| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 1,716 (2000 US census) 36,951 (Togolese-born. 2023 American Community Survey Briefs)< | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Montgomery County, Maryland, Bronx County, New York, Hennepin County, Minnesota, Marion County, Indiana and Douglas County, Nebraska | |
| Languages | |
| Lists of Americans |
|---|
| By US state |
| By ethnicity |
Togolese Americans (French: Américains togolais) are Americans of Togolese descent. According to answers provided to an open-ended question included in the 2000 census, 1,716 people said that their ancestry or ethnic origin was Togolese. An unofficial estimate in 2008 of the Togolese American population was more than 2,500.
History
The first people from present-day Togo arrived in the United States enslaved. Most of these slaves shipped to the United States were disembarked at the Gulf Coast. The Gulf Coast includes the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Most of the slaves belonged to the Ewe people which inhabit the south-eastern part of Ghana, Togo, Benin, and south-western Nigeria. This lasted until 1859, when Togolese-descended Cudjo Lewis arrived to Mobile from Dahomey. After the abolition of slavery, few Togolese came to the United States.
Demography
Most Togolese who live in the United States are in the country legally and have received diversity immigrant visas, which require them to show that they were not likely to become public charges before receiving the visas. Many Togolese emigrated to the U.S. to further their education.
There is a Togolese community in Chicago.
Notable people
Gale Agbossoumonde
Cudjoe Lewis with his wife
- Gale Agbossoumonde, soccer player
- Tabi Bonney, rapper
- Bruce Djite, soccer player
- Jonte' Moaning, dancer
- Marie Thérèse Metoyer, businesswoman
See also
References
- ^ "Table 1. First, Second, and Total Responses to the Ancestry Question by Detailed Ancestry Code: 2000". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
- Data Access and Dissemination Systems (DADS). "American FactFinder - Results".
- "U.S. Immigrant Population by State and County". migrationpolicy.org. February 4, 2014.
- ^ Ickes, Barb (May 25, 2008). "Togolese immigrants work hard to give back to their communities". The Quad-City Times.
- "Question of the Month: Cudjo Lewis: Last African Slave in the U.S.?", by David Pilgrim, Curator, Jim Crow Museum, July 2005, webpage:Ferris-Clotilde Archived 2017-05-25 at the Wayback Machine.
- "ilink". USCIS. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
- "Togolese". www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org.
| African immigration to the United States | |||||||||
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| North Africa | |||||||||
| Sub-Saharan Africa |
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| African ethnic groups in the United States | |||||||||
| Several African ethnic groups are dispersed throughout different areas of Africa, regardless of countries or regions. | |||||||||