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Bolivian Americans

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Bolivian Americans
Boliviano-estadounidenses (Spanish)
Total population
116,646 (2018)[1]
0.04% of the U.S. population (2018)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Languages
Religion
Predominantly Roman Catholic • Protestant • Mennonite, Mormon • Jehovah's Witnesses • Judaism • Atheist • Non-religious
Related ethnic groups
Bolivians, Afro-Bolivians, White Bolivians, Indigenous peoples in Bolivia, Spanish Americans, Latin Americans, Hispanic Americans, Paraguayan Americans, Argentine Americans, Peruvian Americans, Brazilian Americans, Quechua Alliance, Native Americans

Bolivian Americans or Bolivia-Americans (Spanish: boliviano-estadounidenses, norteamericanos de origen boliviano or estadounidenses de origen boliviano) are Americans of at least partial Bolivian descent.

Bolivian Americans are usually those of Indigenous, Mestizo, or Spanish background but also occasionally having African, German, Croatian, Lebanese, Palestinian and/or Japanese heritage. To a lesser extent, also having Italian or Korean heritage.

Bolivians compose the third smallest Latin American group in the United States, with a 2010 Census population of 99,210. The highest concentration resides in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area, which accounts for 38% of the total Bolivian population in the United States (especially Fairfax County, Virginia).[2] Additional areas of concentration include the New York City borough of Queens, Miami-Dade County, and the cities of Los Angeles and Providence, Rhode Island. In relative terms, a large number of Bolivian-born medical doctors reside in the Chicago metropolitan area.

History

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Westlake Theatre building, side wall mural of Jaime Escalante and Edward James Olmos.

Small numbers of Bolivians have been immigrating into the United States since at least the California Gold Rush in the mid-nineteenth century. In the first half of the twentieth century, some upper-class Bolivians came to the United States seeking to further their own and their children's academic education or artistic training, including, for example, Antonio Sotomayor, who arrived in San Francisco in 1923, the father of Raquel Welch, an aeronautical engineering student at the University of Illinois in the 1930s, and the father of violin child prodigy Jaime Laredo, who moved to San Francisco in the 1940s.

Large-scale Bolivian immigration into the United States occurred in two significant phases. The first phase occurred during and subsequent to the 1952 National Revolution (between 1952 and the latter 1960s). Most of these immigrants consisted of middle- to upper-middle income occupational professionals or political dissidents, belonging mainly to Bolivia's European descendant community.[3]

The second notable phase of Bolivian immigration (between 1980 and 1988) was a result of Bolivia's fiscal policies in the 1970s which gave way to the hyperinflation throughout most of the 1980s. Most of these immigrants consisted of lower-income Mestizo (European/Amerindian mix) and Indigenous Bolivians obtaining work posts as service and manual laborers. Most of the Bolivian American population is of Quechua descent, with the majority of them hailing from the Valle Alto region of Cochabamba, from towns like Tarata, Arbieto, Cliza, Punata, and Tolata, with most of them living in the D.C. area.[4] They have also organized themselves into institutions—see "Community" below.

Many Bolivians who emigrated to the United States came as tourists. However, many remained of indefinite way in the country, setting with family and friends. This made it difficult to know the number of Bolivians living in the United States. Between 1984 and 1993, only 4,574 Bolivians got U.S. citizenship. In this period about 457 were naturalized each year.[5]

Demographics

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Actress and singer Raquel Welch.

Bolivians have settled throughout the United States, mainly in Washington D.C., California and Maryland; there are also large groups of Bolivian immigrants in Texas, New York City, New Jersey, South Florida, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Chicago. The number of Bolivians in the U.S. in 2006 was estimated at 82,322. Most Bolivian immigrants are high school or college graduates; many work in companies, in government or in academia.[5]

Community

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Many Bolivian Americans had arrived in the United States under college athletic scholarships (e.g. tennis) in the 1960s and thereafter, for medical residency training, or for post-graduate university education. The first Fulbright Scholars from Bolivia went to the US in the mid-1950s, including the civil engineer Walter Gonzalez Gonzalez[6] and the economist Blanca Sfeir Cavero.[7][8]

The first Bolivian Americans organised their community and they founded organisations such as the Bolivian American Chamber of Commerce[9], the Bolivian American Medical Society,[10] and the Bolivian Studies Journal was founded.[11] The Bolivian American Hugo Muriel served as the City of Chicago's Health Commissioner in the Mayor Jane Byrne administration.[10]

Moreover, in the early 1990s, the Bolivian American Medical Society received the Order of the Condor of the Andes award from the then president of Bolivia Jaime Paz Zamora.[10]

The first generation of Bolivian American medical doctors came mostly from the Universidad Mayor de San Simon (Cochabamba) and the Universidad Mayor de San Andres (La Paz). Some of the children of the first generation Bolivian American medical professionals studied medicine as well.[12][13]

Bolivian Americans also attend various prestigious universities such as Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, M.I.T., and the United States Military Academy.

