Mass migration refers to the

migration Migration, migratory, or migrate may refer to: Human migration * Human migration, physical movement by humans from one region to another ** International migration, when peoples cross state boundaries and stay in the host state for some minimum le ...

of large groups of people from one geographical area to another. Mass migration is distinguished from individual or small-scale migration; and also from seasonal migration, which may occur on a regular basis.

History and examples of mass migrations

A specific mass migration that is seen as especially influential to the course of human cultural and anthropomorphic history may be referred to as a ' great migration'. For example, great migrations include the

Indo-European migrations The Indo-European migrations are hypothesized migrations of Proto-Indo-Europeans, peoples who spoke Proto-Indo-European language, Proto-Indo-European (PIE) and the derived Indo-European languages, which took place from around 4000 to 1000 BCE, ...

to Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia during the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

, the Bantu migrations across sub-Saharan Africa, Barbarian invasions during the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

, the Great Migration from England of the 1630s, the

California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...

from 1848–1850, the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural American South to the industrial north during 1920–1950, and The Great Oromo Migrations of Oromo tribes during the 15th and 16th centuries in the Horn of Africa.

UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...

estimates 14 million Hindus, Sikhs, and Muslims were displaced during the

partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...

, the largest mass migration in human history. The largest documented voluntary emigration in history was the

Italian diaspora The Italian diaspora (, ) is the large-scale emigration of Italians from Italy. There were two major Italian diasporas in Italian history. The first diaspora began around 1880, two decades after the Risorgimento, Unification of Italy, and ended ...

, which migrated from Italy between 1880 and 1915, with 13 million people leaving the country.

Forced migration

Mass migrations may be

forced displacement Forced displacement (also forced migration or forced relocation) is an involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or home region. The UNHCR defines 'forced displacement' as follows: displaced "as a result of perse ...

s, such as

human trafficking Human trafficking is the act of recruiting, transporting, transferring, harboring, or receiving individuals through force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of exploitation. This exploitation may include forced labor, sexual slavery, or oth ...

deportation Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people by a state from its sovereign territory. The actual definition changes depending on the place and context, and it also changes over time. A person who has been deported or is under sen ...

or population cleansing.

Age of Mass Migration

Historians often identify an "age of mass migration" occurring from c. 1850 to 1914 (sometimes 1940), during which long-distance migration occurred at an unprecedented and exceptionally high rate. There were three factors that led to the 'age of mass migration'. First, the cost of migration decreased dramatically. Second, the benefits of migration rose (the return on migration was higher in the United States than in other countries). Third, open border regimes encouraged migration. The 'age of mass migration' usually refers to the voluntary transatlantic migration of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

peasants A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising f ...

and laborers to the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

. Immigration from Europe accounted for about 40% of the total United States population growth in the late 19th century. It has been argued that the term should include other mass migrations that occurred in the same period since similarly, large numbers of people migrated long distances within the continent of

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, most notably during the Pakistan Movement and the subsequent

in 1947. During open border regimes, immigrants were attracted by the falling costs of migration and higher wages in the United States. The partition of India caused the movement of 18 million people. This caused both religious and civil tensions between Hindus and Muslims. This resulted in the highest casualty rate for one migration according to the Guinness Book of World Records 2014. One million people were killed and 12 million became homeless.

References

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History and examples of mass migrations

Forced migration

Age of Mass Migration

See also

References

Further reading