The term: diaspora (in Greek, διασπορά – "a scattering or sowing of seeds") is used (without capitalization) to refer to any people or ethnic population forced or induced to leave their traditional ethnic homelands; being dispersed throughout other parts of the world, and the ensuing developments in their dispersal and culture.
In the beginning, the term Diaspora (capitalized) was used by the Ancient Greeks to refer to citizens of a grand city who migrated to a conquered land with the purpose of colonization to assimilate the territory into the empire. The original meaning was cut off from the present meaning when the Old Testament was translated to Greek, the word diaspora was used to refer specifically to the populations of Jews exiled from Judea in 586 BC by the Babylonians, and Jerusalem in AD 136 by the Roman Empire. This term is used interchangeably to refer to the historical movements of the dispersed ethnic population of Israel, the cultural development of that population, or the population itself. The probable origin of the word is the Septuagint version of Deuteronomy 28:25, "thou shalt be a dispersion in all kingdoms of the earth". The term was assimilated from Greek into English in the late 20th century.
The academic field of diaspora studies was established in the late twentieth century, in regard to the expanded meaning of 'diaspora'.
The twentieth century continued to see massive ethnic refugee crises, due to war and the rise of nationalism, fascism, communism and racism, as well as from natural disasters and economic collapse. The first half of the twentieth century saw the creation of hundreds of millions of ethnic refugees across Europe, Asia, and northern Africa. Many of these refugees who did not die from starvation or war went to Western Europe and the Americas.
There is talk presently of a New Orleans, or U.S. Gulf Coast "diaspora" in the wake of Hurricane Katrina of 2005, but only time will tell how significant a number of those evacuees will indeed not return.
List of notable diasporas
Note: the list below is not comprehensive or definitive, and includes groups that have not been given significant historical attention. Whether the migration of some of the groups listed fulfills the conditions required to be considered a diaspora may be open for debate.
The Acadian diaspora - the Great Expulsion (Grand Dérangement) occurred when the British expelled about 10,000 Acadians (over three-fourths of the Acadian population of Nova Scotia) between 1755 and 1764. The British sent members of the same community to different colonies to impose assimilation.
Assyrians - a pre-Arab SemiticChristian population of the Middle East (originally they lived in Syria, as well in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Turkey). In the 20th century, millions of Assyrians left the Middle East from ongoing ethnic, political and religious persecution. Assyrian communities flourish in the United States, Canada, throughout Europe, Brazil, Africa, India, China and Australia.
Afghan people - fled their country throughout the 20th century and the long civil wars, especially to nearby Pakistan, India and Iran.
Australian diaspora - three million Australian expatriates live outside of Australia, mostly consists of business executives, and retirees sought a new place to live. There are large Australian communities in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and North America (esp. the United States), and smaller groups in Europe, Africa (esp. South Africa), the Middle East (especially the United Arab Emirates), east and south Asia (esp. Thailand), and Latin America.
Basque diaspora - Basques who left the Basque Country, usually to the Americas for economic or political reasons. There are also Basque Catholic missionaries.
Circassians - fled Circassia - Kabardey, Cherkes, Adigey Republics and Shapsug Area]] 1864 The Darkest Day of Circassian nation .... Exiled 90% of Circassians are by Russian Colonialists to Ottoman Empire or imperial Turkey ... The Circassian Diaspora is over four million worldwide, with large Circassian communities in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Romania, Syria, Russia as well the former USSR, and 100,000 Circassians in North America (the United States and Canada).
Colombian diaspora - over five million Colombians, either displaced by war, left for economic opportunity, and placed in exile to avoid political persecution. The Colombian diaspora lives across the Americas (i.e. the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, and South American nations), and across Europe (i.e. Spain, France, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom).
Cornish migration refers to Cornish emigrants and their descendants in other parts of England and in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Mexico. The diaspora was caused by a number of factors, but due mainly to economic reasons and the lack of jobs in the 18th and 19th centuries when many Cornish people or “Cousin Jacks” as they were known migrated to various parts of the world in search of a better life.
Dutch diaspora - the Dutch originally came from the Netherlands (also are called Nederlanders) and their related ethnolinguistic group, the Flemings of Belgium and smaller numbers in Northernmost parts of France. Millions of Dutch descendants live in the United States (Dutch American), Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, India (Sri Lanka), Africa (Zaire when it was the Belgian Congo until 1960), the Caribbean (Aruba and Netherlands Antilles which is officially Dutch territory), and South America (Suriname formerly was Dutch until independence in 1975, but Dutch descendants are found in Brazil and Argentina). The four million white (European) Afrikaaners of South Africa are descendants of Dutch, French Huguenot and German settlers brought over to the colonial Dutch East India company in the 16th century (see South African diaspora).
The Heimatvertriebene - the ethnic German refugees and expellees from Eastern Europe and from provinces of the former German Reich during and following World War II (see Oder-Neisse line for information on the borders of Germany). Many now live in the western regions of Germany.
Mennonites - a Christian religious sect based on the 16th and 17th century Anabaptist movement in Germany and Switzerland in the Protestant Reformation, went extinct in Europe by the late 18th century. Various groups of Mennonites had to migrate to the Americas to find religious freedom. In North America, the old order Amish, Hutterites and Dunkerites in the Northern and midwestern United States like the State of Pennsylvania, and Western Canada live apart from the mainstream world out of voluntary choice. There is a Mennonite colony in Paraguay, South America and there are over a million Mennonite adherents worldwide.
Gerashi diasporas - The people of Gerashi origin (of Iran) who have migrated to the Arab States of the southern Persian Gulf in search of necessities and basic human rights. It has continued since the early 20th century bombing of the city by Reza Shah and the federal forces.
Greek diaspora - refers to any ethnic Greek populations living outside the borders of Greece and Cyprus as a result of modern or ancient migrations. There is a Department of Diaspora Affairs in the Greek government. Millions of Greeks live in North America (the United States and Canada), Africa, Australia, the Asian continent, across Europe and the Middle East.
Indochinese diaspora - includes the refugees from the numerous wars that took place in Southeast Asia, such as World War II and the Vietnam War.
The Vietnamese disapora - fled communist rule in Vietnam following their victory in the Vietnam War (see South Vietnam) went to the United States (see Vietnamese Americans), as well to Canada, France (and overseas territories), Germany (also the Vietnamese guest workers in the former Communist East Germany), Italy, the Middle East, Australia, and other Asian countries (most went to Hong Kong, when it was a British colony, before the handover to the People's Republic of China in 1997, and Macau, which was under Portuguese rule until the handover to the People's Republic of China in 1999).
Romanians - who emigrated for the first time in larger figures between 1910 and 1925, and left in mass after the fall of communist regime in Romania in 1989, and comprise the Romanian diaspora, are found today in large numbers in USA, Italy, Spain, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Russia, Turkey, the Netherlands, the UK, Australia, Brazil and Argentina.
Indonesian diaspora - refers to any ethnic in Indonesia living outside of their homeland.
Minangkabau diaspora - two of three Minangkabau people live in diaspora. Matrilineal system indirectly caused the diaspora in Minangkabau community. Nowadays, over a million Minangkabau people living outside of Indonesia, mainly in Malaysia and Singapore.
Irish diaspora - consists of Irish emigrants and their descendants in countries such as the United States (see Irish Americans), the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, South Africa, and nations of the Caribbean and continental Europe, where small but vibrant Irish communities continue to exist. The diaspora contains over 80 million people and it is the result of mass migration from Ireland, due to past famines and political oppression. The term first came widely into use in Ireland in the 1990s when the then-President of Ireland, Mary Robinson began using it to describe all those of Irish descent. Notable people of the global Irish diaspora are United States president John F. Kennedy and Mexican president Vicente Fox are of part-Irish descent.
Italian diaspora - occurred after the unification of Italy in 1861. Vast numbers of Italians (and Sicilians) emigrated to Brazil, the United States (see Italian Americans), Canada, Argentina, Australia, and elsewhere in the Americas (i.e. Chile, Mexico, Panama, Puerto Rico and Venezuela), Europe (i.e. The UK, Malta, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden), smaller numbers of Italians went to Israel and South Africa, and Italian communities once thrived until the mid 20th century (Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia and Turkey). See also Sicily and Sicilian.
