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Consulate General of the Republic of
Slovenia New York

600 Third Avenue >>>
21st Floor
New York, NY 10016
USA

T: (212) 370 30 06
F: (212) 370 35 81
E: kny(at)gov.si

Consul General a. i.:
Dr. Melita GabriÄŤ

Slovenian Community

Consulate General of Slovenia in New York is an active participant in the activities of Slovene community in New York.  We also recognize that networking is important, especially in a city like New York.  With this in mind, as a service to the Slovenian community, the Consulate General would like to provide Slovenians and Slovenian-Americans with contact list of Slovenians and Slovenian-Americans in and around New York City.  For more information on this project or if you want to be included on the community contact list, please contact the Consulate General by email at kny(at)gov.si.

Short History

The early nineteenth century saw the arrival of the first Slovenians in the United States.  Among the first to arrive was Father Frederic Baraga who came over in 1830 and worked as a missionary among the Native Americans of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.  He eventually became the first Bishop of Marquette, Michigan and penned the first written works in Ojibwe (Chippewa) and Ottawa.  His Ojibwe grammar and dictionary are still being used today.

Father Baraga helped bring over several other Slovenian priests and Slovenians began settling in Michigan as early as 1856.  The 1860s and 1870s saw many Slovenians immigrating to the Mid-Western United States.  While many of them were farmers, most immigrants into the twentieth century worked in the mining, forest, iron and steel industries.  The largest early settlements were in Chicago and Joliet, Illinois.  Later immigrants migrated to Pennsylvania and Ohio, with the largest groups settling in Cleveland.

The Slovenian community established itself in New York as early as 1878.  The population continued to grow and in 1893 the first Slovenian newspaper appeared in New York, “Glas Naroda” (The People’s Voice).  By 1912 the newspaper had at least 9000 subscribers.  It was published until 1963, with varying frequency.

The majority of Slovenian immigrants in the Greater New York area came from Kamnik, Crnomelj, and Domzale.  They worked in banks, print shops, stores, and factories.  Many from Domzale were expert straw-hat makers and found their expertise gave them a unique foothold in the city, where straw hats were in high demand.

Mostly Catholic, Slovenian immigrants lacked a Slovenian parish in New York for many years.  In the absence of a parish of their own, they congregated at a handful of German speaking churches around the city and developed a number of societies within those churches, including choruses, youth societies, and a benefit society.  On January 29, 1916 a Slovenian parish was incorporated as St. Cyril Roman Catholic Church.  Located at 62 St. Mark’s Place in Manhattan's East Village, St. Cyril’s remains an important center of Slovenian life in New York to this day. (http://www.slovenci.si/severna_amerika/drustva/2008090508360101).

For their own benefit and mutual aid a number of societies were formed by Slovenians in the United States.  The three surviving societies are Kranjska Slovenska katoliska jednota (American Slovenian Catholic Union), founded in 1894 in Joliet, Illinois, Slovenska narodna podporna jednota (Slovene National Benefit Society), founded in 1904 in Pennsylvania as a secular alternative to KSKJ, and Slovenska Ĺľenska zveza (Slovenian Women's Union of America), founded in 1926 in Chicago, Illinois, to promote and support Slovene women's interests and concerns.  Over the years, the emphasis of KSKJ, SNPJ and SWUA has turned to actively connecting the Slovenian community, publishing for the Slovenian community (all three organizations have eihter newspapers or magazines), and promoting Slovenian culture.

According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census in 1910 123,631 people claimed Slovenian as their mother tongue.  In 1990 that number was somewhat unchanged with 124,437 people in the United States declaring Slovenian ancestry.  However, the 1990s this number rose dramatically and the 2000 census reported 176,691 people claiming Slovenian ancestry in the United States, a growth of nearly 42 percent.

LINKS

  • Office of the Government of Slovenia for Slovenes Living Abroad: (http://www.uszs.gov.si/en/)
  • Slovenia4You: http://www.slo4you.com/
  • Slovenian Catholic Union (KSKJ) (http://www.kskjlife.com/default.aspx)
  • Slovene National Benefit Society (SNPJ) (http://snpj.org)
  • The Slovenian Women's Union of America (SWUA) (http://www.swua.org/)
    The Slovenian Women's Union of America, Branch 93 in New York, Holds regular meetings for Slovenian women and women of Slovenian descent.  Men are welcome to participate as well.  The website for Branch 93 can be found here (http://www.swuanyc.org/).
  • Web Portal for Slovenes Abroad (www.slovenci.si)
    Created together with four private organizations, (Rafaelova druĹľba/Rafael’s Society, Izseljensko društvo Slovenija v svetu/Emigrant Society Slovenia in the World, Slovenska izseljenska matica/Slovenian Emigrant Association, and Svetovni slovenski kongres/Slovenian World Congress), this website offers information on Slovenia, the Slovene language, organizations in Slovenia as well Slovene events and organizations around the globe.  Slovenes living abroad are encouraged to explore the website and offer their own contributions, as the goal of the site is to be an interactive focal point for Slovenes living all over the world.
  • Slovenian Emigrant Association (http://www.zdruzenje-sim.si/default.asp?type=1&MenuID=1518)
    The Slovene Emigrant Association, a Ljubljana based organization, encourages developing ties with Slovenians living outside of Slovenia and maintaining already established ties.

PUBLICATIONS

Slovenian-American Publications

Slovenian Publications in English