Italians are widely recognized as the nationality that has seen the most amounts of immigrants into the United States.  Italians began immigrating into America in 1880 or so, at least consistently, whereas the beginnings of Italian immigration can be seen as early as the early 1600s.  The former period marked the primary set of immigration of Italians into America, which accounts for many Italian ancestors for those in the United States, along with that of World War II.

The very earliest documented arrival of Italians into what is now the United States can be seen in the 17^th century.  Pietro Cesare Alberti is known as the first Italian to live in the area, who was a Venetian sailor settling in the New York area in 1635.  The Taliaferro family was one of the first families to settle in Virginia in the 17^th century.  Additionally, a close friend of Thomas Jefferson, Filippo Mazzei, was a notably political activist and physician.  This period once again marked the small arrival of Italian immigrants who settled in the United States, in small numbers until the 1880s.

In the 1870s poverty, overpopulation, natural disaster, and other factors can be seen as precursors to the immigration of Italians into the United States.  Into 1900, southern Italy saw illiteracy rates around that of 70 percent.  Southern Italy especially was victim to high taxes on industrials goods in the northern part of the country.  The eruption of Mount Etna and the overpopulation of areas on Italy led to the immigration spurts that took place in America.

Likely from aforementioned conditions, immigrants from Southern Italy were seen quite prominently.  Immigrants from rural villages in Sicily and Campania were notable in the period after 1880, extending from the primary period from 1890 to 1900.  Primarily immigrants were Italian men, looking for high-paying jobs without intentions to stay in the country.  According to most sources, over a half million Italian immigrants were seen during this period.

In the early 1900s, Italian immigrant figures soared.  Over three million immigrants were seen in America by the close of 1920, although over two million returned to Italy in the early 20^th century.  There was a sharp decline of Italian immigrants in the 1920s and 1930s, due to the 1924 quota that allowed 4,000 per year.

Italian ancestry took a negative turn during World War II.  Though overshadowed by Japanese Americans, the internment of Italian citizens occurred during this time.  Italian immigrants that were detained numbered nearly 600,000, where the situation and restrictions led to the loss of the Italian language in American schools and papers.

The Italian heritage in the United States is quite significant.  Accounting as the fifth largest group of ancestry in the United States, there were 15.6 million people accounted for in the 2000 U.S. Census.  Overall Italian ancestries account for around 6% of the American population today.

Italian ancestry has had a profound impact on American culture.  Italian culture is present in current aspects of today’s society, such as the notable presence of Italian feats, and even Italian food in general.  Italian culture has penetrated into literature and media in America, as both are commonly seen in the United States.

Conclusively Italian ancestors are seen within the wide and dynamic nature of Italian immigration into the United States over the past couple of centuries.  Millions of Italian ancestors have entered the country, leading to the rich implementation of Italian culture in American culture.  As this ethnic group accounts for the most prominent in number of any other, it is no surprise as to the richness of the history of Italian immigration in America.