Korea: Immigrant Stories
Korean Immigrants in the United States
According to the 2019–2023 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year dataset, an estimated 1,025,743 Korean immigrants live in the United States, representing 2.2 percent of the total immigrant population of 46,134,671. The top three states with the largest percentage of Korean immigrants as a percentage of the total foreign-born population include Alaska (5.5%), Hawaii (5.4%), and Alabama (5.4%).
The median age among Korean immigrants living in the United States is 50 years old and the median year of immigration to the United States for immigrants from Korea is 1994. More than two-thirds (68%) of Korean immigrants are naturalized U.S. citizens and 51 percent of Korean immigrants are proficient in English. Korean immigrants have high employment rates (96%), and 17 percent are self-employed or business owners.
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K.C. LEE was born in South Korea. Both of his parents were well-educated, and his father was a businessman. In 1982, his father decided to come to the United States to determine if it made sense for the family to emigrate. At the time, Mr. Lee’s mother had two sisters who lived in Colorado, and they offered to help their brother-in-law explore opportunities. In 1984, Mr. Lee, his mother, and his brother joined their father in Northglenn, Colorado, just north of Denver. Six months later, the family moved to the City of Aurora, and Mr. Lee “hasn’t left since!”
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Korean Immigrants in the Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD Metro Areas
More than one million foreign-born Koreans live in the United States today, and approximately 79,400 Korean immigrants live in the Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD metro areas. The largest numbers of Korean immigrants are found in Fairfax County, VA (30,100), Montgomery County, MD (12,400) and Howard County, MD (9,500).
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JI-HOON, then 35, came to the United States with his family when he was five. He learned English and finished school in the United States. His wife is Korean American and they have two young children who attend a local elementary school. Ji-hoon works as a Manager in a well-known South Korean chicken franchise. This interview highlights his retention of Korean cultural practices and traditions, especially food and maintaining co-ethnic friendships. Ji-hoon enjoys cooking American food for his children because they like it more than Korean food. He feels more connected with his Korean friends as he thinks that they have more in common culturally and experientially. Ji-hoon comments on some previous racist experiences that he had after arriving here, but he believes that he and his family would not consider moving back to Korea. They appreciate U.S. culture and values.