Zimbabwean diaspora
Encyclopedia
The Zimbabwean diaspora refers to the diaspora
of immigrants from the nation of Zimbabwe
. The term Rhodesian diaspora only describes a specific subset of former Rhodesia
n/Southern Rhodesia
n residents who left the country during or after the Zimbabwean War of Liberation.
who left the country soon after independence; they were followed by black Zimbabweans beginning in the 1990s. In both cases, South Africa
was again their primary destination; however, from 1994 onwards, the South African government displayed increasing hostility to skilled immigration from the rest of Africa, leading Zimbabwean emigrants to seek other pastures.
.
The Zimbabwean diaspora has a 95% literacy rate in English and a very highly educated adult population. The main languages spoken are English
, Shona
, and Ndebele
.
with their numbers having grown from 1,000 in 1991 to 20,000 in 2001. The Zimbabwean community in Australia
can be found in big cities such as Sydney
and Perth
.
; Calgary
; Edmonton
; Hamilton, Ontario
and Kitchener
-Waterloo
in Ontario
. Their numbers have been slowly but steadily increasing since 2000.
and other urban areas.
. The RAND Corporation
estimated in 2000 that there were 100,000 in the state of New York
alone. In contrast, a 2008 estimate from the Association of Zimbabweans Based Abroad put the population of Zimbabweans in the whole US at just 45,000. They make up just a small part of the Zimbabwean diaspora compared to the larger communities in South Africa and the United Kingdom. However, of Zimbabweans who have not yet emigrated but are considering it, a somewhat higher proportion state that the United States, rather than the United Kingdom, is their preferred destination; this may be due to harassment and discrimination which Zimbabweans have faced in the UK.
There is a small community of Zimbabweans in Chicago
, perhaps 80 to 100 people, consisting primarily of former students at area universities.
Diaspora
A diaspora is "the movement, migration, or scattering of people away from an established or ancestral homeland" or "people dispersed by whatever cause to more than one location", or "people settled far from their ancestral homelands".The word has come to refer to historical mass-dispersions of...
of immigrants from the nation of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
. The term Rhodesian diaspora only describes a specific subset of former Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
n/Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
n residents who left the country during or after the Zimbabwean War of Liberation.
History
Temporary labour migration to South Africa has long been a feature of Rhodesian and then Zimbabwean society. A 2002 survey by the Southern African Migration Project show that almost 25% of adult Zimbabweans' parents or grandparents had worked in South Africa at some point in their lives. However, permanent emigration is a relatively new phenomenon. There have been two major waves of emigration from Zimbabwe. The first was that of whites in ZimbabweWhites in Zimbabwe
White Zimbabweans are people from the southern African country Zimbabwe who identify themselves as white...
who left the country soon after independence; they were followed by black Zimbabweans beginning in the 1990s. In both cases, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
was again their primary destination; however, from 1994 onwards, the South African government displayed increasing hostility to skilled immigration from the rest of Africa, leading Zimbabwean emigrants to seek other pastures.
Overall statistics
It is estimated that there are millions of residents outside of Zimbabwe's borders who were either born in the country or are descended from immigrants; Many recent emigrants are illegally residing in other countries because of the fall of the standard of living and economic conditions in ZimbabweZimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.
The Zimbabwean diaspora has a 95% literacy rate in English and a very highly educated adult population. The main languages spoken are English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Shona
Shona language
Shona is a Bantu language, native to the Shona people of Zimbabwe and southern Zambia; the term is also used to identify peoples who speak one of the Shona language dialects: Zezuru, Karanga, Manyika, Ndau and Korekore...
, and Ndebele
Northern Ndebele language
The Northern Ndebele language, isiNdebele, or Ndebele is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and spoken by the Ndebele or Matabele people of Zimbabwe. It is commonly known as Sindebele....
.
Australia
Zimbabweans can also be found in AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
with their numbers having grown from 1,000 in 1991 to 20,000 in 2001. The Zimbabwean community in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
can be found in big cities such as Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
.
Botswana
There were estimated to be between forty and one hundred thousand Zimbabweans in Botswana .Canada
The Zimbabwean community in Canada is concentrated in TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
; Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
; Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
; Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
and Kitchener
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
-Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. Their numbers have been slowly but steadily increasing since 2000.
South Africa
There are estimated to be between one and five million Zimbabweans in South Africa .United Kingdom
The UK Zimbabwean community is said to be close to 100,000. They are mainly concentrated in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and other urban areas.
United States
There are various conflicting unofficial figures about the number of Zimbabweans in the USZimbabwean American
Zimbabwean Americans are Americans of Zimbabwean descent. There are communities in California, Texas and other places.-Demographics:There are various conflicting unofficial figures about the number of Zimbabweans in the US. The RAND Corporation estimated in 2000 that there were 100,000 in the state...
. The RAND Corporation
RAND
RAND Corporation is a nonprofit global policy think tank first formed to offer research and analysis to the United States armed forces by Douglas Aircraft Company. It is currently financed by the U.S. government and private endowment, corporations including the healthcare industry, universities...
estimated in 2000 that there were 100,000 in the state of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
alone. In contrast, a 2008 estimate from the Association of Zimbabweans Based Abroad put the population of Zimbabweans in the whole US at just 45,000. They make up just a small part of the Zimbabwean diaspora compared to the larger communities in South Africa and the United Kingdom. However, of Zimbabweans who have not yet emigrated but are considering it, a somewhat higher proportion state that the United States, rather than the United Kingdom, is their preferred destination; this may be due to harassment and discrimination which Zimbabweans have faced in the UK.
There is a small community of Zimbabweans in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, perhaps 80 to 100 people, consisting primarily of former students at area universities.
External links
- So where are Zimbabweans going?
- Zimbabwean Diaspora Forum
- Zimbabweans in the Diaspora
- The Zimbabwean - UK-based Zimbabwean newspaper