Late last week, Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani was killed in a US airstrike ordered by President Donald Trump.

Despite increasing tensions between the two nations, there are Iranian-American communities across the country, and they make up a vital part of the US.

Using data from the US Census Bureau, we found the states and cities with the largest self-identified Iranian-American populations.

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Late last week, Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani was killed in a US airstrike ordered by President Donald Trump. The assassination leaves the two countries on the brink of war, with the Iranian government vowing "a forceful revenge" against the US.

Despite increasing tensions between the two nations, there are Iranian-American communities across the country, and they make up a vital part of the US.

The US Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey asks millions of Americans each year several questions about their demographic, social, and economic situations. A question on the survey asks respondents to list their and their family's ancestry, and "Iranian" is one of the ancestry groups included in the Bureau's estimates.

The Census Bureau's estimates from that survey show that nearly half a million Americans self-identified as having Iranian heritage. Many states have large Iranian-American communities. California alone has an estimated 200,000 residents with Iranian ancestry, over 40% of the estimated US total:

Business Insider/Andy Kiersz, data from Census Bureau

Several of the biggest US metro areas have large self-identified Iranian-American communities. Around 100,000 residents of Los Angeles have Iranian ancestry, according to the Census estimates: