Greek immigration to Mexico

Greek Mexicans
greco-mexicanos

Total population
248 Greece-born residents (2015)[1] est.1,500 families of Greek descent[2]
Regions with significant populations
Sinaloa, Mexico City, Guadalajara
Languages
Mexican Spanish and Greek
Religion
Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Greeks and Greek diaspora

Greek Mexicans (Greek: Ελληνομεξικανοί) are Mexican residents of either full or partial Greek descent. The largest Greek communities are in Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Sinaloa. Smaller numbers of Greeks can be found in Aguascalientes, Acaponeta, Tepic, and Pachuca.

History

Felipe Muñoz Kapamas won Mexico's first gold medal in a swimming event at the 1968 Olympics.

Greeks have immigrated to Mexico since the 18th century, with the largest influx arriving in the mid-20th century and settling in Mexico City, Sinaloa state, and border cities. While many had left Greece due to war and political instability in Greece, the Mexican government also offered incentives for Greeks to work in Mexico, specifically in Sinaloa. During the 1940s, the Mexican government invited a large number of Greeks to Sinaloa to improve harvest of tomatoes.^[3] Soon the Greek community became so large that the area around the Tamazula, Humaya, and Culiacán rivers became known as the "Valle de Grecia" (“Valley of Greece”).^[4] Today, Sinaloa has a heavy Greek presence, and Greek surnames are very common in the state. Greek Mexican families can also be found in other major cities around the republic, such as Mexico City and Guadalajara.

Figures

Statistics regarding exact number of Greek people in Mexico vary greatly, especially due to the different numbers for native-born Greeks and for Mexicans of Greek descent. The only official number is of native-born Greeks, which stood at 298 at the time the Mexican national census of 2000.^[5] When including descendants of Greeks, published estimates range from 1,000 to 4,000 individuals.

The General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad estimates that only 1,000 Greeks live in Mexico.^[6] On the other hand, according to the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the number stands at about 4,000, including descendants of Greeks.^[7] In agreement with the estimate by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Elena Stamatiadou, president of the Comunidad Helenica de Mexico in Mexico City, estimated that there were at least 1,500 Greek families living in Mexico. Stamatiadou stated that most families were made up of second and third-generation Greeks from Euboea, Greece's second largest island.^[8] A lower estimate of 300 families was published in Greece Now magazine in 2004.^[9] Other sources report significant numbers of immigrants from Cyprus and mainland Greece.

Communities

Sinaloa

The state of Sinaloa arguably has the largest Greek community in all of Mexico, with estimates in the capital city of Culiacán alone standing at 2,000 individuals.^[7] Greeks can also be found in the cities of Mazatlán, Guamúchil, Guasave, and Los Mochis. Culiacán is home to the Comunidad Helénica of Culiacán (Hellenic Community of Culiacán).^[10]

Mexico City

The Catedral Ortodoxa Griega de Santa Sofia in Naucalpan.

Around 250 Greek Mexican families, or 1,500 individuals, live in and around Mexico City.^[7] A major centerpiece of the Greek community of the Greater Mexico City area is the Greek Orthodox Church of Santa Sofia in Naucalpan, Mexico State.^[11] The church also serves as the home for the Comunidad Helenica de Mexico, or Hellenic Community of Mexico.

Guadalajara

Guadalajara is home to around 230 Greeks.^[7] It is also the home of the Casa Helenica de Guadalajara (Hellenic House of Guadalajara) and the Amigos de Grecia (Friends of Greece), which organize community events and offers Greek classes to the public. Elsewhere in the state of Jalisco, the municipality of Colotlán also boasts its own Greek community.^[8]

Numbers

Greek net migration to Mexico from 1857 to 1976 Year period Greek-speaking immigrants 1857–1860 54 1861–1870 100 1871–1880 102 1881–1890 383 1891–1900 1,042 1901–1910 372 1911–1920 374 1921–1930 370 1931–1940 310 1941–1950 298 1951–1960 N/A 1961–1970 N/A 1971–1976 85 Total 3,490 Notable people Homero Aridjis, prominent writer Homero Aridjis - writer and diplomat Los Chicharrines - comedians[12] Crisantes - singer Constantino Costas - actor Lambrina Kolioussi - of UNAM and the Hellenic Community of Mexico Lampros Kontogiannis - football player Sofía Lama - actress Enrique Metinides - photographer Felipe Muñoz Kapamas - 1968 Olympic gold medalist and head of the Olympic Committee of Mexico Plotino Rhodakanaty - anarchist Dimitrios Sarrás - actor and director See also Greece–Mexico relations References "Table 16: Total migrant stock at mid-year by origin and by major area, region, country or area of destination, 2015". United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 20 March 2016. "Cultural Relations and Greek Community". Embassy of Greece in Mexico. Retrieved 7 January 2016. "Los griegos de Culiacán" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on September 13, 2005. Retrieved 2008-02-03. "La cultura, el mejor antídoto contra la violencia y la agresividad" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2008-02-27. Retrieved 2008-01-24. "Database on immigrants and expatriates". Retrieved 2009-12-29. "Diaspora General Facts" (in Greek). Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2008-02-13. "Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Greece in the world" (in Greek). "México, Ciudad de México, 3 de julio de 2007" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2008-02-26. Retrieved 2008-02-03. The Greek side of Mexico: Friendship and similarities attested to by hundreds of Greeks who have made Mexico their adopted country "Diaspora Organizations" (PDF) (in Greek). Retrieved 2008-01-24. "Tiempo Libre: La Guía de la Ciudad" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2008-01-24. "Dos hermanos muy 'payasos'" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2008-03-06. External links Comunidad Helenica de Mexico Greek community of Mexico The Greek side of Mexico: "The Greek Side of Mexico" Casa Helenica de Guadalajara, AC