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An Arab American is a United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 citizen or resident of Arab
Arab

An Arab is a person who Identity as such on linguistic or cultural grounds. The plural form, Arabs , refers to the Ethnocultural group at large....
 cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity
Identity

Identity may refer to:...
 whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants originating from one or more of the twenty-three countries comprising the Arab World
Arab world

The Arab World refers to Arabic-speaking countries stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Horn of Africa and the Indian Ocean in the southeast....
 (from the westernmost Morocco
Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 34 million and an area just under 447,000 km2....
 in North Africa
North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the United Nations subregion of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories:...
 to the southernmost Oman
Oman

Oman , officially the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab country in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders the United Arab Emirates on the northwest, Saudi Arabia on the west and Yemen on the southwest....
 and easternmost Iraq
Iraq

Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros Mountains, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
 in Southwest Asia
Southwest Asia

Southwest Asia or Southwestern Asia is the southwestern subregion of Asia. The term West Asia is sometimes used in the United Nations subregion geoscheme and in writings about the archeology and the late prehistory of the region....
). The overwhelming majority of Arab Americans, or some 65%, are Christians
Christianity

Christianity is a Monotheistic religion #Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as New Testament view on Jesus' life....
, while only 25% are Muslim
Muslim

:A Muslim , , is an adherent of the religion of Islam. The feminine form is Muslimah . Literally, the word means "one who submits "....
s, and the remaining 10% are of other faiths, agnostics or atheists.

Although Arab Americans comprises a highly diverse group of people, differing in ancestral origins, religious backgrounds and historic identities; Arab Americans hold a heritage that shares common linguistic, cultural, and political traditions, and it is these factors which are the ties that bind.

Due to a conflation of terms, in its broadest sense "Arab American" may include people who do not in fact identify as Arab. In this sense, it may include not only people of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity, but also non-Arab identified peoples within what are deemed Arab countries, such as Assyrians
Assyrians

Assyrians or Assyrian people may refer to :*the Ancient Assyrians*the modern Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac peopleSee also*Assyrian ...
/Syriacs
Syriacs

Syriac may refer to:*primarily, the Syriac language, used in the liturgy of the Syrian churches*the Syriac alphabet*Syriac Christianity, the churches using Syriac as their liturgical language...
, Circassians
Circassians

Circassians is a term derived from the Turkic languages Cherkess and is not the self-designation of any people. It has sometimes been applied indiscriminately to all the peoples of the North Caucasus, including the Mamluks....
, Kurds, or Berbers.

majority of Arab Americans, around 62%, originate from the region of the Levant
Levant

The Levant describes, traditionally, the Eastern Mediterranean at large, but can be used as a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia formed by the lands bordering the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean, roughly bounded on the north by the Taurus Mountains, on the south by the Arabian Desert, and on the west by the M...
, comprising Syria
Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is an Arab-majority country in Southwest Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Israel to the southwest, Jordan to the south, Iraq to the east, and Turkey to the north....
, Lebanon
Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
, Palestine
Palestine

Palestine is a name which has been widely used since Roman times to refer to the region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. It is derived from a name used already much earlier for a narrower geographical region, mainly along the coastal region....
/Israel
Israel

Israel officially the State of Israel , is a country in the Middle East located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area....
 and Jordan
Jordan

Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is an Arab country in Southwest Asia spanning the southern part of the Syrian Desert down to the Gulf of Aqaba....
.






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An Arab American is a United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 citizen or resident of Arab
Arab

An Arab is a person who Identity as such on linguistic or cultural grounds. The plural form, Arabs , refers to the Ethnocultural group at large....
 cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity
Identity

Identity may refer to:...
 whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants originating from one or more of the twenty-three countries comprising the Arab World
Arab world

The Arab World refers to Arabic-speaking countries stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Horn of Africa and the Indian Ocean in the southeast....
 (from the westernmost Morocco
Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 34 million and an area just under 447,000 km2....
 in North Africa
North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the United Nations subregion of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories:...
 to the southernmost Oman
Oman

Oman , officially the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab country in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders the United Arab Emirates on the northwest, Saudi Arabia on the west and Yemen on the southwest....
 and easternmost Iraq
Iraq

Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros Mountains, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
 in Southwest Asia
Southwest Asia

Southwest Asia or Southwestern Asia is the southwestern subregion of Asia. The term West Asia is sometimes used in the United Nations subregion geoscheme and in writings about the archeology and the late prehistory of the region....
). The overwhelming majority of Arab Americans, or some 65%, are Christians
Christianity

Christianity is a Monotheistic religion #Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as New Testament view on Jesus' life....
, while only 25% are Muslim
Muslim

:A Muslim , , is an adherent of the religion of Islam. The feminine form is Muslimah . Literally, the word means "one who submits "....
s, and the remaining 10% are of other faiths, agnostics or atheists.

Although Arab Americans comprises a highly diverse group of people, differing in ancestral origins, religious backgrounds and historic identities; Arab Americans hold a heritage that shares common linguistic, cultural, and political traditions, and it is these factors which are the ties that bind.

Due to a conflation of terms, in its broadest sense "Arab American" may include people who do not in fact identify as Arab. In this sense, it may include not only people of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity, but also non-Arab identified peoples within what are deemed Arab countries, such as Assyrians
Assyrians

Assyrians or Assyrian people may refer to :*the Ancient Assyrians*the modern Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac peopleSee also*Assyrian ...
/Syriacs
Syriacs

Syriac may refer to:*primarily, the Syriac language, used in the liturgy of the Syrian churches*the Syriac alphabet*Syriac Christianity, the churches using Syriac as their liturgical language...
, Circassians
Circassians

Circassians is a term derived from the Turkic languages Cherkess and is not the self-designation of any people. It has sometimes been applied indiscriminately to all the peoples of the North Caucasus, including the Mamluks....
, Kurds, or Berbers.

