Colombian American

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A Colombian American is an immigrant from Colombia to the United States. Economic problems and violence have led to an emigration of Colombians to the U.S., particularly South Florida (especially Kendall and Weston), New Jersey, Queens County in New York City, and eastern Long Island. Jackson Heights in Queens County was heavily Colombian during the 80's, but other immigrant groups have settled in the area, mostly Mexicans. Colombians are among the largest South American immigrant groups to the U.S. Like other South American immigrants and unlike Central American and Caribbean Latino immigrants, Colombians tend to come from urban areas.

Ethnically, Colombians are a diverse population with Afro-Colombians, Spanish-Colombians, and, to a lesser extent, Native American-Colombians. However, the majority are various mixes of all three. The main musical interests are vallenato, salsa and cumbia. The vast majority of Colombians are Roman Catholic; younger Colombians are significantly more secular than the older generation.^{[citation needed]} Colombian food is highly varied. Popular dishes are bandeja paisa ("peasant's platter"), sancocho (soup), empanadas (meat-filled turnovers), and pandebono (a type of cheese-bread). Colombian food is popular and well-known in Queens County. Their main pastime is soccer, but Colombian Americans raised in the U.S., like most children of immigrant groups, tend to seek out American sports. Another popular pastime, especially among the older generation, is Parcheesi (known as 'parqués').