Lebanese diaspora
Encyclopedia
Lebanese diaspora refers to Lebanese
migrants
and their descendants who by choice or coercion emigrated from Lebanon
and now reside in other countries.
The diaspora is estimated from 12 million people to more than 15 million people - far more than the internal population of Lebanon itself(which is estimated at 4 million).
, with many Lebanese emigrating to Western countries. Because of the economic opportunities, many Lebanese have also worked in the Arab World, most notably the Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia
, United Arab Emirates
and Kuwait
amongst others. The majority of the Lebanese diaspora identifies as Christian with a sizable Muslim minority.
The Americas have long been a destination for Lebanese migration, with Lebanese arriving in some countries at least as early as the nineteenth century. The largest concentration of Lebanese outside the Middle East is in Brazil, which has reportedly over 7 million Brazilians of Lebanese ancestry, making Brazil's population of Lebanese nearly twice that of the entire population of Lebanon. There are also large Lebanese communities in Mexico
(about 400,000 Mexicans of Lebanese
descent), Argentina
, Colombia
, Venezuela
and the Caribbean. Many Lebanese have also settled for quite a long time in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe, most notably France. There are also sizable populations in West Africa, particularly Ghana, the Ivory Coast, and Liberia.
Lebanese abroad are not presently permitted the right to vote in Lebanese elections. A law passed in late 2008 gives expatriates the right to vote in elections in 2013.
from Lebanese abroad to family members within the country total $8.4 billion and account for one fifth of the country's economy. Nassib Ghobril, the head of research and analysis for Byblos Bank, calculates that Lebanese abroad supply Lebanon with about $1,400 per capita every year.
Note: An important percentage of Arabs in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela, Bulgaria, Romania, Italy, Portugal and Spain are of Lebanese ancestry. They are denoted ** for this purpose.
, Abdalá Bucaram
, Alberto Dahik
, Jamil Mahuad
(all in Ecuador), Jacobo Majluta Azar
(Dominican Republic), Julio Cesar Turbay (Colombia) and Alberto Abdala
(Uruguay). Other famous politicians include George J. Mitchell
US Politician and Peace Envoy, Ralph Nader
, 2004 and 2008 US presidential candidate, Edward Seaga
Prime Minister of Jamaica.
Very famous businessmen of Lebanese descent include Carlos Slim Helú
, Carlos Ghosn
and Nicolas Hayek
and famous names in entertainment like Danny Thomas
, Salma Hayek
, Shakira
, Tony Shaloub, Paul Anka
and sportsmen like Mário Zagallo
and Rony Seikaly
.
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
migrants
Emigration
Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
and their descendants who by choice or coercion emigrated from Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and now reside in other countries.
The diaspora is estimated from 12 million people to more than 15 million people - far more than the internal population of Lebanon itself(which is estimated at 4 million).
History
The Lebanese diaspora, while historically trade-related, has more recently been linked to the Lebanese Civil WarLebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
, with many Lebanese emigrating to Western countries. Because of the economic opportunities, many Lebanese have also worked in the Arab World, most notably the Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
and Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
amongst others. The majority of the Lebanese diaspora identifies as Christian with a sizable Muslim minority.
The Americas have long been a destination for Lebanese migration, with Lebanese arriving in some countries at least as early as the nineteenth century. The largest concentration of Lebanese outside the Middle East is in Brazil, which has reportedly over 7 million Brazilians of Lebanese ancestry, making Brazil's population of Lebanese nearly twice that of the entire population of Lebanon. There are also large Lebanese communities in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
(about 400,000 Mexicans of Lebanese
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
descent), Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
and the Caribbean. Many Lebanese have also settled for quite a long time in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe, most notably France. There are also sizable populations in West Africa, particularly Ghana, the Ivory Coast, and Liberia.
Lebanese abroad are not presently permitted the right to vote in Lebanese elections. A law passed in late 2008 gives expatriates the right to vote in elections in 2013.
Economic Impacts
According to the Christian Science Monitor, Lebanese abroad are considered "rich, educated and influential." Over the course of time, emigration has yielded Lebanese "commercial networks" throughout the world. As a result, remittancesRemittances
A remittance is a transfer of money by a foreign worker to his or her home country. Note that in 19th century usage a remittance man was someone exiled overseas and sent an allowance on condition that he not return home....
from Lebanese abroad to family members within the country total $8.4 billion and account for one fifth of the country's economy. Nassib Ghobril, the head of research and analysis for Byblos Bank, calculates that Lebanese abroad supply Lebanon with about $1,400 per capita every year.