The American Bolivian Collective, founded in 2019 by Charlene Amini is one of the largest platforms in the diaspora. It includes Bolivians in the diaspora in the U.S., which is concentrated in areas like DC, Virginia, Maryland, California, and New York.[14] In addition to its digital presence, the Collective organizes cultural events and advocacy efforts to promote Bolivia's heritage and support Bolivian Americans.[15][16] The organization also offers the 'Janett Adams' scholarship, which awards $1,500 to help Bolivian American students achieve their educational goals.[17]

In Chicago, the group Renacer Boliviano, the core of which hails from La Paz and Oruro, began as a caporales folk dance troupe, expanded into hosting Bolivian carnaval dinner dances in the winter and 6 de agosto barbecues in the summer, and finally has become a charitable organization that raises funds for charities in Bolivia[18] and in northern Virginia, the Arlington Bolivian Soccer League Inc is a 501(c)3 not for profit[19] that has provided funding for erecting in the Tarata town square an equestrian statue of war of independence hero Esteban Arze.

Another way that Bolivian immigrants to the United States maintain community is through annual reunions of graduates of Bolivian high schools, such as the American Institute ("Amerinst"),[20] which has schools in La Paz and Cochabamba, and Colegio La Salle ("La Salle"), which has schools in La Paz, Cochabamba, Oruro, Santa Cruz, and Trinidad. Amerinst was founded by Methodist missionaries from New York and Illinois and La Salle was founded by Catholic Christian brothers from France and Spain. Notable alumni of Amerinst include President Hernan Siles Zuazo and Vice President Juan Lechin Oquendo as well as Bolivian Americans Jorge Berindoague, Michael Jusbasche, Nelly Sfeir Gonzalez, Daisy Urquiola Wende, and Peter F. McFarren. In addition, Chilean writer Isabel Allende is also an alumna of Amerinst. Notable alumni of Colegio La Salle include President Jorge Quiroga, neuroscientist Mohammed Mostajo-Radji, urologist Fernando Gonzalez Sfeir and Nobel laureate in literature Mario Vargas Llosa.

Areas

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A Bolivian restaurant in Falls Church, Virginia

The largest populations of Bolivians are situated in the following areas (Source: Census 2010):

  1. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV MSA – 37,607
  2. New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA MSA – 9,749
  3. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA MSA – 7,068
  4. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL MSA – 6,697
  5. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX MSA – 2,359
  6. Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL-IN-WI MSA – 2,099
  7. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA MSA – 2,078
  8. Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA MSA – 1,970
  9. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX MSA – 1,223
  10. Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH MSA – 1,170
  11. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA MSA – 1,114
  12. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA MSA – 898
  13. San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA MSA and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL MSA – 808
  14. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL MSA – 744
  15. Baltimore-Towson, MD MSA – 710
  16. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA MSA – 647
  17. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA MSA – 558
  18. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD MSA – 524
  19. Salt Lake City, UT MSA – 519
  20. Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ MSA – 502

Immigrants by County 2015-2019[2]

Total immigrant population from Bolivia in the U.S.: 78,900

Top Counties:

  1. Fairfax County, VA ---------------------------- 13,000
  2. Miami-Dade County, FL --------------------- 4,000
  3. Los Angeles County, CA -------------------- 3,600
  4. Arlington County, VA -------------------------- 3,600
  5. Montgomery County, MD ------------------- 3,500
  6. Prince William County, VA ------------------ 3,300
  7. Queens Borough, NY -------------------------- 1,800
  8. Orange County, CA ----------------------------- 1,800
  9. Loudoun County, VA --------------------------- 1,800
  10. Providence County, RI ---------------------- 1,700
  11. Harris County, TX ----------------------------- 1,600
  12. Collier County, FL ----------------------------- 1,500
  13. Broward County, FL -------------------------- 1,400
  14. Alexandria City, VA --------------------------- 1,300
  15. Cook County, IL -------------------------------- 1,100

