Iranian diaspora
Map of the Iranian diaspora in the world as of 2021
Total population
around 4,037,258 million (2021)[1][2]
Americas1,905,813 (47.20%)
Europe1,184,552 (29.34%)
West Asia and Other (Asia and Oceania)1,115,572
Languages
Persian Languages of Iran
Religion

The Iranian diaspora refers to Iranian citizens or people of Iranian descent living outside Iran.[3]

This includes the varying ethnicities of the Iranian people including the following groups: Persians, Azeris, Kurds, Lors, Baluchs, Arabs, Turkomens, Assyrians, and Armenians.

In 2021, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran published statistics, which showed that 4,037,258 Iranians are living abroad, an increase from previous years.[1][2] Many of them live in North America, Europe, the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Australia and the broader Middle East.[4][5] Other studies have estimated about 1.5 million or fewer Iranians living abroad.[6] Many of them migrated to other countries after the Iranian Revolution in 1979.[7][8]

Statistics by country

Map of the Iranian diaspora in the world as of 2021.
  Iran
  + 1,000,000
  + 100,000
  + 10,000
  + 1,000
Popularity change of countries among Iranian Immigrants (2016–2021).[9]
List of countries and territories by Iranian population
Country Iranian diaspora in 2021 Article
 United States Increase 1,500,000 (2021)[9] Iranian American
 Canada Increase 400,000 (2021)[9] Iranian Canadian
United Arab Emirates UAE Increase 357,000 (2021)[9] Iranians in the United Arab Emirates
 Germany Increase 317,105 (2022)[10] Iranians in Germany
 Israel 200,000-250,000 Iranian Jews in Israel
 Sweden Increase 126,770 (2021)[9] Swedish Iranians
 Turkey Increase 126,640 (2021)[9] Immigration to Turkey
 Australia Increase 126,500 (2021)[11] Iranian Australians
 Iraq Decrease 110,920 (2021) Iranians in Iraq
 France Increase 90,000 (2021)[9] Iranians in France
 United Kingdom Increase 90,000-400,000 (2021)[9] Iranians in the United Kingdom
 Netherlands Increase 52,000 (2021) Iranians in the Netherlands
 Austria Steady 40,000 (2021) Iranians in Austria
 Kuwait Steady 400,000 (citizens of Iranian descent)[12]
Decrease 38,000 (non-Kuwaiti, 2021)		 'Ajam of Kuwait
 Denmark Steady 32,700 (2021) Iranians in Denmark
 Malaysia Decrease 30,000 (2021) Iranians in Malaysia
 Norway Decrease 20,000 (2021) Norwegian Iranians
  Switzerland Increase 20,000 (2021) Demographics of Switzerland
 Belgium Decrease 20,000 (2021) Iranians in Belgium
 Qatar Decrease 20,000 (2021) Iranians in Qatar
 Georgia Increase 16,500 (2021) Iranians in Georgia
 Italy Increase 14,009 (2022)[13] Iranians in Italy
 India Decrease 12,760 (2021) Demographics of India
 New Zealand Increase 12,000 (2021) Iranian New Zealander
 Spain Decrease 12,000 (2021) Iranians in Spain
 Finland Increase 10,129 (2021)[14] Iranians in Finland
 Azerbaijan Decrease 10,000 (2021) Iranians in Azerbaijan
 Armenia Decrease 10,000 (2021) Iranians in Armenia
 Syria Decrease 10,000 (2021) Iranians in Syria
 Oman Decrease 9,500 (2021) Omani Iranians
 Tajikistan Increase 8,000 (2019) Iranians in Tajikistan
 China Decrease 7,780 (2021) Iranians in China
 Lebanon Decrease 5,000 (2021) Iranians in Lebanon
 Thailand Steady 5,000 (2021) Iranians in Thailand
 Cyprus Increase 5,000 (2021) Iranians in Cyprus
 South Africa Steady 5,000 (2021) Iranians in South Africa
 Japan Decrease 4,237 (2022)[15] Iranians in Japan
 Ukraine Decrease 4,200 (2021) Iranians in Ukraine
 Hungary Decrease 4,111 (2021) Iranians in Hungary
 Pakistan Decrease 3,950 (2021) Iranians in Pakistan
 Afghanistan Decrease 3,800 (2021) Iranian Afghans
 Romania Decrease 3,500 (2021) Iranians in Romania
 Kazakhstan Decrease 3,000 (2021) Iranians in Kazakhstan
 Greece Steady 2,500 (2021) Demographics of Greece
 Russia Decrease 2,434 (2021)[16] Iranians in Russia
 Brazil Steady 2,000 (2021) Iranian Brazilians
