British Arabs

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British Arabs
العرب البريطانية
Notable Arab Britons (From left to right):
Mika and Karima Adebibe
Total population

1,030,000+
(1.70% of the UK population)
Regions with significant populations
London, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, Glasgow, Cardiff, Newcastle upon Tyne, Leeds, Derby
Languages
British English, Arabic
Religion
Islam, Christianity, Judaism
Related ethnic groups
'Other Ethnic Group' (UK Census), Arabs

British Arabs are people who originate from Iraq, Morocco, Yemen, and other Arab countries who live in the United Kingdom. In the 2001 UK Census, Arabs could identify themseleves under the codes 83 - Middle Eastern or 34 - Arab.

Most Arabs live in the Greater London area, and many are either businesspeople, recent immigrants or students.

Contents

[edit] History

The first Arabs to settle in Britain in sizeable numbers were Yemeni seafarers, reflecting the close political and economic ties that the British had developed with the Yemeni port of Aden in the 19th century. These migrants, who formed communities in several British port cities, were mostly men. Following the Second World War, more Yemenis arrived in Britain to work in the steel mills and factories in cities like Sheffield, and many of these were joined by families. The well-established Yemeni origin communities of Sheffield, Cardiff, Birmingham, and Liverpool, continue to be an important component of the Arab British population, growing in recent decades due to family reunification and to some refugee settlement following political crisis in Yemen in the 1990s. While still numerically significant, the Yemeni communities in Britain’s former industrial centres have been eclipsed by the diverse Arab community that has emerged mainly in London since the 1960s.[1]

Between 1997 and 2005, over 63,560 people from Arab countries, mainly Iraq and Algeria, with smaller numbers from Sudan, Libya, Syria, and Yemen, claimed asylum in Britain.[1] In 2002, on the eve of the US/UK invasion of Iraq, Iraqis alone represented 17 percent of total asylum applications in the UK.[1] These migrants have come as a result, on the one hand, of political turmoil and economic stagnation in the Arab world, and on the other hand, of opportunities for higher education and professional advancement in Britain, especially in medicine, engineering, technology, and business.[1] The main source countries, in descending order, are Iraq, Morocco, Lebanon, Algeria, Yemen and Syria. A recent survey showed data by country of birth, showing immigrants from the several of the main source countries—Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria—as professional academics in London. Results confirm 47 percent of Iraqis, 42.5 percent of Lebanese, and 43 percent of Syrians.[1]

Immigration data provide additional insights into Arab British communities by revealing the dynamics of population movements between the Arab world and Britain. Over the past decade, inflows from the Middle East to the UK generally have outweighed outflows from the UK to the Middle East. Between 1995 and 2004, net migration from the Middle East to the UK, based on place of last and next residence, has ranged from +3,300 to +20,500 per year, with the high point of migration taking place between 2001 and 2002.[1]

[edit] Education

One of the largest segments of the overall migrant population in Britain comprises students, with about 131,000 people coming to Britain in 2004 alone for formal study. This is about 7 percent of all foreign students in Britain’s higher education system. The data report commissioned by the Greater London Authority shows a disproportionately high representation of students among some Arab immigrant groups in London. While 9.5 percent of Londoners over the age of 16 are students, 32 percent of Kuwaitis, 40 percent of Omanis, and 50 percent of Saudis in London.[1]

[edit] Subgroups

[edit] Algerian

Algerian 60,000 [2]

Notable Algerian Britons

[edit] Iraqi

Iraqi 250,000[3]
Main article: Iraqi Britons

Notable Iraqi Britons See: List of Iraqi Britons

[edit] Jordanian

Jordanian 10,000 [4]

Notable Jordanain Britons

[edit] Lebanese

Notable Lebanese Britons

[edit] Libyan

Notable Libyan Britons


[edit] Moroccan

Moroccan 74,000[5]

Moroccan migration to the UK began substantially in the 1960s with many arrivals being a mixture of the professional and unskilled, all coming in search of employment and a new life. In recent times, many Moroccans have taken advantage of the growth of London’s café society, opening up coffee shops and patisseries all over London, including suburbs such as Edgware Road, Kensington, Richmond and Harrow. It is estimated that around 74,000 Moroccans live in the UK with London and South East England attracting the majority. Trowbridge, the county town of Wiltshire, has the highest population of Moroccans in the UK outside of London.[6]

Notable Moroccan Britons

[edit] Palestinian

Notable Palestinian Britons

[edit] Saudi Arabian

Saudi Arabian 6,256 [7]

[edit] Sudanese

Sudanese 11,000 [8]

Notable Sudanese Britons

[edit] Syrian

[edit] Yemeni

Main article: Yemeni British
Yemeni 30,000 - 40,000[9]

Yemeni Britons are British citizens of Yemeni descent. There are an estimated 60,000 Yemenis in the United Kingdom, with the largest community living in Sheffield. Other communities exist in Cardiff, Birmingham, South Shields and London. A large number of Yemenis came to the UK to work in its major port cities in the early twentieth century. The community then began to move to inland cities such as Sheffield and Birmingham

Notable Yemeni Britons

[edit] References and notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g About British Arabs. arab-communities.org. Retrieved on 2008-02-29.
  2. ^ The census in England and Wales
  3. ^ Iraqis far from home sign up to vote - International Herald Tribune
  4. ^ The census in England and Wales
  5. ^ Moroccans in london today - Morocco.com Discussion Forum
  6. ^ Backing For Link To Morocco (from Wiltshire Times)
  7. ^ The census in England and Wales
  8. ^ The census in England and Wales
  9. ^ Yemenis In Britain (YIB): About Us

[edit] External Links (in English unless otherwise indicated)

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