Lebanese Populations in the Diaspora
| Country | Estimate | Country article in English Wikipedia | List of personalities of Lebanese origin | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Brazil |
10,000,000 | Lebanese Brazilian Lebanese Brazilian A Lebanese Brazilian is a Brazilian person of full, partial, or predominantly Lebanese ancestry, or a Lebanese-born person immigrant in Brazil.... |
List of Lebanese people (Brazil) | |
 United States |
3,300,000 | Lebanese American | List of Lebanese people (USA) | |
 Argentina |
1,500,000 | Lebanese Argentine Lebanese Argentine An Lebanese Argentine is an Argentine citizen or resident alien whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants, largely of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity, originating from what is now Lebanon.... |
List of Lebanese people (Argentina) | |
 Colombia |
840,000 | Lebanese Colombian Lebanese Colombian Lebanese Colombians are Colombians of Lebanese descent. Most of the Lebanese escaped to Colombia because of financial hardships and the repressions of the Ottoman Empire.... |
List of Lebanese people (Colombia) | |
 Australia |
500,000 | Lebanese Australian Lebanese Australian A Lebanese Australian is an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Lebanese descent. The community is multi-religious, and includes a Christian, mostly Maronite Catholic, majority, as well as a large Muslim minority of both the Shia and Sunni branches of Islam, and various other Christian and... |
List of Lebanese people (Australia) | |
 Canada |
449,000 | Lebanese Canadians | List of Lebanese people (Canada) | |
 Mexico |
400,000 | Lebanese Mexican Lebanese Mexican A Lebanese Mexican is a Mexican citizen of Lebanese origin.Interethnic marriage in the Lebanese community, regardless of religious affiliation, is very high; most community members have only one parent who has Lebanese ethnicity. As a result of this, the Lebanese community in Mexico shows marked... |
List of Lebanese people (Mexico) | |
 Venezuela |
340,000 | Lebanese Venezuelan Lebanese Venezuelan A Lebanese Venezuelan is a Venezuelan citizen of Lebanese origin or descent. There are around 340,000 Venezuelans of Lebanese origin. Venezuela has one of the largest Lebanese populations in the Americas.-Migration history:... |
List of Lebanese people (Venezuela) | |
 Early Modern France |
250,000 | Lebanese people in France Lebanese people in France Lebanese people in France include migrants from Lebanon to France, as well as their descendants.-History and settlement:Although there has been sporadic migration from the Middle East to France since the 17th century, the real growth of the French Lebanese population began in 1975, with the start... |
List of Lebanese people (France) | |
 Saudi Arabia |
120,000 | |||
 Ecuador |
100,000 | Lebanese people in Ecuador | List of Lebanese people (Ecuador) | |
| Gulf States | 100,000 | |||
 Chile |
90,000 | Arab Chileans** | List of Lebanese people (Chile) | |
 United Kingdom |
90,000 | Lebanese people in the United Kingdom | List of Lebanese people (UK) | |
 Uruguay |
70,000 | Lebanese Uruguayan Lebanese Uruguayan There are about 53,000 to 70,000 Lebanese Uruguayans, or Uruguayans of Lebanese origin. The Lebanese are the most numerous community in Uruguay after the Spanish and Italians. Relations between Uruguay and Lebanon have always been close.-History:... |
List of Lebanese people (Uruguay) | |
 Côte d'Ivoire |
60,000 | |||
 Germany |
50,000 | List of Lebanese people (Germany) | ||
 New Zealand |
47,200 | |||
 Senegal |
40,000 | Lebanese people in Senegal Lebanese people in Senegal -Migration history:The first trader from Lebanon arrived in Senegal in the 1860s. However, early migration was slow; by 1900, there were only about one hundred Lebanese living in the country, mostly from the vicinity of Tyre. They worked as street vendors in Dakar, Saint-Louis, and Rufisque. After... |
||
 Greece |
30,000 | |||
 Denmark |
23,500 | |||
 Cyprus |
20,000 | List of Lebanese people (Cyprus) | ||
 South Africa |
20,000 | List of Lebanese people (South Africa) | ||
 Sweden |
20,000 | Lebanese people in Sweden Lebanese people in Sweden The Lebanese of Sweden are people from Lebanon or those of Lebanese descent, around 21,000, who live in the country of Sweden. They come from various ethnic and religious backgrounds... |
List of Lebanese people (Sweden) | |
 Jamaica |
20,000 | Lebanese immigration to Jamaica Lebanese immigration to Jamaica A Lebanese Jamaican is a Jamaican citizen of Lebanese origin or descent. There are around 20,000 Jamaicans of Lebanese origin. Jamaica has the largest Lebanese population in the Caribbean.-Surnames of the first Lebanese families in Jamaica:-Cuisine:... |
List of Lebanese people (Jamaica) | |
 Haiti |
15,000 | List of Lebanese people (Haiti) | ||
 Spain |
14,500 | List of Lebanese people (Spain) | ||
 Liberia |
10,000 | |||
 Nigeria |
10,000 | |||
 Sierra Leone |
10,000 | Lebanese people in Sierra Leone | List of Lebanese people (Sierra Leone) | |
 Kuwait |
10,000 | |||
 Egypt |
7,500 | |||
 Belgium |
7,000 | |||
 Ghana |
6,700 | |||
 Switzerland |
5,800 | |||
 Italy |
3,860 | |||
 Angola |
3,300 | |||
 Kingdom of Bulgaria |
3,000 | Arabs in Bulgaria Arabs in Bulgaria Arabs in Bulgaria are the people from Arab countries, particularly Lebanon, Syria, the Palestinian Territories, and Iraq, who emigrated from their native nations and currently reside in Bulgaria. Most Arab Bulgarians are of Lebanese or Syrian origin. In the forty year history of this community,... ** |
List of Lebanese people (Bulgaria) | |
Note: An important percentage of Arabs in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela, Bulgaria, Romania, Italy, Portugal and Spain are of Lebanese ancestry. They are denoted ** for this purpose.
