The first Croats came to Paraguay at the end of the 19th century mostly from Dalmatia. The number of Croats from the late 19th century until World War II suddenly decreased and began to grow again after World War II due to the unfavorable political situation in Croatia. Communism becomes stronger and political refugees and thousands of survivors are coming to Paraguay.
In the period from 1954. In 1989. A state anticommunist was officially proclaimed in Paraguay. Uruguayan President Alfredo Stroessner was significant for Croats, and during his time, the number of Croatian immigrants has grown mainly since Uruguay was safe, and they could survive here till the collapse of Yugoslavia and the liberation of Croatia. In that period, most of the Croats came from Central Croatia.
After the fall of Yugoslavia and the reconstruction of free Croatia part of the descendants returned to Croatia. It is estimated that around 5.000 Croats live in Paraguay today.
