Afghan diaspora

Not to be confused with Pashtun diaspora.
Afghan diaspora
Persian: مهاجران افغان
Pashto: بهر ميشت افغانان
Regions with significant populations
 Iranc. 5.0-6.0 million (2023)[1]
 Pakistanc. 1.9-4.4 million (2023)[2][3]
 Germany476,000 (2023)[4]
 United States300,000 (2023)[5]
 United Arab Emirates300,000 (2023)[6][7]
 Russia150,000 (2023)[8]
 Saudi Arabia132,282 (2022 census) [9]
 Canada132,015 (2023)[10][11]
 Turkey129,323 (2021)[12][13]
 United Kingdom93,296 (2023)[14]
 Sweden67,858 (2023)[15]
 Australia59,797 (2021)[16]
 Netherlands51,830 (2021)[17]
 Austria44,918 (2023)
 France41,174 (2021)[18]
 Denmark21,635 (2024)[19]
 Greece21,456 (2021)[20]
 Ukraine20,000 (2001)[21]
 Norway19,072 (2023)[22]
 India15,806 (2021)[12][23]
  Switzerland14,523 (2021)[24][20]
 Finland12,044 (2021)[25]
 Italy11,121-12,096 (2021)[20][26]
 Uzbekistan10,000 (2022)[27]
 Israel10,000 (2012)[28]
 Indonesia7,629 (2021)[12]
 Tajikistan6,775 (2021)[29]
 Qatar4,000 (2012)[30]
 Japan3,509 (2020)[31]
 New Zealand3,414 (2013)[32]
 Brazil2,800+ (2023)[33]
 Malaysia2,661 (2021)[12][34]
 Kazakhstan2,500+ (2021)[35][36]
 Romania2,384 (2020)[37]
 Kyrgyzstan2,000 (2002)[38]
 Ireland1,200 (2019)[39]
 Ecuador300–2,500 (2018)[40]
 Portugal883[41]
Languages
Pashto, Dari Persian, and languages spoken in the respective country of residence
Religion
Sunni Islam (majority)
Minority: Shia Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, and Sikhism

Afghan diaspora refers to the Afghan people that reside and work outside of Afghanistan. They include natives and citizens of Afghanistan who have immigrated to other countries. The majority of the diaspora has been formed by Afghan refugees since the start of the Soviet–Afghan War in 1979; the largest numbers temporarily reside in Iran. As stateless refugees or asylum seekers, they are protected by the well-established non-refoulement principle and the U.N. Convention Against Torture.[42] The ones having at least one American parent are further protected by United States laws.[43][44]

Outside the immediate region of Afghanistan, the largest and oldest communities of Afghans exist in Germany; large communities also exist in the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Russia, Turkey, Canada, United Kingdom, Sweden, Netherlands, Australia and Austria. Some are nationals and citizens of the countries in those continents, especially those in the United States, Canada, Western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.[45][46][44]

Traditionally, the borders between Afghanistan and its southern and eastern neighboring countries have been fluid and vague.[47] Like other nations that were created by European empires, the borders of Afghanistan with neighboring countries often do not follow ethnic divisions, and several native ethnic groups are found on both sides of Afghanistan's border. This means that historically there was much movement across present day barriers.[48]

  1. ^ "Iran's Interior Minister - The presence of more than 5.0 million Afghan immigrants in Iran". www.isna.ir. 13 July 2023. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :12 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference data2.unhcr.org was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference german was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "B04006: PEOPLE REPORTING ANCESTRY". Census Bureau. Retrieved 2024-03-14.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hakimi was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Shahbandari was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Moscow's 'Little Kabul'". Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. 25 December 2017.
  9. ^ "Saudi Arabia 2022 Census" (PDF). General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-04-28. Retrieved 2024-08-22.
  10. ^ "Canada Census Profile 2021". Census Profile, 2021 Census. Statistics Canada Statistique Canada. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  11. ^ "Permanent Residents – Monthly IRCC Updates – Canada – Admissions of Permanent Residents by Country of Citizenship". Statistics Canada. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference Onward Movements of Afghan Refugees was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference The Afghan refugee crisis brewing on Turkey's eastern border was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ "Table 1.3: Overseas-born population in the United Kingdom, excluding some residents in communal establishments, by sex, by country of birth, January 2019 to December 2019". Office for National Statistics. 21 May 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020. Figure given is the central estimate. See the source for 95% confidence intervals.
  15. ^ "Folkmängden efter födelseland, ålder och kön. År 2000 - 2023".
  16. ^ "People in Australia who were born in Afghanistan". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
  17. ^ "CBS Statline".
  18. ^ "Afghanistan. Comment sont répartis les réfugiés afghans dans le monde ?". 2 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Hvor mange og hvem er indvandrere i Danmark?". Udlændinge- og Integrationsministeriets Udlændingedatabase, IMBEF02A. February 12, 2024. Retrieved 2024-03-05.
  20. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference New Statesman was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference Afghans in Ukraine was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ Statistics Norway – [https://www.ssb.no/statbank/table/13880/tableViewLayout1/
  23. ^ Cite error: The named reference Afghan refugees in India cast adrift amid coronavirus pandemic was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  24. ^ "Bevölkerung nach Staatsangehörigkeit und Geburtsland". 18 May 2018.
  25. ^ "Foreigners in Finland". Statistics Finland. June 9, 2021. Retrieved 2021-07-30.
  26. ^ Istituto Nazionale di Statistica (2020). Cittadini Stranieri. Popolazione residente e bilancio demografico al 31 dicembre 2019 [Foreign Citizens. Resident population and demographic balance as in 31 Dec 2019] (Report) (in Italian). Rome: Istat. Retrieved 15 August 2021. Italia - Asia Centro-Meridionale
    Afghanistan [...] Totale: 11121     [Italy - Center-Southern Asia
    Afghanistan [...] Total: 11,121]
  27. ^ Cite error: The named reference Eurasianet was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  28. ^ Cite error: The named reference The story of the Afghan Jews is one of remarkable tolerance was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  29. ^ Cite error: The named reference Afghanistan Situation was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  30. ^ Cite error: The named reference Population of Qatar by nationality was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  31. ^ Cite error: The named reference Immigration Services of Japan was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  32. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2013 Census ethnic group profiles: Afghani was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  33. ^ ""Brazil, the unlikely last hope of Afghan refugees" - El País - elpais.com". 14 February 2023.
  34. ^ "Afghan refugees in Malaysia find hope in Theatre of the Oppressed". Turkey: TRT World. September 4, 2017. Retrieved 2021-07-29.
  35. ^ ""Салт-дәстүрін аялай білген халық" - ақпараттық-танымдық сайт - Еl.kz". 7 November 2020.
  36. ^ ""Босқындарды қабылдауға үзілді-кесілді қарсымын" - Қазақстандағы ауған диаспорасының басшысы". 23 September 2021.
  37. ^ "Romania: Refugee and migrant figures for 2020". March 30, 201. Retrieved 2021-07-30.
  38. ^ IFRC document
  39. ^ "Up to 500 relatives of Afghans in State to be offered temporary residency". The Irish Times.
  40. ^ "Los afganos latinoamericanos". www.trt.net.tr. TRT Español.
  41. ^ "Portugal: New agency for migration and asylum".
  42. ^ See generally
  43. ^ See, e.g., generally 18 U.S.C. § 249; 18 U.S.C. § 876; 18 U.S.C. § 1958; 18 U.S.C. § 2332; 18 U.S.C. § 2441; "United States v. Morin, 80 F.3d 124". Fourth Circuit. Harvard Law School. April 5, 1996. p. 126. Retrieved 2021-08-02.
  44. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Child Citizenship Act was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  45. ^ Cite error: The named reference Khan v. Barber was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  46. ^ Cite error: The named reference In the Matter of K was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  47. ^ "The Durand line: History, Consequences, and Future" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 June 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  48. ^ "Afghan-Pakistani Forces Exchange Fire Along Shared Border". NPR. May 7, 2013. Retrieved 2021-08-01.