Notable persons of Lebanese descent
Prominent members of the Lebanese diaspora include even Presidents and Vice-Presidents, particularly in Latin America, e.g. Julio Teodoro SalemJulio Teodoro Salem
Julio Teodoro Salem Gallegos was an Ecuadorian politician of Lebanese background. He was born in Riobamba. Salem was a member of Liberal Radical Party and was elected to the Congress is 1934. He also served as minister of public works...
, Abdalá Bucaram
Abdalá Bucaram
Abdalá Jaime Bucaram Ortíz is an Ecuadorian politician and lawyer who briefly occupied the Presidency of Ecuador...
, Alberto Dahik
Alberto Dahik
Alberto Dahik Garzozi is an Ecuadorian politician of Lebanese ancestry.Dahik was educated in economics in Princeton University. He served as Finance Minister from 1985 to 1987 and member of Congress from 1988 to 1992....
, Jamil Mahuad
Jamil Mahuad
Jorge Jamil Mahuad Witt is an Ecuadorian lawyer and politician and the 51st President of Ecuador from August 10, 1998 to January 21, 2000. There was a severe economic crisis in Ecuador , which had led to a 60% cut in the armed forces budget...
(all in Ecuador), Jacobo Majluta Azar
Jacobo Majluta Azar
Jacobo Majluta Azar was born in Santo Domingo, on 9 October 1934 and died on 2 March 1996. A politician from Dominican Republic of Lebanese descent, he was vice president in the government of President Antonio Guzmán and became president, for 43 days, with the suicide of President Guzmán.He joined...
(Dominican Republic), Julio Cesar Turbay (Colombia) and Alberto Abdala
Alberto Abdala
Alberto Abdala Uruguayan politician, painter and Vice-President from 1967 to 1972.-Background:Alberto Abdala was born in Maldonado, Uruguay in 1920. He was of Lebanese descent.He was a member of the Colorado Party...
(Uruguay). Other famous politicians include George J. Mitchell
George J. Mitchell
George John Mitchell, Jr., is the former U.S. Special Envoy for Middle East Peace under the Obama administration. A Democrat, Mitchell was a United States Senator who served as the Senate Majority Leader from 1989 to 1995...
US Politician and Peace Envoy, Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader is an American political activist, as well as an author, lecturer, and attorney. Areas of particular concern to Nader include consumer protection, humanitarianism, environmentalism, and democratic government....
, 2004 and 2008 US presidential candidate, Edward Seaga
Edward Seaga
Edward Philip George Seaga ON PC was the fifth Prime Minister of Jamaica from 1980 to 1989 and Leader of the Jamaica Labour Party from 1974 to 2005. He served as leader of the opposition from 1974 to 1980 and again from 1989 until January 2005...
Prime Minister of Jamaica.
Very famous businessmen of Lebanese descent include Carlos Slim Helú
Carlos Slim Helú
Carlos Slim Helú is a Mexican business magnate and philanthropist who as of 2011 is the richest person in the world, for the second year in a row...
, Carlos Ghosn
Carlos Ghosn
Carlos Ghosn, KBE , born 9 March 1954, is a Brazilian-Lebanese-French businessman who is currently the Chairman and CEO of Yokohama, Japan-based Nissan and holds the same positions at Paris-based Renault, which together produce more than one in 10 cars worldwide...
and Nicolas Hayek
Nicolas Hayek
Nicolas George Hayek , was a Swiss-Lebanese entrepreneur, co-founder, CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Swatch Group, with principal headquarters in Biel/Bienne.-Life and background:...
and famous names in entertainment like Danny Thomas
Danny Thomas
Danny Thomas was an American nightclub comedian and television and film actor, best known for starring in the television sitcom Make Room for Daddy . He was also the founder of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital...