Jaffnese/Ceylonese Diaspora - refers to the diaspora of Sri Lankan Tamils, especially those post-1983 due to the civil conflict in Sri Lanka. This has created huge Tamil communities in countries such as Canada, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany and other European countries. In many ways, the Jaffnese Diaspora is compared to the Jewish Diaspora, both historically, socially and economically. It is a subset of the greater Tamil Diaspora.
Japanese diaspora - Brazil (see Japanese Brazilian), the United States (see Japanese Americans), Peru, Australia and Canada are the countries with the largest numbers of Japanese people outside Japan. The Japanese population used to have nicknames to indicate generational levels "Issei"-foreign born parents, "Nisei"-1st generation born outside Japan or children, and "Sansei"-2nd generation born outside Japan or grandchildren.
Jewish diaspora - in its historical use, refers to the period between the Roman invasion and subsequent occupation of Land of Israel beginning 70 CE, to the establishment of Israel in 1948. In modern use, the 'Diaspora' refers to Jews living outside of the Jewish state of Israel today. There is a 'Ministry of Diaspora Affairs' in the Israeli government, for example. Not all Jews, though, regard themselves as part of a diaspora community.
Koreans - a people from the Korean peninsula located between China and Japan. The first wave of Korean diaspora was during the Japanese colonial occupation (1910-1945), the peace treaty division of the Korean peninsula into two republics, the Korean War (1950-53) produced a wave of millions of war refugees, fled to the United States, Canada, China, Japan, the Philippines, South Vietnam until 1975, and the USSR, now Russia. Today, Korea remains a politically divided geographic unit. South Korea was under military rule 1953-1987, now a civilian democracy, but economic problems and a sense for adventure made over 500,000 South Koreans emigrate to the United States and Canada, and 100,000 more to Europe, Australia and South America (i.e. Chile and Argentina). North Korea remains under an isolationist military state under Communism since 1948, while millions of political refugees fled to nearby China for freedom in the late 20th century.
Lithuanian diaspora - the majority of live in North America (Canada and the United States) and Northwest Europe (France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands), but are scattered across Russia and the former USSR.
Macedonian diaspora - created by Macedonian refugees from the Republic of Macedonia, to the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, Sweden, New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina, Italy, Greece, and many other states. There are approximately 2,000,000 Macedonians worldwide, and Macedonians are multi-ethnic people, who can be of Albanian, Greek, Jewish, Latin, Roma, Slavic and Turkish origins.
Maghrebi diaspora - consists of people from the North African countries, notably Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. The largest Maghrebi community outside of North Africa is in France, where it is estimated that North Africans make up the majority of the country's Muslim population.[1]
Mexican Americans - over 20 million people of Mexican background live in the United States, ranging from recent immigrants to long-established Americans of Spanish or Mexican descent. The majority of Mexican Americans live especially in the American Southwest, which borders with Mexico - an area that belonged to Mexico from 1821-1848. Also known by other ethnic self-titles, like Chicanos, La Raza, Tejanos, and Californios.
Moravian Church - has a nickname "the Moravian Diaspora" named from a religious, not ethnic identity, named for its' foundation in the province of Moravia, now in the Czech Republic. After the 16th and 17th century religious persecution drove the majority base of church membership to other countries, and by the late 18th and 19th centuries, the Moravian church manage to grow, thrive and survive. There are tens of millions of Moravian church members in small communities of: Europe (the Netherlands), the Americas (the United States), Africa (South Africa), east Asia (South Korea), the Indian subcontinent (India), and Oceania (Australia).
Persian Diaspora, the persians ( Iranians ) are in a major number in Los Angeles, aka Tehrangeles; 20% of the population is persian, the major number of persians in Los Angeles are located in Westwood, aka Little Persia, and 25% of Beverly Hills is persian, even the mayor of Beverly Hills is Persian.
Puerto Rican diaspora - a mass migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States began during the first half of twentieth century and has become a subject often studied in colleges, because of Puerto Ricans who achieved success in the United States.