Population

The majority of Arab Americans, around 62%, originate from the region of the Levant
Levant

The Levant describes, traditionally, the Eastern Mediterranean at large, but can be used as a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia formed by the lands bordering the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean, roughly bounded on the north by the Taurus Mountains, on the south by the Arabian Desert, and on the west by the M...
, comprising Syria
Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is an Arab-majority country in Southwest Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Israel to the southwest, Jordan to the south, Iraq to the east, and Turkey to the north....
, Lebanon
Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
, Palestine
Palestine

Palestine is a name which has been widely used since Roman times to refer to the region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. It is derived from a name used already much earlier for a narrower geographical region, mainly along the coastal region....
/Israel
Israel

Israel officially the State of Israel , is a country in the Middle East located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area....
 and Jordan
Jordan

Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is an Arab country in Southwest Asia spanning the southern part of the Syrian Desert down to the Gulf of Aqaba....
. The remainder are made up of those from Egypt
Egypt

Egypt is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia. Covering an area of about , Egypt borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south and Libya to the west....
, Iraq
Iraq

Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros Mountains, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Libya
Libya

Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country located in North Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya lies between Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
, Morocco
Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 34 million and an area just under 447,000 km2....
 and other Arab nations, which are small in numbers but present nonetheless.

There are 3,500,000 Arab Americans in the United States according to The Arab American Institute
Arab American Institute

Founded in 1985, the Arab American Institute is a non-profit, membership organization and advocacy group based in Washington D.C. that focuses on the issues and interests of Arab-Americans nationwide....
. Arab-Americans live in all 50 states and Washington, DC - and more than 90% reside in the metropolitan areas of major cities. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, 48% of the Arab-American population - 576,000 - reside in California
California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
, Michigan
Michigan

Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, New York
New York

The State of New York is a U.S. state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States and is the nation's List of U.S....
, Florida
Florida

Florida is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the northeast....
 and New Jersey
New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, on the east by the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean, on the southwest by Delaware, and on the west by Pennsylvania....
, respectively; these 5 states collectively have 31% of the net U.S. population. Five other states - Illinois
Illinois

The State of Illinois is a U.S. state of the United States, the 21st to be admitted to the United States. Illinois is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern United States state and the fifth most populous state in the nation....
, Texas
Texas

Texas is a U.S. state located in the South Central United States, nicknamed the Lone Star State. Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, spanning , and with a growing population of 24.3 million residents....
, Ohio
Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States. As part of the Great Lakes region , Ohio has long been a cultural and geographical crossroads in North America....
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a U.S. state located in the New England region of the Northeastern United States United States. It borders Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north....
, and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a U.S. state located in the Northeastern United States and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States....
 - report Arab-American populations of more than 40,000 each. Also, the counties which contained the greatest proportions of Arab-Americans were in California, Michigan, New York, Florida, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
.

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the city with the largest percentage of Arab Americans is Dearborn, Michigan
Dearborn, Michigan

Dearborn is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in the Metro Detroit and Wayne County, Michigan, and is the tenth largest city in the U.S....
 (southwestern suburb of Detroit) at nearly 30%. The Detroit metropolitan area is home to 600,000 Arab Americans, indeed the largest Arab population in the North Western Hemisphere.

Other major Arab-American communities are:
  • Paterson, New Jersey
    Paterson, New Jersey

    Paterson is a City in Passaic County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city population was 149,222....
    /Clifton, New Jersey
    Clifton, New Jersey

    Clifton is a City in Passaic County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 78,672....
  • Jersey City, New Jersey
    Jersey City, New Jersey

    Jersey City is a City in Hudson County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the population of Jersey City was 240,055, making it New Jersey's List of municipalities in New Jersey , behind Newark, New Jersey....
  • West New York, New Jersey
    West New York, New Jersey

    West New York is a Town in Hudson County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States, situated upon the New Jersey Palisades. As of the United States 2000 Census, the town population was 45,768....
  • Brooklyn, New York (New York City
    New York City

    The City of New York is the List of United States cities by population in the United States, while the New York metropolitan area ranks among the List of urban areas by population....
     metro-area)
  • Silicon Valley
    Silicon Valley

    Silicon Valley is the South Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California, United States. The term originally referred to the region's large number of Integrated circuit innovators and manufacturers, but eventually came to refer to all the high-tech businesses in the area; it is now generally used as a metonym for the high-tech s...
     (San Francisco metro-area)
  • Los Angeles County, California
    Los Angeles County, California

    Los Angeles County is a County in California, and is by far, the most List of the most populous counties in the United States in the United States....
  • Orange County, California
    Orange County, California

    Orange County is a county in Southern California California, United States. Its county seat is Santa Ana, California. The state of California estimates its population as of 2008 to be 3,121,251, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County, California and San Diego County, California....
     (Los Angeles metro-area)
  • San Diego metro-area (El Cajon
    El Cajon, California

    El Cajon is a city in San Diego County, California, California, United States. The population was 94,869 at the 2000 census. El Caj?n is Spanish for "The Box", relating to it being surrounded by mountains in a nestled valley....
    )
  • Chicago
    Chicago

    Chicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the Midwestern United States, as well as the List of United States cities by population city in the United States with more than 2.8 million residents....
     and Bridgeview, Illinois
    Bridgeview, Illinois

    Bridgeview is a village in Cook County, Illinois, Illinois in the United States. It is located approximately 13 miles from the Chicago Loop. As of the United States Census, 2000, the village population was 15,335....
     (Chicago metro-area)
  • Dallas-Fort Worth
    Fort Worth, Texas

    Fort Worth is the List of United States cities by population in the United States and the fifth-largest city within the state of Texas. Situated in and a cultural gateway into the Western United States, the city covers nearly in Tarrant County, Texas and Denton County, Texas counties, serving as the county seat for Tarrant County....
     metro area
  • Houston metro area
  • Boston metro area
  • Northern Virginia
    Northern Virginia

    Northern Virginia consistsof several County and independent cities in the U.S. state of Virginia in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C....
  • Buffalo, New York
    Buffalo, New York

    Buffalo , is the second largest city in the state of New York. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River, Buffalo is the principal city of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area and the county seat of Erie County, New York....
  • Wilmington, Delaware
    Wilmington, Delaware

    Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek , near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River....
  • Cedar Rapids, Iowa
    Cedar Rapids, Iowa

    Cedar Rapids is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Iowa and is the county seat of Linn County, Iowa. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River , north of Iowa City, Iowa and east of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city....
  • Wichita, Kansas
    Wichita, Kansas

    Wichita , is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas. The 2006 estimated population of 361,420 makes it the 51st largest city in the U.S....
  • Little Rock, Arkansas
    Little Rock, Arkansas

    Little Rock is the Capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas and the county seat of Pulaski County, Arkansas. The city's population was estimated at 184,422 in 2005....
  • Miami, Florida
    Miami, Florida

    Miami is a global city in southeastern Florida, in the United States. Miami is the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, the most populous county in Florida....
  • Orlando, Florida
    Orlando, Florida

    Orlando is a major city in Central Florida, United States and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Florida. It is also the principal city of Orlando-Kissimmee, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area....
  • and Jacksonville, Florida
    Jacksonville, Florida

    Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Duval County, Florida. Since 1968, as a result of the Consolidated city-county of the city and county government , Jacksonville has been the List of United States cities by area city in land area in the continental United States....
    .


