Exploring the apparent success of Portuguese descendants in the US

Alda B. Azevedo , University of Lisbon
Lara Tavares, Universidade de Lisboa
Nachatter Garha, Universidad de La Coruña

Although Portuguese immigration in the US has a long history, there is limited knowledge about the Portuguese descendants now living in the US. This study aims to fill this gap. Using the five-year microdata from the American Community Survey spanning 2006 to 2020, we first describe who are the Portuguese descendants and where do they live in the US, distinguishing between those who speak Portuguese and those who do not. Descriptive findings at the national level reveal that Portuguese descendants generally outperform other US residents in various socioeconomic variables such as, educational attainment, occupations, wages, and socioeconomic status, though there are significant differences among those who speak Portuguese and those who do not. Then, a multivariate analysis will show if the higher wage premium of the Portuguese descendants who speak Portuguese persist even when controlling for other characteristics. In a further analysis, we will explore the labour earnings advantage of speaking a second language. For that, we will compare the Portuguese descendants who speak Portuguese with other second-generation migrants that speak other languages at home, besides English. Finally, we will compare the Portuguese descendants who speak Portuguese with Brazilian descendants who speak Portuguese, but who do not have any other ties to Portugal to try to ascertain the specific importance of the Portuguese language.

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 Presented in Session P3. Migration, Economics, Policies, History