 Argentina Steady 2,000 (2021) Iranian Argentines
 Poland Decrease 2,000 (2021) Iranians in Poland
 South Korea Decrease 1,770 (2021) Iranians in South Korea
 Philippines Increase 1,500 (2021) Iranians in the Philippines
 Portugal Decrease 1,215 (2021) Iranians in Portugal
 Slovak Republic Decrease 1,140 (2021) Iranians in Slovakia
 Tajikistan Increase 1,000 (2021) Iranians in Tajikistan
 Tanzania Steady 1,000 (2021) Iranian Tanzanians
 Ireland Increase 1,000 (2021) Iranians in Ireland
 Czech Republic Decrease 1,000 (2021) Iranians in the Czech Republic
 Mexico Steady 500 (2021) Iranian Mexicans
 Bulgaria Decrease 500 (2021) Iranians in Bulgaria
 Egypt Decrease 500 (2021) Iranians in Egypt
 Kyrgyzstan Decrease 500 (2021) Iranians in Kyrgyzstan
 Estonia Increase 426 (2021) Iranians in Estonia
 Hong Kong Increase 410 (2021) Iranians in Hong Kong
 Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Steady 400 (2021) Iranians in Venezuela
 Indonesia Decrease 400 (2021) Iranians in Indonesia
 Colombia Steady 350 (2021) Iranian Colombians
 Chile Steady 300 (2021) Iranian Chileans
 Belarus Decrease 227 (2021) Iranians in Belarus
 Sudan Steady 225 (2021) Iranians in Belarus
 Singapore Steady 200 (2021) Iranians in Singapore
 Serbia Decrease 171 (2021) Iranians in Serbia
 Bolivia Steady 150 (2021) Iranian Bolivians
 Slovenia Decrease 125 (2021) Iranians in Slovenia
 Bosnia and Herzegovina Decrease 110 (2021) Iranians in Bosnia and Herzegovina
 Jordan Steady 100 (2021) Iranians in Jordan
 Kenya Steady 70 (2021) Iranians in Kenya
 Ghana Steady 70 (2021) Ghanaian Iranians
 Uruguay Steady 70 (2021) Iranian Uruguayans
 Ivory Coast Steady 65 (2021) Iranian Ivorians
 Croatia Decrease 60 (2021) Iranians in Croatia
 Turkmenistan Decrease 54 (2021) Iranians in Turkmenistan
 Uganda Steady 50 (2021) Iranians in Uganda
 Tunisia Steady 47 (2021) Iranians in Tunisia
 Senegal Steady 47 (2021) Iranians in Senegal
 Bangladesh Decrease 44 (2021) Iranians in Bangladesh
 Mauritius Steady 41 (2021) Iranians in Mauritius
 Vietnam Steady 40 (2021) Iranians in Vietnam
 Nicaragua Steady 40 (2021) Iranian Nicaraguans
 Democratic Republic of the Congo Steady 23 (2021) Iranians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
 Brunei Steady 21 (2021) Iranians in Brunei
 Algeria Steady 20 (2021) Iranians in Algeria
 Gambia Steady 17 (2021) Iranians in Gambia
 Niger Steady 15 (2021) Iranians in Niger
 Nigeria Steady 15 (2021) Iranian Nigerians
 Ethiopia Steady 12 (2021) Iranians in Ethiopia
 Madagascar Steady 12 (2021) Iranians in Madagascar
 Albania Decrease 12 (2021) Iranians in Albania
 North Macedonia Decrease 11 (2021) Iranians in North Macedonia
 Cameroon Steady 10 (2021) Iranian Cameroonians
 Guinea Steady 10 (2021) Iranians in Guinea
 Namibia Steady 10 (2021) Iranian Namibians
 Burkina Faso Steady 6 (2021) Iranians in Burkina Faso
 Cuba Decrease 3 (2021) Iranian Cubans
 Mali Steady 2 (2021) Mali Iranians
 North Korea Steady 1 (2021) Iranians in North Korea
 Saudi Arabia Steady 1 (2023) Iranians in Saudi Arabia
 Sri Lanka Decrease 0 (2021) Iranians in Sri Lanka
West Asia and Other Increase 2,433,000 (60,26%) (2021) Anglosphere
North, Central and South America Increase 1,905,813 (47,20%) (2021) Americas
Europe Increase 1,184,552 (29,34%) (2021) Europe
Total: Increase 4,037,258 (2021)[9] List of sovereign states and

dependent territories

by immigrant population

Socioeconomic status

Nearly 60 percent of Iranians abroad have earned at least an undergraduate degree, and have one of the highest rates of self-employment among immigrant groups. Many have founded their own companies, including Isaac Larian, the founder of MGA Entertainment, and Pierre Omidyar, who founded eBay in 1995 in San Jose, California. Iranian households in the United States earn on average $87,288 annually, and are ranked ninth by income.[17]