The cities with the highest percentages of Arabs after Detroit are Sterling Heights, Michigan
Sterling Heights, Michigan

Sterling Heights is a city in Macomb County, Michigan of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the United States 2000 census, the city had a total population of 124,471....
; Jersey City and Patterson; Warren, Michigan
Warren, Michigan

Warren is a city in Macomb County, Michigan in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the United States Census, 2000, the city had a total population of 138,247, making Warren the largest city in Macomb County, Michigan, the third most populous city in Michigan, and Metro Detroit largest suburb....
; Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown, Pennsylvania

Allentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh....
; Burbank, California
Burbank, California

Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 100,316 at the United States Census, 2000.Burbank is located in the eastern region of the San Fernando Valley, north of Downtown Los Angeles, California....
 and nearby Glendale, California
Glendale, California

Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, California, United States. It lies at the eastern end of the San Fernando Valley, is bisected by the Verdugo Mountains, and is a suburb in the Greater Los Angeles Area....
; Livonia, Michigan
Livonia, Michigan

Livonia is a city in the northwest part of Wayne County, Michigan in the U.S. state of Michigan. Livonia is a very large suburb with an array of traditional neighborhoods connected to the metropolitan area by freeways....
; Arlington, Virginia; Modesto, California
Modesto, California

Modesto is the county seat of Stanislaus County, California. As of January 1, 2008 the estimated population is 209,936. Its population has boomed for the last decade, becoming the sixteenth largest city in the state and the sixth largest inland city in the state behind Stockton, California, Bakersfield, Riverside, California, Sacramento, and...
; Peoria, Illinois
Peoria, Illinois

Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, Illinois, in the United States. As of the United States Census, 2000, the city was the sixth largest in Illinois and had a total population of 112,936....
; Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona

Phoenix is the capital and largest city in the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the fifth most populous city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,552,259 residents, and is the anchor of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area with 4,179,427 residents....
; and Daly City, California
Daly City, California

Daly City is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, with a 2000 population of 103,621. It is named in honor of businessman and landowner, John Donald Daly....
.

Many agricultural regions in California, like the San Joaquin Valley
San Joaquin Valley

The San Joaquin Valley refers to the area of the California Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento River Delta in Stockton, California....
, Salinas Valley
Salinas Valley

The Salinas Valley in the Central Coast of California region of California, United States that lies along the Salinas River between the Gabilan Range and the Santa Lucia Range....
, Coachella Valley
Coachella Valley

The Coachella Valley is a large valley landform in Southern California that is populated by nearly one million people, and which includes the famed tourist destination, Palm Springs, California....
 and Imperial Valley have a history of immigrants from Arab countries involved in the area's rich farming industry.

California has the most Moroccan Americans, Algerian Americans and Yemeni Americans
Yemeni Americans

Yemeni Americans are citizens of the United States of Yemeni ancestry. Although it is unknown when Yemenis first arrived, it is believed that Yemenis were immigrating to the U.S....
, usually live in the San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley

The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in Southern California, United States. More than half of the city of Los Angeles' land area lies within the San Fernando Valley....
 section of Los Angeles and the East Bay
East Bay

East Bay may refer to:...
 area of Oakland
Oakland, California

Oakland , founded in 1852, is the eighth-largest city in the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Alameda County, California. Oakland is approximately 8 miles east of San Francisco and the cities are separated by San Francisco Bay....
 as well. Los Angeles is said to have the world's largest Saudi
Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, KSA , is an Arab country and the largest country of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Jordan on the northwest, Iraq on the north and northeast, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates on the east, Oman on the southeast, and Yemen on the south....
 expatriate community, while San Diego is said to boost the most Libya
Libya

Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country located in North Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya lies between Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
n expatriates in the Western Hemisphere; and finally, a large influx of Assyrians
Assyrians

Assyrians or Assyrian people may refer to :*the Ancient Assyrians*the modern Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac peopleSee also*Assyrian ...
 from Iraq, Syria and Jordan settled in the Sacramento
Sacramento, California

Sacramento is the Capital of the United States U.S. state of California, and the county seat of Sacramento County, California. Located along the Sacramento River and just south of the American River's confluence in California's expansive California Central Valley, it is the seventh-largest city in California.....
 area.

Oklahoma
Oklahoma

Oklahoma is a U.S. state and a sovereignty located in the South Central United States and Southern United States of the United States of America ....
 had a sizable Arab-American population, mainly are immigrants involved in the oil and energy business came to the state during the 1970s
1970s

The 1970s, or the Seventies was the decade that ran from January 1, 1970 to December 31, 1979.In the western world, social progressive values that began in the 1960s, such as increasing political awareness and political and economic liberty of women, continued to grow....
/1980s
1980s

The 1980s or the Eighties or the 80s or the years between the 70s and the 90s, was the decade that ran from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 1989....
 and developed noticeable communities in Tulsa
Tulsa, Oklahoma

Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population in the United States. With an estimated population of 384,037 in 2007, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Statistical Area, a region of 905,755 residents projected to reach one million between 2010 and 2012....
 and Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city

Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area...
, each have an estimated 50,000 Arab-Americans alone.
Arab Americans in the 2000 U.S. Census
United States Census, 2000

File:US-Census-2000Logo.svgThe Twenty-Second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the United States Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons Enumeration during the United States Census, 1990....
Ancestry2000% of population
Flag of Iraq
Iraqi
Iraqi American

Iraqi Americans are United States of America of Iraqi descent, including those who are expatriates in exile or permanent immigrants. According to the ancestries article in the 2000 United States Census around 37,714 Americans with Iraqi descent were living within the United States....
37,7140.01%
Flag of Lebanon
Lebanese		440,2790.2%
Flag of Egypt
Egyptian
Egyptian American

