Korean Americans

Korean Americans (Korean: 한국계 미국인) are Americans who are of full or partial Korean ethnic descent. The majority of Korean Americans trace their ancestry to South Korea.

The term Korean Americans (also rendered as Korean-Americans) usually encompasses citizens of the United States of full or partial Korean descent. While the broader term Overseas Korean in America (미주한인/재미교포/재미한인) may refer to ethnic Koreans residing in the U.S., the specific designation of Korean American implies that an individual holds American citizenship.^[7] Korean Americans may, however, possess dual-citizenship with the Republic of Korea. Known as "dual citizens by birth" (or 선천적 복수국적자), these individuals are the children of parents with South Korean citizenship born in the US. As of 2021, it is estimated that there are 20,000 second generation Korean Americans who are dual citizens by birth.^[8]

In contrast to Northeast Asia, which is grappling with a significant low birth rate issue, the number of Korean Americans with both parents from Korea is growing by 5.9%. Moreover, the population of those with mixed heritage is increasing at a rate of 16.5%. Prominent scholars and Korean associations have reported that the Korean American population surpassed 2.5–3 million in the 2020s.^[9] However, the number of Korean Americans residing in the United States is fewer than that, according to some statistics. As of 2022, Americans of Korean descent composed an estimated 0.5% of the population, or 1,501,587 people.^[10] As the largest group within the Overseas Korean community, Korean Americans often trace their lineage to South Korea, which accounts for the majority of their ancestral origins.^[11]