Syrians in Denmark are citizens and residents of

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

who are 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.

Demographics

Syrians in Denmark arrived primarily as asylum seekers after the Syrian civil war. According to

Statistics Denmark Statistics Denmark () is a Danish governmental organization under the Ministry of the Interior and Housing, reporting to the Minister of Economic and Internal Affairs. The organization is responsible for creating statistics on the Danish society ...

, as of 2017, there are a total 40,477 persons of Syrian origin living in Denmark. Of those individuals, 35,262 are Syria-born immigrants and 5,215 are descendants of Syria-born persons. 33,283 individuals are citizens of Syria (18,726 men, 14,557 women). As of 2016, a total of 2,955 Syria-born persons have been granted residence permits in Denmark for family reunification, 5,300 for asylum, 7 for study, 14 for work, 2 for EU/EEA residing family members, 4 for adoption, and 124 for other reasons. Syrian residents are generally young, with most belonging to the 5–9 years (5,371 individuals), 0–4 years (5,352 individuals), 30–34 years (4,294 individuals), 10–14 years (4,167 individuals), and 25–29 years (4,029 individuals) age groups.

Socioeconomics

According to Statistics Denmark, as of 2016, among Syria-born adults aged 30–59 in Denmark, around 87% of men and 94% of women live full-time in public housing units. This is because many arrived via family reunification or as refugees, and such immigrants usually settle in government-owned properties. Syrians primarily inhabit the regions of

Syddanmark The Region of Southern Denmark (, ; , ; ) is an administrative region of Denmark established on Monday 1 January 2007 as part of the 2007 Danish Municipal Reform, which abolished the traditional counties ("amter") and set up five larger regions ...

(11,345),

Midtjylland The Central Denmark Region (), or more directly translated as the Central Jutland Region and sometimes simply Mid-Jutland, is an administrative region of Denmark established on 1 January 2007 as part of the 2007 Danish municipal reform. The refo ...

(10,837),

Hovedstaden The Capital Region of Denmark (, ) is the easternmost administrative region of Denmark, and contains Copenhagen, the national capital. The Capital Region has 29 municipalities and a regional council consisting of 41 elected members. As of 1 ...

(7,349),

Sjælland Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020, comprising ...

(6,901), and Nordjylland (4,045), and the cities of

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

(1,910),

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

(1,471),

Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185,480 while Odense Municipality had a population of 210, ...

(1,161), and

Vejle Vejle () is a city in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle River and Grejs River and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality (''Municipalities of De ...

(1,068). According to Statistics Denmark, as of 2016, male immigrants from Syria aged 20–59 have an annual income of just over 150,000 Danish krone before taxation. Most of that income comprises public transfers, with the remainder consisting of earned income, investment income and second income. As of 2017, a total of 17,451 persons of Syrian origin in Denmark received public benefits. Of these individuals, the government funds were primarily allocated toward guidance and activities upgrading skills (5,666 persons), social benefits (3,747 persons), net unemployment (2,820 persons), subsidized employment (2,575 persons), the Danish State Education Grant and Loan Scheme Authority (2,138 persons), disability pension (412), job-based sickness benefits (50 persons), maternity benefits (38 persons), persons receiving holiday benefits (3 persons), and early retirement pay (1 person).

Crime

According to Statistics Denmark, Syrian migrants and their descendants are over-represented as perpetrators of crime. Male Syrian descendants are about 15 times more likely to commit violent crime. As of 2016, Syria-born male immigrants in Denmark aged 15–79 have a total crime index of 97 when adjusted for age only, with an adjustment of 61 for age and socioeconomic status. Their male descendants have a total crime index of 300 when adjusted for age only, with adjustments of 293 for age and socioeconomic status, 241 for age and family education, and 239 for age and family income. With regard to type of infringement, the male descendants of Syria-born individuals have a penal code crime index of 475 when adjusted for age only (with adjustments of 400 for age and socioeconomic status, 304 age and family education, and 278 for age and family income), of which the crime index when adjusted for age only is 552 for violent offences (with adjustments of 465 for age and socioeconomic status, 343 age and family education, and 319 for age and family income) and 421 for property offences (with adjustments of 356 for age and socioeconomic status, 268 age and family education, and 240 for age and family income). The crime index when adjusted for age only is 302 for traffic law (with adjustments of 315 for age and socioeconomic status, 259 for age and family education, and 274 for age and family income) and 315 for special laws (with adjustments of 297 for age and socioeconomic status, 249 age and family education, and 241 for age and family income). The average crime index among the general Danish population is set at 100 and percentage points above or below that baseline reflect greater or lesser prevalence, depending on a population's most common age group and its relative socioeconomic status. As of 2016, a total of 1,033 persons of Syrian origin were found guilty of crimes. Of these individuals, 923 were males and 110 were females, with males between the ages of 15–29 years (465 individuals) and 30–49 years (407 individuals) constituting most of the total. The most common types of offences were violations of

traffic law Traffic codes are laws that generally include provisions relating to the establishment of authority and enforcement procedures, statement of the rules of the road, and other safety provisions. Administrative regulations for driver licensing, ve ...

(602 individuals, of which 570 breached the Road Traffic Act), followed by violations of the

penal code A criminal code or penal code is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of, a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain Crime, offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that ...

(269 individuals, of which 176 made offences against property) and special laws (238 individuals, of which 117 breached other special laws). Most of the persons received a fine (869 individuals), with the remainder given unsuspended imprisonment (75 individuals), suspended imprisonment (71 individuals), withdrawal of charges (8 individuals), no charges (5 individuals), other decisions (3 individuals), or preventive measures (2 individuals).

Employment

According to Statistics Denmark, as of 2014, Syria-born immigrants aged 30–64 in Denmark have an employment rate of approximately 14%. Syria-born individuals aged 16–64 also have a self-employment rate of around 14%. According to the Institute of Labor Economics, as of 2014, Syria-born residents in Denmark have an employment population ratio of about 28%. They also have an unemployment rate of roughly 13%. - cf
Appendix 4: Diaspora characteristics - labour force indicators by sending countries
/ref>

Notable people

Feras Agwa L.I.G.A is a Danish urban pop trio

, Rapper of mixed Egyptian-Syrian parents *

Naser Khader Naser Khader ( Levantine pronunciation: ; born 1 July 1963) is a Syrian-Danish politician and member of the Folketing 2001–2011 and again 2015–2022. Until 2021 he was a member of the Conservative People's Party. He was first electe ...

, politician of Syrian-Palestinian origin * Sherin Khankan, imam of mixed Finnish-Syrian parents * Maryam al-Khawaja, Muslim of Syrian origin

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Syrians In Denmark Middle Eastern diaspora in Denmark Arabs in Denmark