Notable people

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See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 "B03001 HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGIN BY SPECIFIC ORIGIN - United States - 2018 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. July 1, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  2. 1 2 "U.S. Immigrant Population by State and County". migrationpolicy.org. February 4, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  3. ↑ The American Latino: Psychodynamic Perspectives on Culture and Mental Health Issues.
  4. ↑ Only the Bridge Matters Now
  5. 1 2 Bolivian Americans by Tim Eigo
  6. ↑ Jaldin, Marcelo (November 13, 2022). "Premio Walter Gonzalez: la Excelencia Académica de Ingenieria Civil" [Walter Gonzalez Prize: Academic Excellence in Civil Engineering]. La Razon (in Spanish). LaPaz, Bolivia. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
  7. 1 2 "In Memoriam: Nelly Sfeir Gonzalez". February 5, 2021.
  8. 1 2 "Nelly Sfeir Gonzalez". Champaign-Urbana News Gazette. December 12, 2020.
  9. ↑ "History & Mission". bolivia-us.org. Bolivian American Chamber of Commerce. 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 Cavero, Raleigh. "Our Latino Heritage: Why Chicago Became Home to Many Bolivian Doctors". Latino Reports. NBC News.
  11. ↑ https://bsj.pitt.edu/Journal History
  12. ↑ Del Valle, Galeno (August 6, 2025). "Nietos del matrimonio Sfeir Cabero, primos hermanos festejan 40 annos de carrera medica" [Grandchildren of the Sfeir Cabero marriage, brother cousins celebrate 40 years in the medical profession] (in Spanish). Cochabamba, Bolivia: Opinion newspaper.
  13. ↑ "Fernando Gonzalez-Sfeir, 40 annos de excelencia medica" [Fernando Gonzalez-Sfeir, 40 years of medical excellence] (in Spanish). La Paz, Bolivia: El Diario newspaper. August 6, 2025.
  14. ↑ Mollericona, Daniel. "Unboliviable". Brújula Digital.
  15. ↑ Aliaga, Anna. "Exploring Cultural Identities / Explorando Identidades Culturales". Bolivian Express.
  16. ↑ "American Bolivian Collective". American Bolivian Collective.
  17. ↑ "American Bolivian Collective in Memory of Janett Adams Scholarship". Bold.org. Bold Scholarships.
  18. ↑ "Renacer Boliviano". Archived from the original on September 26, 2023.
  19. ↑ Wax, Emily. "For Area Bolivians, Cherishing the Past, Looking to the Future". The Washington Post.
  20. ↑ "Asociación de Ex-Alumnos Amerinst USA (AEA-USA)". examerinst-usa.com. AEA-USA. 2022. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  21. ↑ "Profiling a Scientist: Annelise Barron". NPR. February 25, 2002. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  22. ↑ McCormick, Brian (October 29, 2002). "Forty Under Forty: Annelise Barron, 34". Crain's Chicago Business. Chicago, Illinois.
  23. ↑ Donberger, Tafra (June 21, 2019). "Daniel Bedoya: Riding for a Living from Bolivia to Texas". Sidelines magazine. Crossville, Tennessee.
  24. ↑ "Quilona V Z Officially Retired in Great Southwest Equestrian Center Ceremony". The Plaid Horse magazine. November 15, 2022. Quilona next stepped onto the world stage of Bolivia's Daniel Bedoya, who made his FEI debut with the mare in 2017. That same year, Bedoya and Quilona V Z had the honor of representing Bolivia at the Bolivarian Games in Colombia.
  25. ↑ "Get to know Susana Benavides, the best female golfer ever (from Bolivia)". golfdigest.com.
  26. ↑ "Susana Benavides Lends Support to Growing G2 Juniors Program". The Golf Wire.
  27. ↑ Zalis, Shelley (October 21, 2021). "On Latina Equal Pay Day: Let's Get More Latinas Into Tech". Forbes.
  28. ↑ "Heather Conneely is Fostering a Culture of Feedback at Meta". alumnisociety.com. August 9, 2023.
  29. ↑ "Fellowship Community--Women in Power--92NY". 92ny.org. 2026.
  30. ↑ "Heather Conneely (Facebook): The Rising Power of the Latino Digital Voice". youtube.com. March 25, 2016.
  31. ↑ "Eduardo Gamarra discusses the political actions taken against Juan Guaido". You/tube.
