Syrian Canadians refers to Canadians who claim

Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

ancestry and newcomers who have Syrian citizenship. According to the 2016 Census, there were 77,050 Syrian Canadians compared to the 2011 Census where there were 50,840.

History

Syrians started immigrating 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 ...

in the early part of the 1880s, while the vast majority migrated to

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, a small percentage made their way to

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and an even smaller percentage settled in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The overwhelming majority of Syrians who settled in Canada from the 1880s to 1960s were of the

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

faith. The so-called Shepard of the lost flock, Saint Raphael Hawaweeny of

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, came to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

1896 Events January * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports Wilhelm Röntgen's dis ...

to help establish a

association called the ''Syrian Benevolent Society'' and then later on an Orthodox church in Montreal for the newly arrived Syrian faithful. Since

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

was elected as

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

in 2015, over 25,000 Syrian

refugees A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

have settled in Canada.

Demography

Religion

Economic life

The leading factor for the immigration of Syrians has been to find better employment. The early immigrants found themselves engaging in basic commerce, with the term 'peddler' becoming almost synonymous with 'Syrian'. Most of these peddlers were successful, and, with time, and after raising enough capital, some became importers and wholesalers, recruiting newcomers and supplying them with merchandise. Others opened small businesses in urban centers all over the country. Later, these merchants would go towards larger urban locations, where the economy was improving. Smaller number of Syrians worked as laborers in factories, miners, or as plumbers. Also, some became pioneers in the Southern prairie regions of

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West, or Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a list of regions of Canada, Canadian region that includes the four western provinces and t ...

, and worked in farming. These workers settled in communities such as

Swift Current Swift Current is the sixth-largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is situated along the Trans-Canada Highway west of Moose Jaw, and east of Medicine Hat, Alberta. As of 2024, Swift Current has an estimated population of ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, and Lac La Biche,

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. Few reached the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

, the best known being Peter Baker, author of the book ''An Arctic Arab'', and later elected as a member of the legislative assembly of the Northwest Territories. By the 1930s, many towns in the

Maritimes The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, and Western Canada had one or more retail stores run by Syrian immigrants. Women also worked occasionally, in addition to housekeeping, and usually helped run the family store if they had one, and in the cities they would sell goods from door to door.

Notable Syrian Canadians

* Omar Alghabra, former Minister of Transport and Member of Parliament from Mississauga Centre * René Angélil, Canadian singer and manager (father was of

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

n descent) *

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter and actor. His songs include " Diana", “ You Are My Destiny", “Lonely Boy", " Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also wr ...

, Canadian singer and songwriter (father was

n) *

Feras Antoon Feras Antoon (; born 29 June 1975) is a Syrian Canadians, Syrian-Canadian-France, French pornographer, and the co-owner and CEO of Aylo, the world's largest pornography company, which runs sites including Pornhub and RedTube. He created his fir ...

, businessman * Ayah Bdeir, entrepreneur and founder of LittleBits * Tirone E. David, cardiac surgeon and professor of surgery at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

. Known for developing the " David Operation”. *

Tony Clement Tony Peter Clement ('' né'' Payani; born January 27, 1961) is a Canadian former politician in the federal and Ontario governments. He was Member of Parliament for Parry Sound-Muskoka and a federal cabinet minister in the Conservative Party ...

, Canadian Member of Parliament from Parry Sound-Muskoka. Mother of Syrian descent. *

Moshe Safdie Moshe Safdie (; born July 14, 1938) is an architect, urban planner, educator, theorist, and author. He is well known for incorporating principles of socially responsible design throughout his six-decade career. His projects include cultural, ed ...

, architect who designed

Marina Bay Sands Marina Bay Sands is a integrated resort fronting Marina Bay, Singapore, Marina Bay in Singapore and a landmark of the city. At its opening in 2010, it was deemed the world's most expensive standalone casino property at Singapore dollar, S$8&nbs ...

and Jewel Changi Airport *

Dov Charney Dov Charney (born January 31, 1969) is a Canadian entrepreneur and clothing manufacturer. He is the founder of American Apparel, which was one of the largest garment manufacturers in the United States until its bankruptcy in 2015. Charney was ...

, founder of American Apparel and

Los Angeles Apparel Los Angeles Apparel is a manufacturer, designer and distributor of clothing based in South-Central Los Angeles. The company was founded in 2016 by Dov Charney, the founder of American Apparel. Los Angeles Apparel is a vertically integrated man ...

* Sam Hamad, former Member of the Quebec National Assembly (MNA) for the riding of Louis-Hebert and former Quebec Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity. * Jamal Murray, NBA basketball player * Jack Kachkar, Syrian Canadian businessman of Armenian descent * Wiz Kilo, Canadian hip hop and R&B artist *

Ruba Nadda Ruba Nadda (born 6 December 1972) is a Canadian film director. She made several award-winning short films, including ''Lost Woman Story'', ''Interstate Love Story'', ''So Far Gone'' and ''Damascus Nights'' before writing and directing features ' ...

, Canadian film director of mixed Syrian-Palestinian origin * Rami Sebei, Canadian professional wrestler best known for his work under the ring name El Generico, currently signed to WWE under the ring name Sami Zayn * Sammy Yatim, Canadian shot by a Toronto police officer * Molham Babouli, Syrian Canadian professional soccer player for York United and the Syrian national football team * Marshall Rifai, Marshall Rifai Syrian Canadian professional Ice Hockey player for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Marlies

Popular culture

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

'', a 2005 film directed by Ruba Nadda, portrays a Syrian Canadian family in Toronto.

Notes

References

External links

The Syrian Embassy in Ottawa
{{People of Canada

Syrians Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine Arabic, Levantine and Mesopotamian Arabic, Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The culture of Syria, cultural ...

Asian diaspora in Canada Syrian diaspora in North America Middle Eastern diaspora in Canada