Egyptian Americans are U.S. of Egyptians ancestry, first-generation Egyptian immigrants, or descendants of Egyptians who immigrated to the United States....
142,8320.1%
Flag of Palestine
Palestinian
Palestinian American

Palestinian Americans are United States of Palestinian Arab ancestry. It is difficult to say when the first Palestinian immigrants arrived at the United States; however, many of the first immigrants to arrive were Christians fleeing Ottoman Empire in the late 1800s, others came as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and the Six Day War, and...
72,1120.02%
Flag of Syria
Syrian
Syrian American

Syrian Americans are citizens of the United States of Syrian ancestry or nationality. This ethnic group includes Americans of Syrian ancestry, Syrian first generation immigrants, or descendants of Syrians who immigration to the United States....
142,8970.1%
Flag of Yemen
Yemeni		15,0000.005%
Other Arabs
Arab American

An Arab American is a United States citizen or resident of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants originating from one or more of the twenty-three countries comprising the Arab World ....
424,8070.2%
TOTAL1,275,6410.42%


Religious background


While the majority of the population of the Arab World
Arab world

The Arab World refers to Arabic-speaking countries stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Horn of Africa and the Indian Ocean in the southeast....
 consists of those adherent to the Muslim faith
Islam

Islam is a Monotheism, Abrahamic religion originating with the teachings of the Prophets of Islam Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure....
; contrary to popular belief, the overwhelming majority of Arab Americans are in fact Christian
Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism#Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus and interpreted by Christians to have been prophesied in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament....
, not Muslim..

According to the Arab American Institute, Muslims account for only 24% of the Arab American population, while Christians account for 63%, and the rest of the 13% identify as other religion, or no affiliation. The number of Arab Muslims, however, has been faster growing. The breakdown of Christians by sect through percentage are as follows;
  • 35% Catholic Christian (Roman Catholics, Eastern Catholics - Maronites and Melkites)
  • 18% Orthodox Christian
    Eastern Orthodox Church

    The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
    ,
  • 10% Protestant Christian.


There are substantial numbers of American Jews
American Jews

American Jews, or Jewish Americans, are Jews who are United States citizens or resident aliens. The United States is home to the second largest Jewish community in the world depending on religious definitions and varying population data....
 originating from the Arab World, notably American Jews of Mizrahi Jewish extraction. Most migrated from their respective countries of origin to the United States during the late 20th century.

Racial status

Arab American National Museum
Arab Americans in the United States are officially classified as White American
White American

White American is an umbrella term officially employed by the United States Census Bureau, Office of Management and Budget and other U.S. government for the classification of United States citizens or resident aliens "having origins in any of the original peoples of Ethnic groups of Europe, the Ethnic groups of the Middle East, or Ethnic gro...
 by government agencies, including the U.S. Census Bureau. Many disagree with this designation and some have lobbied for the creation of a separate category, each with different motives.

Some Arab Americans, especially those with darker complexions irrespective of their religious tradition, and more recently Arab Muslim immigrants regardless of their complexion, are not generally considered White in social terms. They have been increasingly targeted for discrimination and hate crimes after the September 11 attacks.

A new Zogby Poll International found that there are 3.5 Million Americans who identify themselves as "Arab-Americans" or Americans of ancestry belonging to one of the 23 UN member countries of the Arab World. Poll finds that majority of those who identify themselves as Arab Americans are of Lebanese
Lebanese people

The Lebanese people are a Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
 origin.

Politics


Arab Americans tend to split fairly evenly between the Republican
Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party . It is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP....
 and Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party . It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world....
 parties. However, a number of prominent Arab American politicians are Republicans, including New Hampshire Senator John E. Sununu
John E. Sununu

John Edward Sununu is a former Republican Party United States Senate from New Hampshire. Sununu was the Baby of the House for his entire six year term....
, and California Congressman Darrell Issa
Darrell Issa

Darrell E. Issa is an Politics of the United States and formerly a Chief executive officer of a consumer electronics company. Since 2001, he has been a Republican Party member of the United States House of Representatives, representing the California's 49th congressional district....
, who was the driving force behind the state's 2003 recall election that removed Democratic Governor Gray Davis
Gray Davis

Joseph Graham ?Gray? Davis, Jr. is an United States politician who served as California's 37th Governor of California from 1999 to 2003. Davis is a Democratic Party who was often known as a moderate....
 from office. The strong sense of family values characteristic of Arab Americans does not necessarily translate to Republican values in Arab American statesmen, however; the first woman Supreme Court Chief Justice in Florida, Rosemary Barkett
Rosemary Barkett

Rosemary Barkett is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Prior to her nomination for that post, she was Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court, where she was the first woman ever to serve on that court....
, is known for her dedication to progressive values and has been publicly criticized by Republican politicians at various stages of her career. Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader

Ralph Nader is an American attorney at law, author, lecturer, political activism, and perennial candidate for presidency as an independent candidate for President of the United States in United States presidential election, 2004 and United States presidential election, 2008, and a Green Party candidate in 1996 and 2000....
 is another example of a liberal Arab American politician.

Arab Americans gave George W. Bush
George W. Bush

George Walker Bush served as the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States from 2001 to 2009. He was the 46th List of Governors of Texas from 1995 to 2000 before being United States presidential inauguration as President on January 20, 2001....
 a majority of their votes in 2000
United States presidential election, 2000

The United States presidential election of 2000 was a contest between United States Democratic Party candidate Al Gore, then-Vice President of the United States, and United States Republican Party candidate George W....
. However, as a group they backed John Kerry
John Kerry

John Forbes Kerry is the Junior Senator United States Senate from Massachusetts and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.As the Presidential nominee of the Democratic Party , he was defeated by 34 electoral votes in the United States presidential election, 2004 by the Republican Party incumbent President of the United States...
 in 2004
United States presidential election, 2004

The United States presidential election of 2004 was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004, to elect the President of the United States. It was the 55th consecutive quadrennial election for President and Vice President of the United States....
 and Barack Obama
Barack Obama

Barack Hussein Obama II is the List of Presidents of the United States and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office....
 in 2008
United States presidential election, 2008

The United States presidential election of 2008 was held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. It was the 56th consecutive wikt:quadrennial United States United States presidential election....
.

