois	15,873
Indiana	7,392
Iowa	4,173
Kansas	5,445
Kentucky	5,698
Louisiana	5,333
Maine	1,008
Maryland	11,553
Massachusetts	12,369
Michigan	10,010
Minnesota	6,819
Mississippi	3,228
Missouri	12,136
Montana	1,794
Nebraska	3,551
Nevada	35,435
New Hampshire	1,236
New Jersey	15,777
New Mexico	5,750
New York	45,801
North Carolina	17,891
North Dakota	801
Ohio	11,380
Oklahoma	9,052
Oregon	26,936
Pennsylvania	14,662
Rhode Island	2,803
South Carolina	6,988
South Dakota	1,040
Tennessee	9,359
Texas	54,801
Utah	37,994
Vermont	476
Virginia	17,233
Washington	73,213
West Virginia	1,295
Wisconsin	5,558
Wyoming	1,137
American Samoa	52,790[11]
Guam	90,238 [12]
Northern Mariana Islands	24,891 [13]
USA	1,332,494

Micronesian Americans

Micronesian Americans are Americans of Micronesian descent.

The largest Micronesian American subgroups are Marshallese and Chamoru Americans. Other significant groups include Yapese, Pohnpeian, Kosraean, Chuuk, and Palauan.

Chamorro Americans, or the Chamoru, are the indigenous inhabitants of the Marianas, which are politically divided between Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Chamoru have been subject to the jurisdiction of the United States since the U.S. captured Guam during the Spanish–American War in 1898. The rest of the archipelago did not become affiliated with the U.S. until it invaded in 1944. In the 2010 census, 147,798 identified as "Guamanian or Chamorro". Because of economic conditions in the Marianas, particularly from the 1990s onward, many emigrated to the States in search of work and better opportunities. There are now more Chamorros in the 50 states than there are in the Marianas.

According to the 2010 census, the largest Chamoru populations were located in California, Washington and Texas, but their combined number from these three states totaled less than half the number living throughout the U.S. It also revealed that the Chamoru people are the most geographically dispersed Oceanic ethnicity in the country.^[14]

Marshallese Americans or Marshallese come from the Marshall Islands. In the 2010 census 22,434 Americans identified as being of Marshallese descent.

Because of the Marshall Islands entering the Compact of Free Association in 1986, Marshallese have been allowed to migrate and work in the United States. There are many reasons why Marshallese came to the United States. Some Marshallese came for educational opportunities, particularly for their children. Others sought work or better health care than what’s available in the islands. Massive layoffs by the Marshallese government in 2000 led to a second big wave of immigration.

Arkansas has the largest Mashallese population with over 6,000 residents. Many live in Springdale, and the Marshallese comprise over 5% of the city's population. Other significant Marshallese populations include Spokane and Costa Mesa.

Polynesian Americans

Polynesian Americans are Americans of Polynesian descent.

Large subcategories of Polynesian Americans include Native Hawaiians and Samoan Americans. In addition there are smaller communities of Tongan Americans (see Culture and diaspora of Tonga), French Polynesian Americans, and Māori Americans.

A Samoan American is an American who is of ethnic Samoan descent either from the independent nation Samoa or the American territory of American Samoa. Samoan American is a subcategory of Polynesian American. About 65,000 people live on American Samoa, while the US census in 2000 and 2008 has found 4 times the number of Samoan Americans live in the mainland USA.

California has the most Samoans; concentrations live in the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles County, and San Diego County. San Francisco has approximately 2,000 people of Samoan ancestry, and other Bay Area cities such as East Palo Alto and Daly City have Samoan communities. In Los Angeles County, Long Beach and Carson have abundant Samoan communities, as well as in Oceanside in San Diego County.^[15][16][17] Other West Coast metropolitan areas such as Seattle have strong Samoan communities, mainly in King County and in Tacoma. Anchorage, Alaska and Honolulu, Hawaii both have thousands of Samoan Americans residing in each city.

Since the end of World War II, persons born in American Samoa are United States nationals, but not United States citizens. (This is the only circumstance under which an individual would be one and not the other.) For this reason, Samoans can move to Hawaii or the mainland United States and obtain citizenship comparatively easily. Like Hawaiian Americans, the Samoans arrived in the mainland in the 20th century as agricultural laborers and factory workers.

Elsewhere in the United States, Samoan Americans are plentiful throughout the state of Utah, as well as in Killeen, Texas, Norfolk, Virginia and Independence, Missouri.

A Tongan American is an American who is of ethnic Tongan descent. Utah has the largest Tongan American population and Hawaii has the second largest. Many of the first Tongan Americans came to the United States in connection to the LDS Church.

Military

Based on 2003 recruiting data, Pacific Islander Americans were 249% over-represented in the military.^[18]

American Samoans are distinguished among the wider Pacific Islander group for enthusiasm for enlistment. In 2007, a Chicago Tribune reporter covering the island's military service noted, "American Samoa is one of the few places in the nation where military recruiters not only meet their enlistment quotas but soundly exceed them."^[19] As of 23 March 2009 there have been 10 American Samoans who have died in Iraq, and 2 who have died in Afghanistan.^[20]

Pacific Islander Americans are also represented in the Navy SEALS, making up .6% of the enlisted and .1% of the officers.^[21]

Media

Pacific Islander Americans have media portrayal mostly as athletes, but are also portrayed as regular people. Dwayne Johnson, also known as "The Rock", with a Samoan mother and a Black Canadian father, has been the most notable Pacific Islander American professional wrestler, branching out into movies like The Scorpion King. Other Pacific Islander American professional wrestlers include Samoa Joe; Solofa Fatu, best known as "Rikishi"; and the late Rodney Anoa'i, better known as "Yokozuna". The Anoa'i family has a legacy dating back to Johnson's grandfather Peter Maivia.

