Syrian New Zealanders refer to
New Zealanders
New Zealanders are people associated with New Zealand, sharing a common History of New Zealand, history, Culture of New Zealand, culture, and language (New Zealand English). People of various ethnicities and national origins are citizens of Ne ...
of
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 ...
descent or
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 ...
-born people who reside in the
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
.
History
Syrians have been migrating to New Zealand since at least the 1920s. The 1921 New Zealand census counted 338 Syrians.
393 Syrian-born people were counted in the 2013 census.
Due to the
Syrian Civil War, many Syrians have been made refugees since 2011. The New Zealand government has taken in 750 Syrian refugees and will increase its intake of Syrians. The majority of Syrians in New Zealand are
refugees of the Syrian Civil War. The New Zealand government is working to double its refugee quota to be able to take in more Syrian refugees.
See also
*
Syrian diaspora
Syrian diaspora refers to Syrian people and their descendants who chose or were forced to emigrate from Syria and now reside in other countries as immigrants, or as refugees of the Syrian Civil War.
The estimated number of people of Syrian ...
*
Arab New Zealanders
Arab New Zealanders refers to people from Arab countries, particularly Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, Iraq, and Jordan and also small groups from Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya, Yemen and Sudan, who emigrated from their native nations and cu ...
*
Lebanese New Zealanders
References
{{Immigration to New Zealand
Arab diaspora in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
New Zealand–Syria relations