According to a 2000 Zogby poll, 52% of Arab Americans are pro-life, 74% support the death penalty, 76% are in favor of stricter gun control, and 86% want to see an independent Palestinian state. Arab American Republicans often view the GOP as more in line with Arab culture, which tends to be more socially conservative and values entrepreneurship and free enterprise. Arab American members of the Democratic party may choose to do so through a sense of social justice, support of small businesses and traditional values of tolerance, or because of concerns over foreign policy and, in recent years, the Iraq War
Iraq War

The Iraq War, also known as the Second Gulf War, the Occupation of Iraq, and Operation Iraqi Freedom, is an ongoing conflicts military campaign which began on March 20, 2003 with the 2003 invasion of Iraq by a Multinational force in Iraq now led by and composed almost entirely of troops from the United States and United King...
, Racial Profiling
Racial profiling

Racial profiling is the inclusion of Race or ethnicity characteristics in determining whether a person is considered likely to commit a particular type of crime or an illegal act or to behave in a "predictable" manner....
 and the War on Terror.

Festivals

While the spectrum of Arab heritage includes 22 countries, their combined heritage is often celebrated in cultural festivals around the United States.

Dearborn

In June of each year Dearborn
Dearborn

Dearborn may refer to:Places* Dearborn, Michigan* Dearborn County, Indiana* Dearborn, Missouri* Fort Dearborn * Odiorne Point State Park on the site of Odiorne Point State Park....
 has: The Dearborn Arab International Festival, The Lebanese American Heritage Club, the arab american
Arab American

An Arab American is a United States citizen or resident of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants originating from one or more of the twenty-three countries comprising the Arab World ....
 chamber of Commerce, ACCESS
Access

Access may refer to:...
 and The City of Dearborn
Dearborn

Dearborn may refer to:Places* Dearborn, Michigan* Dearborn County, Indiana* Dearborn, Missouri* Fort Dearborn * Odiorne Point State Park on the site of Odiorne Point State Park....
 transformed more than a half mile of Warren Avenue in the heart of East Dearborn into the largest Arab international festival in the nation. The Dearborn Arab International Festival is a free, family-centered cultural celebration that have attracted people of all ages from Michigan, the Midwest, and Canada since 1996. This celebration of cultures will feature ethnic performances representing the diverse heritage of the people of Metropolitan Detroit. It boasts a great number of amusements, live musical acts both local and international, 30 international food booths, coffee cup readings, henna, arts and crafts, a children’s tent, artisans, Arab merchandise, and a giant old-fashioned Ferris wheel that overlooks East Dearborn. More than 300,000 people participated in the festival last year, a true representation of the many cultures that reside in Metro Detroit
Metro Detroit

The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is the United States metropolitan area located in Southeast Michigan Michigan centered on the city of Detroit....
. The festival enjoyed press from all the media outlets in Detroit and extensive exposure in the Arab World and Arab American
Arab American

An Arab American is a United States citizen or resident of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants originating from one or more of the twenty-three countries comprising the Arab World ....
 communities in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
.

New York City

The New York Arab-American Comedy Festival was founded in 2003 by comedian Dean Obeidallah
Dean Obeidallah

Dean Obeidallah is an Arab-American/Italian-American comedian, who was born in Lodi, New Jersey, New Jersey, and grew up in nearby Paramus, New Jersey.....
 and comedienne Maysoon Zayid. Held annually each fall, the festival showcases the talents of Arab-American actors, comics, playwrights and filmmakers, and challenges as well as inspires fellow Arab-Americans to create outstanding works of comedy. Participants include actors, directors, writers and comedians, including director Piter Marek.

Seattle

Of particular note is ArabFest in Seattle, begun in 1999. The festival includes all 22 of the Arab countries, with a souk
Souk

A souq is a commercial quarter in an Arab or Berber city. The term is often used to designate the market in any Arabized or Muslim city. It may also refer to the weekly market in some smaller towns where neutrality from tribal conflicts would be declared to permit the exchange of surplus goods....
 marketplace, traditional and modern music, an authentic Arab coffeehouse, an Arabic spelling bee and fashion show. Lectures and workshops explore the rich culture and history of the Arab peoples, one of the world's oldest civilizations. Also of new interest is the Arabic rap concert, including the NW group Sons of Hagar, showcasing the political and creative struggle of Arabic youth.

Phoenix

In 2008, the first Arab American Festival in Arizona was held on November 1 and 2nd in Glendale, Arizona. The festival included traditional food
Arab cuisine

Arab cuisine is defined as the various regional cuisines spanning the Arab World from Iraq to Morocco to Somalia to Yemen, and incorporating Levantine, Egyptian and others....
, local businesses, and sponsors from the national level including the Arizona National Guard
Arizona National Guard

The Arizona National Guard consists of the:*Arizona Army National Guard and the*Arizona Air National Guard...
, CIA, and the FBI.

Famous Americans of Arab descent


Here are a few examples of famous Arab Americans. Arab Americans are involved in politics and are one of the wealthiest ethnic groups in the U.S.
  • Gibran Khalil Gibran, (Syrian/Lebanese) Early 20th century Poet, Artist and Philosopher.
  • Hoda Kotb
    Hoda Kotb

    Hoda Kotb is an United States television news anchor, originally from from Norman, Oklahoma.Kotb is Egyptian-American. In Arabic, the name "Hoda" means "guidance", and is very popular among Arab women....
    , (Egyptian) television news personality for Dateline NBC and the Today Show
  • Ismail al-Faruqi
    Ismail al-Faruqi

    Isma'il Raji al-Faruqi was a Palestinian-American philosopher who was recognized by his peers as an authority on Islam and comparative religion....
    , (Palestinian) philosopher and authority on Islam and comparative religion.
  • F. Murray Abraham
    F. Murray Abraham

    Fahrid Murray Abraham is an Academy Award-winning United States actor. He became known during the 1980s, after winning the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Amadeus , and has since appeared in many roles, both leading and supporting, in films, television, and mainly on stage....
    , Hollywood actor and Oscar winner for the film "Amadeus" (Syrian father).
  • Jamie Farr
    Jamie Farr