  32. ↑ "Eduardo Gamarra -- Inter-American Dialogue".
  33. ↑ "Testimony of Eduardo A. Gamarra, PhD" (PDF). Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  34. ↑ McCaffrey, Scott (July 25, 2024). "Escaping Turmoil, Bolivian Immigrant Has Made Local Impact". Arlington, Virginia: Arlington Gazette-Leader newspaper. p. 3.
  35. ↑ "El fraile capuchino y la viuda boliviana 40 anos despues" [The Capuchin monk and the Bolivian widow 40 years later] (in Spanish). La Paz, Bolivia: El Diario newspaper. November 28, 2025. p. Sociales.
  36. ↑ "Academy Graduates: Open Combat Roles to Women" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. September 17, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 1, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2024. Letter to Secretary Ray Mabus, Office of the Secretary of the Navy, from 60 graduates of the US Military Academy at West Point and the US Naval Academy at Annapolis
  37. ↑ Sullivan, Pat (September 14, 2007). "Army Triathletes Continue Winning Ways" (PDF). Pointer View. Vol. 64, no. 36. United States Military Academy. p. 13. Retrieved September 16, 2025. [in September 2007, at the inaugural Annapolis Triathlon] of the 377 women who competed, junior Emily Sfeir was 27th at, 2:29:15
  38. ↑ Patton, Joshua (October–December 2017). "Developing a Live, Virtual, and Constructive Exercise Scenario to Train the Intelligence Warfighting Function" (PDF). Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, Vol. 43, No.4. 43 (4). Fort Huachuca, AZ: 26. Special thanks ...for contributing to this article: CPT Emily Sfeir ("4th ID G-2 Current Operations")
  39. ↑ "Gonzalez, Nelly S. 1930". encyclopedia.com. on line: on line encyclopedia. 2004. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  40. ↑ Mantilla, Martha; Sotomayor, Antonio (January 2022). "Remembering Nelly Sfeir Gonzalez". Bolivian Studies Journal. 28 (2022): 7–18. doi:10.5195/bsj.2022.259. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
  41. ↑  McLawhorn, Jennifer (October 24, 2023). "'Construction of Tunnels Means Sacrifice': Meet Eleanor Sillerico, Civil Engineer and Construction Manager". Los Angeles, California: RT&S newspaper.
  42. ↑ "Latinos en Metro: Para la ingeniera Eleanor Sillerico, cada tunel es un desafio fascinante" [Latinos in the Metro: for engineer Elearno Sillerico, each tunnel es a fascinating challenge]. Hispanic LA newspaper (in Spanish). October 29, 2009.
  43. ↑ "Premio Ing. Walter Gonzalez incentiva la excelencia académica" [Ing. Walter Gonzalez Prize Promotes Academic Excellence]. El Diario newspaper (in Spanish). La Paz, Bolivia. November 6, 2024. Retrieved November 28, 2024. nos enorgullecemos de hacer referencia a Eleanor Sillerico Mayta, gananadora del Premio el ano 2002, actualmente ella es la Gerente de Estructuras y Construccion de Tuneles de la empresa GZC de Nueva York y ahora lidera la construccion del colosal tunel Hudson River Tunnel Project con una inversion de 16 mil millones de dolares que conecta el estado de Nueva York con el Estado de Nueva Jersey [we take pride in highlighting Eleanor Sillerico Mayta, winner of the Prize in the year 2002, currently she is Manager of Structures and Construction of Tunnels for the company GZC of New York and she now leads the construction of the collosal tunnel Hudson River Tunnel Project which has an estimated cost of 16 billion dollares and connects the State of New York and the State of New Jersey]
  44. ↑ "Premio Ing. Walter Gonzalez incentiva la excelencia académica" [Ing. Walter Gonzalez Prize Promotes Academic Excellence]. El Diario newspaper (in Spanish). La Paz, Bolivia. November 6, 2024.
  45. ↑ Domeyko, Cecilia (1982). Portrait of Ana Maria Vera (video). documentary film (television). Virginia: WETA-TV (local PBS in Virginia). Retrieved June 28, 2025.

Further reading

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