Students abroad

According to the Iranian government, 55,686 Iranian students were studying abroad in 2013:[18] 8,883 studied in Malaysia, 7,341 in the United States, 5,638 in Canada, 3,504 in Germany, 3,364 in Turkey, 3,228 in Britain, and the rest in other countries.[19][20] The Iranian Ministry of Education estimated that between 350,000 and 500,000 Iranians were studying outside Iran as of 2014.[21]

Politics

Economics

In 2000, the Iran Press Service reported that Iranian expatriates had invested between $200 and $400 billion in the United States, Europe, and China, but almost nothing in Iran.[5] In Dubai, Iranian expatriates have invested an estimated $200 billion (2006).[22] Migrant Iranian workers abroad remitted less than two billion dollars home in 2006.[23]

High net-worth individuals

National ranking Name Citizenship Net worth (USD) Source(s) of wealth
1Pierre Omidyar
IranUnited StatesFrance
12.9 billion [24]eBay
2Ghermezian family
IranCanada
4.0 billion [25]Triple Five Group
3Farhad Moshiri
IranUnited Kingdom
2.8 billion [26]Metalloinvest, Everton
4Nazarian family
IranUnited States
2.0 billion [27]Qualcomm
5Vincent & Robert Tchenguiz
IranUnited Kingdom
1.4 billion [28][29]Real Estate
6Manny Mashouf
IranUnited States
1.3 billion [30]Bebe stores
7Merage family
IranUnited States
1.1 billion [31]Hot Pockets
8Nasser David Khalili
IranUnited Kingdom
1.0 billion [32]Real Estate
9Hassan Khosrowshahi
IranCanada
950 million [33]Future Shop
10Omid Kordestani
IranUnited States
900 million [34]Google
11Anousheh Ansari
IranUnited States
750 million [35]Sonus Networks
12Isaac Larian
IranUnited States
723 million [34]MGA Entertainment
13Arash Ferdowsi
IranUnited States
400 million [36]Dropbox

Expatriate fund

The fund's stated goal is to attract investment from Iranian expatriates and to use their experience in stimulating foreign investments.[37]

Religious affiliation

The Iranian diaspora has been commonly defined as a largely people from upper-middle classes,secular and as cultural or nominal Muslims; the majority of them do not take fundamental Islamic rituals, such as daily prayers or fasting, and having largely embraced Western secularism.[38] Some expatriate Iranians consider themselves irreligious, agnostic, or atheist.[39][40][41]

Notes

In the period between 1961 and 2005, the United States became the main destination of Iranian emigrants. An estimated 378,995 Iranians have immigrated to the United States in that period, where Iranian immigrants have primarily immigrated to California (158,613 Iran-born in 2000),[42] New York (17,323),[42] Texas (15,581),[42] Virginia (10,889),[42] and Maryland (9,733).[42] The Los Angeles Metropolitan Area was estimated to be host to approximately 114,712 Iranian immigrants,[42] earning the Westwood area of Los Angeles the nickname Tehrangeles.

