After a long history of European immigration, dating back to the founding of the United States, immigration to greater Philadelphia stalled in the mid-20th century and the region’s inhabitants became nearly entirely native born. Recently, the Delaware Valley has begun to re-emerge as an immigrant destination, though it is still a low-immigration region compared to neighboring New York and other metropolitan areas such as Chicago and Washington, DC. The Second Great Migration of African Americans and the Great Migration of Puerto Ricans from the 1940s to 1970s remain the two largest migrations of minorities to the region since World War II. 1 Yet, beginning in the 1970s and continuing to the present, the region has seen several distinctive waves of immigration. Various groups of refugees have been resettled in greater Philadelphia, starting with Southeast Asians, continuing with Eastern Europeans, and more recently African refugees. During the 1980s and 1990s, significant numbers of Korean, Jamaican, Chinese, Indian, and Mexican immigrants have also come to live and work in the city, suburbs, and outlying agricultural areas. Since the 1990s, Philadelphia has experienced relatively fast growth in its immigrant population, and the pace of immigration appears to have quickened since 2000. Areas within the metropolitan area that historically were strongly identified with European immigrants now house a more diverse population. Like immigrants themselves, the reasons people choose greater Philadelphia are diverse. Family reunification draws Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, and other immigrants today, much like earlier reunification of Italian, German, and Irish families in the early and mid-twentieth century. Immigrants come to work in the Delaware Valley’s hospitals, high-tech firms, universities, warehouses, construction sites, and restaurants, bringing a range of skills to the regional labor market. Like many of the region’s US-born residents, immigrants find greater Philadelphia’s relatively affordable housing and cost of living attractive, especially compared to other destinations like New York. The recent congressional and public debate about immigration has raised awareness of both the costs and benefits of immigration. The failure to reach consensus on reforming the federal system has stimulated state and local proposals and policies, particularly in areas with new influxes of immigrants. Locally, cities and towns have responded to new immigrants with a range of actions. Riverside, NJ and Bridgeport, PA have passed Illegal Immigration Relief Acts, modeled after Hazleton, PA’s landmark legislation passed in the summer of 2006. 2 Other policies in the cities of Philadelphia and Norristown help immigrants maintain access to local services and connote a more welcome stance. However, Philadelphia’s current flow of immigrants is sizable, varied, and has grown at a moderately fast clip. These newcomers bring important opportunities and challenges for the region and its many communities across four states. Indeed, many local institutions and organizations are just beginning to understand the changes in broader patterns of migration to the region. How greater Philadelphia understands its immigrant and refugee population, and their role in the metropolitan economy, will influence the future of immigrant and receiving communities alike. To that end, this report examines the growth and change of greater Philadelphia’s immigrant population from its low point in 1970 to the present, using data from the US Census Bureau. At a time when the region’s immigrant and refugee population is growing but not well understood, this report provides reliable …