    Jamie Farr is an United States television and film actor and popular game show panelist. He is best known for playing the role of cross-dressing Corporal#United States Maxwell Klinger in the 1970s and 1980s United States television sitcom, M*A*S*H ....
    , (Lebanese) Hollywood actor especially famous for his role as Klinger in the TV series "M*A*S*H" .
  • George Nader
    George Nader

    George Nader was an United States film and television actor. He appeared in a variety of films from 1950 through 1974, including Phone Call from a Stranger , Congo Crossing , and The Female Animal ....
    , (Jordanian) 1950's Hollywood Actor.
  • Steve Jobs
    Steve Jobs

    Steven Paul Jobs is an United States businessman and co-founder, Chairman, and Chief executive officer of Apple Inc.. Jobs is the former CEO of Pixar Animation Studios....
    , co-founder of Apple Inc.
    Apple Computer

    Apple Inc., formerly Apple Computer Inc., is an United States multinational corporation which designs and manufactures consumer electronics and software products....
     (Syrian father Abdulfattah Jandali).
  • Danny Thomas
    Danny Thomas

    Danny Thomas was an United States nightclub comedian and television and film actor, best known for starring in the television sitcom Make Room for Daddy....
    , (Lebanese) actor and his daughter Marlo Thomas
    Marlo Thomas

    Margaret Julia ?Marlo? Thomas Donahue is an United States actor, who first achieved fame on the TV series That Girl in the 1960s....
    , actress.
  • Dick Dale
    Dick Dale

    Dick Dale is a surf rock Electric Guitar, known as "The King Of The Surf Guitar". He experimented with reverberation and made use of custom made Fender Musical Instruments Corporation amplifiers, including the first ever 100 watt amp....
    , (Lebanese) Rock guitarist
  • Paul Anka
    Paul Anka

    Paul Albert Anka, Order of Canada is a Canada singer, songwriter, and actor of Lebanese people origin. He became a Naturalization US citizen in 1990....
    , (Syrian/Lebanese) vocal performer.
  • Mitch Daniels
    Mitch Daniels

    Mitchell Elias "Mitch" Daniels, Jr. is the current Governor of Indiana of the U.S. state of Indiana. A Republican Party , he began his four-year term as Indiana's 49th Governor on January 10, 2005 and was elected to his second term on November 4, 2008....
    , (Syrian) Governor of Indiana
    Indiana

    The State of Indiana was the 19th U.S. state admitted into the union. It is located in the Midwestern United States of the United States of America....
    .
  • George J. Mitchell
    George J. Mitchell

    George John Mitchell, Order of the British Empire is the United States of America special envoy to the Middle East for the Presidency of Barack Obama....
    , (Lebanese) United States of America special envoy to the Middle East under the Obama administration, .U.S. Senator from Maine
    Maine

    The State of Maine is a U.S. state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, New Hampshire to the southwest, the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast....
    , Senate Majority Leader.
  • John H. Sununu
    John H. Sununu

    John Henry Sununu is a former governor of New Hampshire of New Hampshire and former White House Chief of Staff under President George H. W. Bush....
    , (Lebanese/Palestinian) Governor of New Hampshire
    Governor of New Hampshire

    The Governor of the State of New Hampshire is the supreme executive magistrate of the U.S. state of New Hampshire.The Governor is elected at the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years....
     and White House Chief of Staff
    White House Chief of Staff

    The White House Chief of Staff is the highest ranking member of the Executive Office of the President of the United States and a senior aide to the President of the United States....
     under George H. W. Bush
    George H. W. Bush

    George Herbert Walker Bush served as the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States from 1989 to 1993. Bush held a variety of political positions prior to his presidency, including Vice President of the United States in the administration of Ronald Reagan and Director of Central Intelligence under Gerald R....
    .
  • John E. Sununu
    John E. Sununu

    John Edward Sununu is a former Republican Party United States Senate from New Hampshire. Sununu was the Baby of the House for his entire six year term....
    , (Lebanese/Palestinian) Senator from New Hampshire.
  • Casey Kasem
    Casey Kasem

    Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem, is an United States radio personality and voice actor. Mr. Kasem is a graduate of Northwestern High School in Michigan and the Wayne State University....
    , (Lebanese) radio personality and voice actor.
  • Spencer Abraham
    Spencer Abraham

    Edward Spencer Abraham is a former United States Senate from Michigan. He served as the tenth United States Secretary of Energy, serving under President George W....
    , (Lebanese) Senator from Michigan
    Michigan

    Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
     and Secretary of Energy under Bush.
  • Ralph Nader
    Ralph Nader

    Ralph Nader is an American attorney at law, author, lecturer, political activism, and perennial candidate for presidency as an independent candidate for President of the United States in United States presidential election, 2004 and United States presidential election, 2008, and a Green Party candidate in 1996 and 2000....
    , (Lebanese) consumer advocate, politician, first Arab American to run for President of the United States.
  • Joe Robbie, sports team owner of the NFL Miami Dolphins
    Miami Dolphins

    . The Miami Dolphins are the professional American football team based in the Miami, Florida South Florida metropolitan area. They play home games at Dolphin Stadium, in the suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida....
    .
  • John Jaha
    John Jaha

    John Emil Jaha is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball who had a 10-year career from 1992 to 2001. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers and Oakland Athletics, playing in both the American League and National League....
    , sports athlete, of the MLB Milwaukee Brewers
    Milwaukee Brewers

    The Milwaukee Brewers, commonly referred to as "The Brew Crew" or simply "The Crew" by sports writers and fans, are a Major League Baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which plays in the Central Division of the National League....
    .
  • Tony Shalhoub
    Tony Shalhoub

    Anthony Marcus ?Tony? Shalhoub is a three-time Emmy Award, two-time Screen Actors Guild Award and Golden Globe Awards winning United States actor, best known as star of the detective-drama Monk ....
    , (Lebanese) an executive producer and actor of Monk
    Monk (TV series)

    Monk is an Television in the United States comedy-drama Television program created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the main character....
    .
  • Edward Said
    Edward Said

    Edward Wadie Sa?d Royal Society of Literature was a Palestinian American Literary theory, cultural critic, and an outspoken advocate for Palestinian rights....
    , (Palestinian) literary theorist and outspoken Palestinian activist.
  • Helen Thomas
    Helen Thomas

