Lebanese diaspora

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Lebanese diaspora refers to Lebanese migrants and their descendants who, whether by choice or coercion, emigrated from Lebanon and now reside in other countries. There are more Lebanese living outside of Lebanon (8-14 million),^[5] than within (4 million). The majority of the diaspora population consists of Lebanese Christians and Lebanese Muslims; however, there are some who are Druze, or Jewish. They trace their origin to several waves of Christian emigration, starting with the exodus that followed the 1860 Lebanon conflict in Ottoman Syria.

Under the current Lebanese nationality law, diaspora Lebanese do not have an automatic right of return to Lebanon. Due to varying degrees of assimilation and high degree of interethnic marriages in the Lebanese diaspora communities, regardless of religious affiliation; most diaspora Lebanese have not passed on the Arabic language to their children, while still maintaining a Lebanese ethnic identity.

Although there are no reliable figures, the diaspora is estimated to be around 14 million people, far more than the internal population of Lebanon of around 4 million.^[3][6] According to other estimates the number of Lebanese living outside the country is thought to at the very least double the number of citizens living inside,^[1] which means at least 8 million people. Of the diaspora, 1.2 million are Lebanese citizens.^[7]

History

The Lebanese diaspora, while historically trade-related, has more recently been linked to the Lebanese Civil War, with many Lebanese emigrating to Western countries. Because of the economic opportunities, many Lebanese have also worked in the Arab World, most notably Arab states of the Persian Gulf like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Currently around 60% of Lebanese citizens resident in Lebanon are Muslim and around 40% are Christian.^[8]

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, according to some sources, at least 6 million Brazilians of Lebanese ancestry, making Brazil's population of Lebanese more than twice that of the entire population of Lebanon. The population of Brazil of either full or partial Lebanese descent is estimated at 7 ^[9] million people by Arab-Brazilian organizations. According to a research conducted by IBGE in 2008, covering only the states of Amazonas, Paraíba, São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, Mato Grosso and Distrito Federal, 0.9% of white Brazilian respondents said they had family origins in the Middle East ^[10]

There are also other large Lebanese communities in Latin American countries, namely Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, and Dominican Republic. Many Lebanese have also been settled for quite some time in the United States, Canada, Australia and in the European Union member states. There are also sizable populations in francophone West Africa, particularly Ivory Coast and Ghana.

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.^[11]

Business networks and economic impacts

Many Lebanese entrepreneurs and business people worldwide have proved very successful, in all kinds of sectors and contexts. Therefore, Lebanese abroad are considered "rich, educated and influential."^[12] Remittances from Lebanese abroad to family members within the country were estimated at $8.9 billion in 2014 and accounted for 18% of the country's economy.^[13] Though, there remains a great untapped potential for further collaboration and cooperation between the diaspora and the Lebanese in their home-country. Foreign Direct Investment is indeed below 7% of GDP while almost half the Lebanese population is enrolled in tertiary education.

Throughout their history, the Lebanese diaspora used their Lebanese identity to create strong networks to help each other out and many used them to develop a productive and profitable activity. Over the course of time, immigration has indeed yielded Lebanese "commercial networks" throughout the world.^[14]

Lebanese populations in the diaspora

The list below contains approximate figures for people of Lebanese descent by country of residence, largely taken from the iLoubnan diaspora map.^[15] Additional reliable cites have been provided where possible. Additional estimates have been included where they can be cited; where applicable, these are used in place of the iLoubnan figures.

Country	Estimate	Upper Estimate	Region	Country article in English Wikipedia	List of personalities of Lebanese origin
Brazil	5,800,000;[15] according to a research conducted by IBGE in 2008, covering only the states of Amazonas, Paraíba, São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, Mato Grosso and Distrito Federal, 0.9% of white Brazilian respondents said they had family origins in the Middle East[10]	7,000,000[16] (Brazilian/Lebanese governments)[17]	Latin America	Lebanese Brazilian	Brazil
Argentina	1,200,000[15][18]	1,500,000[18]	Latin America	Lebanese Argentine	Argentina
United States	500,000[19][note 1]	950,000 [20][note 2]	North America	Lebanese American	USA
Venezuela	341,000[15]	500,000[21]	Latin America	Lebanese Venezuelan	Venezuela
Australia	271,000[22][23]	350,000[24]	Oceania	Lebanese Australian	Australia
Mexico	240,000[15]	400,000[25] - 505,000[26]	Latin America	Lebanese Mexican	Mexico
Canada	190,275[27]	250,000[28] - 270,000[15]	North America	Lebanese Canadians	Canada
Colombia	125,000[15]	700,000[29]	Latin America	Lebanese Colombian	Colombia
Saudi Arabia	120,000[15]	299,000[30]	Arab World	Lebanese people in Saudi Arabia	Saudi Arabia
Syria	114,000[31]		Arab World	Lebanese people in Syria	Syria
France	100,000[32][33]	225,000[15] - 250,000[34]	European Union	Lebanese French	France
Ecuador	98,000[15]	250,000	Latin America	Lebanese Ecuadorian	Ecuador
United Arab Emirates	80,000[6]	156,000[35]	Arab World	Lebanese people in the United Arab Emirates	United Arab Emirates
Uruguay	53,000[15]	70,000[36]	Latin America	Lebanese Uruguayan	Uruguay
Germany	50,000[37]		European Union	Lebanese German	Germany
Ivory Coast	50,000[38]	90,000[39]	Sub-saharan Africa	Lebanese people in Ivory Coast
New Zealand	8,500[15]		Oceania
Kuwait	41,775[40]	106,000[41][42]	Arab World	Lebanese people in Kuwait
Senegal	30,000[43][44]		Sub-Saharan Africa	Lebanese Senegalese
Qatar	25,000[45]	191,000[46]	Arab World	Lebanese people in Qatar
Spain	11,820[15]		European Union	Lebanese Spanish	Spain
South Africa	5,100[47]	20,000[48]	Sub-Saharan Africa	Lebanese people in South Africa	South Africa
Belgium	2,400 [49]	5,000	European Union	Lebanese people in Belgium	Belgium
Caribbean[note 3]	545,200[15]		Latin America	Lebanese Jamaican	Caribbean  · Cuba  · Haiti  · Jamaica
Rest of Latin America, ex. Caribbean[note 4]	181,800[15]		Latin America	Lebanese Chileans	Chile  · Guatemala  · Dutch Antilles
Scandinavia	108,220[15]		European Union	Lebanese Swedish	Sweden  · Denmark
Rest of GCC[note 5]	105,000[15]		Arab World
Rest of European Union[note 6]	96,780[15]		European Union	Lebanese British  · Lebanese Bulgarian** · Lebanese Greek	Bulgaria  · Cyprus  · Germany  · Italy  · Monaco  · Netherlands  · Switzerland  · UK
Rest of Sub-Saharan Africa[note 7]	42,510[15]		Sub-Saharan Africa	Lebanese Sierra Leonean	Ghana  · Sierra Leone
North Africa[note 8]	14,000[15]		North Africa	Lebanese Egyptian	Egypt
Asia[note 9]	2,600[15]		Asia