, Salma Hayek
Salma Hayek
Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez de Pinault is a Mexican film actress, director and producer. She received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Frida Kahlo in the film Frida.-Early life:...
, Shakira
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
, Tony Shaloub, Paul Anka
Paul Anka
Paul Albert Anka, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and actor.Anka first became famous as a teen idol in the late 1950s and 1960s with hit songs like "Diana'", "Lonely Boy", and "Put Your Head on My Shoulder"...
and sportsmen like Mário Zagallo
Mário Zagallo
Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo is a Brazilian former football player and manager.-Biography:Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo was born in Maceió, Alagoas, to a family of Lebanese and Italian heritage....
and Rony Seikaly
Rony Seikaly
Ronald Fred "Rony" Seikaly is a retired Lebanese-born American professional basketball player.-Early life:Seikaly was born in Beirut, Lebanon. At the age of 9, Rony moved from Beirut where he'd been attending elementary school at the Athenee de Beirut to Greece, where he spent the rest of his youth...
.
See also
- Arab diasporaArab diasporaArab diaspora refers to Arab immigrants, and their descendants who, voluntarily or as refugees, emigrated from their native lands and now reside in non-Arab countries, primarily in Latin America, and Europe, as well as North America and South Asia, parts of Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and West...
- Lebanese American
- Lebanese AustralianLebanese AustralianA Lebanese Australian is an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Lebanese descent. The community is multi-religious, and includes a Christian, mostly Maronite Catholic, majority, as well as a large Muslim minority of both the Shia and Sunni branches of Islam, and various other Christian and...
- Lebanese BrazilianLebanese BrazilianA Lebanese Brazilian is a Brazilian person of full, partial, or predominantly Lebanese ancestry, or a Lebanese-born person immigrant in Brazil....
- Lebanese people in FranceLebanese people in FranceLebanese people in France include migrants from Lebanon to France, as well as their descendants.-History and settlement:Although there has been sporadic migration from the Middle East to France since the 17th century, the real growth of the French Lebanese population began in 1975, with the start...
- Lebanese people in the United Kingdom
- Lebanese Canadian
- Lebanese Ecuadorian
- Lebanese immigration to JamaicaLebanese immigration to JamaicaA Lebanese Jamaican is a Jamaican citizen of Lebanese origin or descent. There are around 20,000 Jamaicans of Lebanese origin. Jamaica has the largest Lebanese population in the Caribbean.-Surnames of the first Lebanese families in Jamaica:-Cuisine:...
- Lebanese ArgentineLebanese ArgentineAn Lebanese Argentine is an Argentine citizen or resident alien whose ancestry traces back to any of various waves of immigrants, largely of Arab cultural and linguistic heritage and/or identity, originating from what is now Lebanon....
- Lebanese ColombianLebanese ColombianLebanese Colombians are Colombians of Lebanese descent. Most of the Lebanese escaped to Colombia because of financial hardships and the repressions of the Ottoman Empire....
- Lebanese MexicanLebanese MexicanA Lebanese Mexican is a Mexican citizen of Lebanese origin.Interethnic marriage in the Lebanese community, regardless of religious affiliation, is very high; most community members have only one parent who has Lebanese ethnicity. As a result of this, the Lebanese community in Mexico shows marked...
- Sierra Leonean-LebaneseSierra Leonean-Lebanese-Migration history:Lebanese immigrants first came to West Africa in the mid-19th century when a silk-worm crisis struck their homeland, then part of the Ottoman Empire; the first Lebanese arrived in Sierra Leone in 1893. The first groups were Maronite Christians, but beginning in 1903, Shia Muslim...
- Lebanese UruguayanLebanese UruguayanThere are about 53,000 to 70,000 Lebanese Uruguayans, or Uruguayans of Lebanese origin. The Lebanese are the most numerous community in Uruguay after the Spanish and Italians. Relations between Uruguay and Lebanon have always been close.-History:...
- List of Lebanese people
- Lebanese nationality lawLebanese nationality lawThe Lebanese nationality is transmitted by paternity . However, this gives the right to Lebanese to transmit citizenship to their children and foreign wives.-Citizenship Law Number 15:...
External links
- Some info on Lebanese and Syrian immigration to the Americas http://books.google.com/books?id=082osLxyBDgC&pg=PA105&lpg=PA105&dq=Ottoman+COnsul&source=bl&ots=3QKJBBg6be&sig=sDIVhY-6Qk0rjUSE7rAV5tvubiY&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=11&ct=result#PPA247,M1