    File:Helen Thomas - USNWR.jpgHelen Thomas is an American news service reporter, a Hearst Corporation columnist, and member of the White House Press Corps....
    , (Lebanese) reporter, columnist and White House correspondent
  • Sammy Hagar
    Sammy Hagar

    Samuel Roy "Sammy" Hagar , known as "The Red Rocker", is an United States rock music guitarist, singer, composer and solo artist. Hagar was one of the three singers for Van Halen, as well as of the early 1970s rock band Montrose ....
    , (Lebanese), rock musician.
  • John Abizaid
    John Abizaid

    John Philip Abizaid is a retired General in the United States Army and former Commander of the CENTCOM , overseeing American military operations in a 27-country region, from the Horn of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, to South Asia and Central Asia, covering much of the Middle East....
    , (Lebanese), retired General.
  • Fredwreck
    Fredwreck

    Fredwreck is a record producer from Los Angeles, California. He got his big break when he became a producer for Dr. Dre's newly founded Aftermath Records label, and went on to work with Snoop Dogg's record label Dogghouse Records and became a known producer on Tha Dogg Pound-affiliated material....
    , (Palestinian), hip hop producer.
  • Fawaz Gerges
    Fawaz Gerges

    Fawaz Gerges is an academic, author, and network news analyst, with expertise on the Middle East. He is currently the Christian A. Johnson Chair in International Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies at Sarah Lawrence College in the United States....
    , ABC analyst, regular guest on Oprah's Anti-war series
    Oprah's Anti-war series

    Oprah?s Anti-war series was a series of episodes of the Oprah Winfrey Show that ran from early November 2002 until March 18, 2003. The series was supposed to begin in the Fall of 2001 but was delayed when the pilot episode inspired an enormous backlash....
    .
  • Chris Kattan
    Chris Kattan

    Christopher Lee Kattan is an American actor/comedian, best known for his work on the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live....
    , (Iraqi Jewish father), comedian and actor, best known for his work on Saturday Night Live
    Saturday Night Live

    Saturday Night Live is a weekly late-night 90-minute American sketch comedy/variety show filmed in New York City. It made its debut on October 11, 1975....
    .
  • Zainab Salbi
    Zainab Salbi

    Zainab Salbi is an Iraqi American writer, activist and social entrepreneur who is co-founder and president for Women for Women International....
    , (Iraqi), co-founder and president of Women for Women International
    Women for Women International

    Women for Women International is an international organization advocating for women's rights....
    .
  • Kathy Najimy
    Kathy Najimy

    Kathy Ann Najimy is a Lebanese-American actress, known as Olive Massery on the television series Veronica's Closet, Sister Mary Patrick in Sister Act and the voice of Peggy Hill on the animated television series King of the Hill....
     (Lebanese) actress in many American films that include Sister Act
    Sister Act

    Sister Act is a 1992 in film Cinema of the United States comedy film released by Touchstone Pictures. Directed by Emile Ardolino, it features musical arrangements by Marc Shaiman and stars Whoopi Goldberg as a Reno lounge singer who has been put under protective custody in a San Francisco convent and has to pretend to be a nun when a mob...
    .
  • Rosemary Barkett
    Rosemary Barkett

    Rosemary Barkett is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Prior to her nomination for that post, she was Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court, where she was the first woman ever to serve on that court....
    , (Syrian), first woman Supreme Court Justice and Chief Justice for the state of Florida.
  • Heather Raffo
    Heather Raffo

    Heather Raffo is an Lucille Lortel Award-winning Iraqi American playwright and actress, best known for her leading role in the one-woman play 9 Parts of Desire....
    , (Iraqi father) playwright and actress.
  • Kaysar Ridha
    Kaysar Ridha

    Kaysar Ridha was a contestant on Big Brother USA season 6 and Big Brother USA season 7, a Reality television in the United States shown on the channel CBS....
    , (Iraqi) businessman and contestant on reality series Big Brother.
  • Wafah Dufour
    Wafah Dufour

    Wafah Dufour born May 23, 1975 in Los Angeles, California) is an United States singer-songwriter, socialite and model . Her father, Yeslam bin Ladin , is Saudi Arabian and her mother, Carmen bin Ladin, is of Switzerland father and Iranian mother from a noble family ....
    , (Saudi Arabian Father) supermodel and singer/songwriter famous as the niece of Osama Bin Laden
    Osama bin Laden

    Osama bin Laden is a member of the prominent Saudi Arabia bin Laden family and the founder of the terrorist organization al-Qaeda, best known for the September 11 attacks on the United States....
    .
  • Charles Elachi
    Charles Elachi

    Charles Asshur Al-Wadad Elachi is the Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory , located in Pasadena, California. He has held this position since May 1, 2001 and also holds professorships in electrical engineering and planetary science at Caltech....
    , (Lebanese) director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
    Jet Propulsion Laboratory

    Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a List of federally funded research and development centers and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, California, United States....
    .
  • John Zogby
    John Zogby

    John Zogby is an United States political pollster and first senior fellow at The Catholic University of America's Life Cycle Institute. He is the founder, president and CEO of Zogby International, a polling firm known for both phone polling and interactive, Internet-based polling....
    , (Lebanese) founder and current President/CEO of Zogby International
    Zogby International

    Zogby International is an American market research, opinion polling firm founded in 1984 by John Zogby. The company polls, researches and consults for a wide spectrum of business media, government, and political groups, and conducts public opinion research in more than 70 countries....
    .
  • James Zogby
    James Zogby

    James J. Zogby is an American academic, political consultant and founder and president of the Washington, D.C.-based Arab American Institute. In 2001, Zogby was elected to the Executive Committee of the Democratic Party ....
    , (Lebanese) founder and president of the Arab American Institute
    Arab American Institute

    Founded in 1985, the Arab American Institute is a non-profit, membership organization and advocacy group based in Washington D.C. that focuses on the issues and interests of Arab-Americans nationwide....
    .
  • Najeeb Halaby
    Najeeb Halaby

    Najeeb Elias Halaby was a US businessman, government official, and the father of Queen Noor of Jordan of Jordan....
    , (Syrian) father of Queen Noor of Jordan Lisa Elhalabi, Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration
    Federal Aviation Administration

    The Federal Aviation Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Transportation with authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S....
    . CEO, and chairman of Pan Am.
  • Doug Flutie
    Doug Flutie

    Douglas Richard Flutie is a retired American football and Canadian football quarterback. Flutie played college football at Boston College, and played professionally in the National Football League, Canadian Football League, and United States Football League....
    , (Lebanese father) NFL Player of the Buffalo Bills
    Buffalo Bills

    The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the metropolitan area of Buffalo, New York. They sold out every game in 2008....
     and San Diego Chargers
    San Diego Chargers

    The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. They are currently members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
    .
  • Jacques Nasser
    Jacques Nasser

    Jacques Al-Salawat Nasruddin Nasser nicknamed "Jac The Knife" because of his penchant for cost-cutting, is a business executive, most known for his infamous tenure as Chief executive officer of Ford Motor Company, serving from 1999 until 2001....
    , (Lebanese) Former president and CEO of Ford Motor Company
    Ford Motor Company

    The Ford Motor Company is an United States multinational corporation and the world's List of automobile manufacturers#World Motor Vehicle Production by Manufacturer based on worldwide vehicle sales, following Toyota, General Motors, and Volkswagen Group....
    .
  • John J. Mack
    John J. Mack

    John J. Mack is the current CEO and Chairman of the Board of Morgan Stanley, one of two remaining "bulge bracket" investment bank.Mack has worked for the company for nearly thirty years....
    , (Lebanese) Chairman of the Board and CEO of Morgan Stanley
    Morgan Stanley

    Morgan Stanley is a global financial services provider headquartered in New York City, New York, United States. It serves a diversified group of corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals....
  • Khalid Khannouchi
    Khalid Khannouchi

    Khalid Yusuf Abdurahman Khannouchi is an Morocco United States marathon . He was born in Meknes, Morocco. He is the former world record holder for the marathon and held the former road world best for the 20 km distance....
    , (Moroccan) Marathon world record holder.
  • Lorraine Ali
    Lorraine Ali

    Lorraine Ali is a reporter, editor and culture writer for many publications, including Newsweek where she is a Contributing Editor. She covers culture at large as well as pop culture, and writes frequently about the Middle East and Iraq in pieces such as "When Home Becomes Hell"....
    , (Iraqi) reporter, editor, culture writer, and music critic for Newsweek
    Newsweek

    Newsweek is an United States weekly newsmagazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally....
    .
  • Wentworth Miller
    Wentworth Miller

    Wentworth Earl Miller III is a Golden Globe-nominated United Kingdom-born United States actor who rose to stardom following his role as Michael Scofield in the Fox Network television series Prison Break....
    , (Syrian/Lebanese) actor.
  • Susie Gharib
    Susie Gharib

    Susie Gharib is a leading business news journalist and co-anchor of PBS' Nightly Business Report? television?s most watched evening business news program....
    , co-anchor of the Nightly Business Report, 100 most influential business journalists.
  • Sanaa Hamri
    Sanaa Hamri

    Sanaa Hamri is a Moroccan American music video director. She is one of the few prominent female music video directors. Her videos include but are not limited to Jadakiss's "U Make Me Wanna", Prince's "Musicology" and Mariah Carey's "Crybaby ", Bringing On The Heartbreak, "Don't Stop ", and Mariah Carey's unreleased video for "Last Night a DJ...
    , (Moroccan) music video and movie director; her films include the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2.
  • Elias Zerhouni
    Elias Zerhouni

    Elias A. Zerhouni physician was the 15th director of the National Institutes of Health, appointed by George W. Bush in May 2002. On September 24, 2008 he announced that he will step down as NIH Director at the end of October 2008....
     (Algerian) current director of the National Institutes of Health
    National Institutes of Health

    The National Institutes of Health is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research....
    .
  • George Noory
    George Noory

    George Ralph Noory is an American Talk radio host.As of 2008, he is the weekday host of the late-night radio talk show Coast to Coast AM....
     (Lebanese) radio host, host of Coast To Coast AM
    Coast to Coast AM

    Coast to Coast AM is a North American late-night syndicated radio talk show which deals with a variety of topics, but most frequently ones that relate either to the paranormal, or to alleged conspiracy theory....
     with George Noory.


See also

  • American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
    American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

    The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee is the largest American grassroots civil rights organization in the United States. According to its web page it is open to people of all backgrounds, faiths and ethnicities and has over 40 chapters and members in all 50 states....
  • Arab American Institute
    Arab American Institute

    Founded in 1985, the Arab American Institute is a non-profit, membership organization and advocacy group based in Washington D.C. that focuses on the issues and interests of Arab-Americans nationwide....
  • Arab lobby in the United States
    Arab lobby in the United States

    The Arab lobby in the United States is a collection of formal and informal groups that lobbyist the public and government of the United States on behalf of Arab interests and/or on behalf of Arab-American rights in the United States....
  • Arab diaspora
    Arab diaspora

    Arab diaspora refers to the numbers of Arab Emigration, and their descendants, who voluntarily or as refugees emigrated from their native countries and now reside in non-Arab nations, primarily in Western countries as well as parts of Asia, Latin America, The Caribbean, and West Africa....
  • Diaspora politics in the United States
    Diaspora politics in the United States

    Diaspora politics in the United States is the study of the Theories of political behavior of transnational ethnic groups diasporas, their relationship with their ethnic homelands and their host states, as well as their prominent role in ethnic conflicts....
  • Hyphenated American
    Hyphenated American

    The term hyphenated American is an epithet common from 1890 to 1920 used to disparage Americans who were of foreign birth or origin, and who displayed an allegiance to a foreign country....
  • Iraqi diaspora
    Iraqi diaspora

    The Iraqi diaspora refers to native Iraqis who have left for other countries as emigrants or refugees, and is now one of the largest in modern times, being described by the UN as a "humanitarian crisis" largely due to the 2003 invasion of Iraq....
  • Refugees of Iraq
    Refugees of Iraq

    Throughout the past 100 years, there have been a growing number of refugees fleeing Iraq and settling throughout the world, peaking recently with the latest Iraq War....
  • Western Muslims
    Western Muslims

    Western Muslims are Muslims who reside in the Western world. Ever since the rise of Islam, Muslims have lived in parts of the West alongside Jews and Christians....


External links



Books

  • High-school level look at Arab Americans


Festival Links



Arab American Organizations