Lilo Pelekai and Nani Pelekai are Native Hawaiian Americans in the Disney film, Lilo & Stitch, and its subsequent franchise. Pacific Islander Americans portrayed two major supporting characters on the CBS television series Hawaii Five-O—Native Hawaiian Zulu as Kono Kalakaua and Samoan American Al Harrington as Det. Ben Kokua. In the series' 2010 revival, Hawaii Five-0, Teila Tuli has a recurring role. Also, Hawaiian-American Jason Momoa played Ronon Dex on the popular science-fiction TV show Stargate Atlantis and briefly he played Khal Drogo on the popular Medieval fantasy TV show Game of Thrones.

Zina Pistor was the first Samoan-American in the Miss USA Pageant, (Miss California USA 1985). The Los Angeles Times praised her^[22] business sense for owning a frozen yogurt store while a student in USC's Entrepreneur Program, where her business plan won first place. As Director of Creative Affairs for Revelations Entertainment, Morgan Freeman's film and TV production company, Zina produced charity events such as "An Evening of Holiday Stories with Morgan Freeman and Friends" to benefit Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw's (CAN) Children's Action Network. Zina has worked with Gene Hackman, Holly Hunter and many others. She divides her time between Los Angeles and Berlin, where she lives with her family and supports educational and ecological causes (i.e., Seacology which provides eco-exchanges^[23] for Pacific islanders).

Vili Fualaau is a Samoan American who made headlines with his controversial relationship with Mary Kay Letourneau.

Taylor Vaifanua (from Hurricane, Utah) is a Samoan American high school student/singer who made to the Top 36 of the reality TV show American Idol.

Bloody Mary, a chatacter in the South Pacific musical and movie, is a souvenir trader to US sailors stationed in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Though originally cast as Juanita Hall, an African American, she is often also cast as an Asian or Pacific Islander American in newer local productions.

Sports

The three major sub-regions of Oceania

Pacific Islander Americans are well represented in American football: Peter Tuipulotu, Manti Te'o, Reno Mahe, Shaun Nua, Vai Sikahema, Nuu Faaola, Jesse Sapolu, Troy Polamalu, Pisa Tinoisamoa, brothers Ma'ake and Chris Kemoeatu, Mosi Tatupu and his son Lofa, Manu Tuiasosopo and his sons Marques and Zach, Junior Seau, Rey Maualuga, and Mike Iupati are current or former professional football players. Ken Niumatalolo, a Samoan American who was named after the 2007 regular season as the new head coach of Navy, is believed to be the first Pacific Islander American to head a major college program.

Basketball is quickly gaining popularity among Islanders, and NBA players such as Peyton Siva, Jabari Parker, James Johnson, Wally Rank, and Steven Adams are of Polynesian descent. Naomi Mulitauaopele is the first full-blooded Samoan female athlete to play for both American women's professional basketball leagues, the ABL and the WNBA.

Many Pacific Islander Americans also play the most popular sport of their homeland, rugby union and rugby league, and have a strong influence in US rugby (see Rugby league in the United States or Rugby union in the United States) with many going on to represent the USA, including David Niu (rugby league and rugby union), Andrew Suniula (rugby league and rugby union), Siose Muliumu (rugby league), Salesi Sika (rugby union), Vahafolau Esikia (rugby union), Fifita Mounga (rugby union), Vaka Manupuna (rugby league), Thretton Palamo (the youngest player ever in the Rugby Union World Cup), Albert Tuipulotu (rugby union), and Vaea Anitoni (the all-time leader in tries for the USA national team).

Pacific Islanders are also represented in sumo wrestling. Akebono Taro is a famous sumo-wrestling Yokozuna of Native Hawaiian ancestry.

Diving great Greg Louganis, although often identified with his adoptive Greek-American heritage, is of Samoan and Swedish ancestry.

Culture

As a result of the rise of Samoan communities in highly concentrated hip hop areas such as Los Angeles and Oakland, California, American Samoans, like African Americans, have built up a reputation as highly skilled dancers and athletes. While women were mostly restrained from their expression of hip hop dance, many Samoan men became professional dancers and entered the American music industry. Suga Pop, and Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. are examples of this.^[24] The involvement of Samoans in street dance and hip hop music in America has impacted the Samoan cultural production in other places where Samoans have settled. A transmission of culture between the American Samoan community and its Pacific origin (i.e. New Zealand, Hawaii) took place. This resulted in a mimicking of not only music and dance styles but of the fashion of American hip hop as well. Samoan dance crews copied the popping and locking dance forms while wearing Adidas track suits- a style very commonly associated with Queens based hip hop group Run DMC. As a result of the American Samoan community's rising recognition, performers such as Snoop Dogg and Lord Tariq have collaborated with various American-based Samoan and Pacific artists.^[24]

Dinah Jane Hansen of multiplatinum selling girl group Fifth Harmony created on The X Factor USA is also of Polynesian descent.

Politics

• Duke Aiona, Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii (2002–2010)
• Daniel Akaka, U.S. Representative from Hawaii (1977–1990), U.S. Senator from Hawaii (1990–2013)
• Tulsi Gabbard, U.S. Representative from Hawaii (2013–present)
• Mufi Hannemann, Mayor of Honolulu (2005–2010)
• Samuel Wilder King, U.S. Representative from Hawaii Territory (1935–1943), Governor of Hawaii Territory (1953–1957)
• John Waihee, Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii (1982–1986), Governor of Hawaii (1986–1994)

See also

• Pacific Island Migration and Pacific Island American Identities

Notes

References

External links

• The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander Population: 2010 Census
• Infoplease: Native Hawaiian and Other U.S. Pacific Islander Population, Census 2000 - 2010
• Pacific Islander Populations, Census 2000