The US Census Bureau's decennial census form does not offer a designation for individuals of Iranian descent, and therefore it is estimated that only a fraction of the total number of Iranians are writing in their ancestry. The 2000 Census Bureau estimates that the Iranian American community (including the US-born children of the Iranian foreign born) numbers around 330,000. Studies using alternative statistical methods have estimated the actual number of Iranian Americans in the range of 691,000 to 1.2 million.[5][43]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. 1 2 "آمار پراکندگی ایرانیان مقیم خارج از کشور + نمودار". Gostaresh.news. Retrieved 2022-08-05.
  3. ↑ "Diaspora". Iranicaonline.org. Encyclopædia Iranica. December 15, 1995. pp. 370–387. Archived from the original on 9 February 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  4. ↑ Esfandiari, Golnaz (2004-03-08). "Iran: Coping With The World's Highest Rate Of Brain Drain - RADIO FREE EUROPE / RADIO LIBERTY". Rferl.org. Archived from the original on 2008-04-29. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  5. 1 2 3 "Migration Information Source - Iran: A Vast Diaspora Abroad and Millions of Refugees at Home". Migrationinformation.org. Archived from the original on 2014-02-15. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  6. ↑ According to one 2012-Pew study there were only 1,340,000 Iranian-born expatriates."Faith on the Move: The Religious Affiliation of International Migrants". Pewforum.org. 2012-03-08. Archived from the original on 2013-01-22. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  7. ↑ Saeed Zeydabadi-Nejad, The Politics of Iranian Cinema: Film and Society in the Islamic Republic, Routledge (2009), p. 17
  8. ↑ Bagherpour, Amir (September 12, 2020). "The Iranian Diaspora in America: 30 Years in the Making". Frontline. Tehran Bureau, PBS.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Iranians abroad per country" (PDF). iranian.mfa.ir. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  10. ↑ "Ausländische Bevölkerung nach Geschlecht und ausgewählten Staatsangehörigkeiten".
  11. ↑ "Australia's Population by Country of Birth, 2021 | Australian Bureau of Statistics". 26 April 2022.
  12. ↑ Moojan Momen. Shi'i Islam: A Beginner's Guide. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781780747880.
  13. ↑ "Iraniani in Italia - statistiche e distribuzione per regione". Tuttitalia.it (in Italian). Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  14. ↑ "Population 31.12. By Origin, Background country, Language, Year, Age, Sex and Information".
  15. ↑ "【在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計）統計表】 | 出入国在留管理庁".
  16. ↑ "Национальный состав населения Российской Федерации согласно переписи населения 2021 года". Archived from the original on 2022-12-30. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  17. ↑ "Iranian Americans free to thrive in the U.S." 20 July 2018.
  18. ↑ "12,000 foreign students studying at Iranian universities". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-17. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  19. ↑ "14,000 foreign students studying in Iran". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-24. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  20. ↑ Coughlan, Sean (2015-06-23). "US universities on symbolic visit to Iran - BBC News". Bbc.com. Archived from the original on 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  21. ↑ "Over 350,000 Iranians studying abroad: Education Minister". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-24. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  22. ↑ Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 04/04/06 Archived February 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  23. ↑ Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 10/22/07 Archived October 25, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  24. ↑ "Forbes 400: Pierre Omidyar". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2017-08-23. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  25. ↑ Avissar, Irit (October 27, 2010). "Canadian Jewish family in talks to buy Clal Insurance". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on June 3, 2016. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  26. ↑ Farhad Moshiri Archived 2019-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Forbes.com. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  27. ↑ "Izak Nazarian: From Tehran Rags to LA Riches". vosizneias.com. 29 September 2009. Archived from the original on 2016-12-13. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  28. ↑ "Vincent and Robert Tchenguiz". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 5 May 2009.
  29. ↑ "Tchenguiz brothers held in Kaupthing raid: source". Reuters. 9 March 2011. Archived from the original on 20 November 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  30. ↑ "#754 Manny Mashouf & family". Forbes. 2007-03-08. Archived from the original on 2006-05-03. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  31. ↑ "The Forbes 400". Forbes. 30 September 2002. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  32. ↑ "#701 Nasser Khalili - The World's Billionaires 2009". Forbes. 2009-03-11. Archived from the original on 2017-08-19. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  33. ↑ "No. 10: Hassan Khosrowshahi of Inwest Investments Ltd., DRI Capital Inc. has an estimated net worth of $0.94 billion". Vancouver Sun. May 14, 2012. Archived from the original on January 16, 2019. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  34. 1 2 Wells, Jane (20 Aug 2008). "Barbie v. Bratz: How Much $$$ For Mattel?". CNBC. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  35. ↑ Kurata, Phillip (2012-02-24). "Iranian-American Woman Follows Dream to Wealth and Success". Payvan News. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  36. ↑ "Arash Ferdowsi - The 25 Richest Tech Entrepreneurs Under 30". Complex. 15 August 2012. Archived from the original on 24 June 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  37. ↑ "Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 04/19/09". Archived from the original on 2009-06-22. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  38. ↑ Gholami, Reza (2016). Secularism and Identity: Non-Islamiosity in the Iranian Diaspora. Routledge. pp. 2–5. ISBN 9781317058274.
  39. ↑ Public Opinion Survey of Iranian Americans. Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA)/Zogby, December 2008. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
  40. ↑ "Persian NYers Show Their Pride at Murray Hill Parade". Time Warner Cable News. Archived from the original on April 19, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Disparaging Islam and the Iranian-American Identity: To Snuggle or to Struggle". Payvand.com. 21 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 May 2014.
  42. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Migration Information Source - Spotlight on the Iranian Foreign Born". Migrationinformation.org. Archived from the original on 2012-12-14. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  43. ↑ Mostashari, Ali (October 2003). "Factsheet on the Iranian-American Community" (PDF). Iranian Studies Group Research. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2017-07-17.

Sources

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