Note: An important percentage of Arabs in Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela, Bulgaria, Romania, Italy, Portugal and Spain are of Lebanese ancestry. They are denoted ** for this purpose.

Notable persons of Lebanese descent

Famous scientists of Lebanese descent include: Peter Medawar (Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine), Elias Corey (Nobel Prize in Chemistry), Michael Atiyah (Fields Medalist, Mathematics).

Prominent members of the Lebanese diaspora include Presidents and Vice-Presidents, e.g. Michel Temer (Brazil), Julio Teodoro Salem, 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 Philip Habib US Politician and Peace Envoy, George J. Mitchell US Politician and Peace Envoy, Ralph Nader, 2000, 2004 and 2008 US presidential candidate, Edward Seaga Prime Minister of Jamaica, Sara El-Amine US Political activist and grassroots political organizer.

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 Shalhoub, Paul Anka, Mika and sportsmen like Doug Flutie, and Rony Seikaly.

See also

• Arab diaspora
• Constitution of Lebanon
• Driving licence in Lebanon
• Foreign relations of Lebanon
• History of Lebanon
• Lebanese identity card
• Lebanese passport
• LERC, an organization aimed at bringing together Lebanese youth with Lebanese youth living abroad.
• List of Lebanese people
• Little Syria, Manhattan
• Politics of Lebanon
• Vehicle registration plates of Lebanon
• Visa policy of Lebanon
• Visa requirements for Lebanese citizens

Notes

External links

• The Lebanese Demographic Reality Lebanese Information Center, reviewed by Statistics Lebanon. 14 January 2013.
• KUSUMO, Fitra Ismu, "ISLAM EN AMERICA LATINA Tomo I: La expansión del Islam y su llegada a América Latina (Spanish Edition)"
• KUSUMO, Fitra Ismu, "ISLAM EN AMÉRICA LATINA Tomo II: Migración Árabe a América Latina y el caso de México (Spanish Edition)"
• KUSUMO, Fitra Ismu, "ISLAM EN AMÉRICA LATINA Tomo III: El Islam hoy desde América Latina (Spanish Edition)"

References

Lebanese people and diaspora
Countries	Africa Egypt Ghana Ivory Coast Senegal Sierra Leone South Africa Americas Argentina Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Ecuador Guatemala Haiti Jamaica Mexico Paraguay United States Detroit Uruguay Venezuela Asia Iran Israel Kuwait Qatar Saudi Arabia Syria Turkey United Arab Emirates Europe Austria Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus Denmark France Germany Greece Italy Netherlands Romania Serbia Spain Sweden United Kingdom Oceania Australia New Zealand
Personalities	Africa Egypt Ghana Liberia Nigeria Sierra Leone South Africa Americas Argentina Brazil Canada Caribbean Curaçao Dominican Republic Haiti Jamaica Puerto Rico Chile Colombia Cuba Ecuador Guatemala Mexico United States Uruguay Venezuela Asia Syria Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates Europe Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus Denmark France Germany Italy Monaco Netherlands Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom Oceania Australia

Arab diaspora
Africa	Ghana Ivory Coast
Asia	Afghanistan India Indonesia Iran Khorasan Malaysia Pakistan Philippines Singapore Sri Lanka Turkey
Europe	Austria Bulgaria Caucasus Denmark France Beur Paris Germany Berlin Greece Italy Republic of Macedonia Netherlands Romania Serbia Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom
Americas	Argentina Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Haiti Mexico United States Detroit Uruguay Venezuela
Oceania	Australia New Zealand