Lebanese diaspora

Infobox Ethnic group
group = Lebanese
population = approx. 18 to 20 million
region1 = flagcountry|Lebanon
pop1 = 4,000,000
region2 = flagcountry|Brazil
pop2 = 7,000,000
region3 = flagcountry|United States
pop3 = 3,300,000
region4 = flagcountry|Argentina
pop4 = 1,200,000
region5 = flagcountry|Mexico
pop5 = 400,000
region6 = flagcountry|Australia
pop6 = 400,000
region7 = flagcountry|Venezuela
pop7 = 340,000
region8 = flagcountry|Canada
pop8 = 270,000
region9 = flagcountry|Colombia
pop9 = 125,000
region10 = flagcountry|Saudi Arabia
pop10 = 120,000
region11 = flagcountry|Ecuador
pop11 = 100,000
region12 = flagcountry|United Arab Emirates
pop12 = 100,000
region14 = flagcountry|United Kingdom
pop14 = 90,000
region15 = flagcountry|Uruguay
pop15 = 55,000
region16 = flagcountry|Germany
pop16 = 50,000
region17 = flagcountry|France
pop17 = 50,000
region18 = flagcountry|New Zealand
pop18 = 47,200
region19 = flagcountry|Cyprus
pop19 = 20,000
region20 = flagcountry|Spain
pop20 = 14,500
region21 = flagcountry|Liberia
pop21 = 10,000
region22 = flagcountry|Nigeria
pop22 = 10,000
region23 = flagcountry|Sierra Leone
pop23 = 10,000
region24 = flagcountry|Kuwait
pop24 = 10,000
region25 = flagcountry|Egypt
pop25 = 7,450
region26 = flagcountry|Ghana
pop26 = 6,700
region27 = flagcountry|Switzerland
pop27 = 5,800
region28 = flagcountry|Greece
pop28 = 3,400
region29 = flagcountry|Italy
pop29 = 3,200
region30 = flagcountry|Austria
pop30 = 2,000
languages = Arabic - official language

Also in use French, English, Armenian, Syriac, Kurdish
religions = Christianity, mainly Maronite, as well as Greek Orthodox, Greek (Melkite) Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Armenian Catholic, Evangelical, Latin, Syriac Orthodox, Syriac Catholic, Assyrians, Chaldeans.

Muslim, predominantly Sunni, Shiaa. But also Druze, Alawite
Judaism - Lebanese Jews

Lebanese diaspora refers to the numbers of Lebanese immigrants, and their descendants, who voluntarily or as refugees emigrated from their native country Lebanon and now reside in other countries, primarily in the Americas (including North America, Latin America and the The Caribbean), Europe, Australia, Africa in particular West Africa, as well other countries of the Arab World.

There are no reliable statistics about the actual number of people of Lebanese descent. But here would be a propable list of countries where people of Lebanese descent reside in approximate figures (See right table)

History

The Americas have long been a destination for Lebanese migration, with Lebanese arriving in some countries at least as early as the nineteenth century. The largest concentration of Lebanese outside the Middle East is in Brazil, which has reportedly over 7 million Brazilians of Lebanese ancestry, making Brazil's population of Lebanese twice that of the entire population of Lebanon.

There are also large Lebanese communities in Mexico (about 400,000 Mexicans of Lebanese descent), Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela and The Caribbean. Many Lebanese have also settled for quite a long time in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe, most notably France. Some other Lebanese have immigrated to Africa where they have prospered financially.

Majority of the Lebanese diaspora is Christian, with sizeable minorities of Muslims and some Lebanese Jews

The Lebanese diaspora, while historically trade-related, has more recently been linked to the Lebanese Civil War, with many Lebanese emigrating to Western countries. Because of the economic opportunities, many Lebanese have also worked in the Arab World, most notably the Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait amongst others.

Notable Persons of Lebanese Descent

Prominent members of the Lebanese diaspora include;

*Abdalá Bucaram, former President of Ecuador
*Alberto Dahik, former Vice President of Ecuador
*Julio Hazim, Important Dominican Businessman
*Jacobo Majluta, former President of Dominican Republic
*André Apaid, high profile Haitian businessman
*Samir Mourra, Haitian businessman and 2006 Haitian presidential candidate
*Paulo Maluf, politician, former mayor of São Paulo city and former governor of São Paulo state in Brazil
*Jamil Mahuad, former President of Ecuador
*Edward Seaga, former Prime Minister of Jamaica
*Ralph Nader, 2004 US presidential candidate
*Jaime Nebot, current Alcalde of Guayaquil, Ecuador
*Julio Cesar Turbay, former President of Colombia
*Elias Zerhouni, current Director of National Institutes of Health (United States)
*Carlos Ghosn, Brazilian born businessman, CEO of Nissan and Renault, former CEO of Michelin.
* Mário Zagallo,Brazilian football coach and former player
*Charles Elachi, the Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
*Carlos Slim Helú, Mexican businessman. He was listed as the richest man in the world by Forbes.
*Salma Hayek, Mexican actress.
*Shakira Mebarak, Colombian singer and musician.

ee also

*Lebanese American
*Lebanese Australian
*Lebanese Brazilian
*Lebanese British
*Lebanese-Canadian
*Lebanese Jamaican
*Sierra Leonean-Lebanese
*fr Lebanese diaspora
*List of Lebanese people

Also refer to:
*Arab diaspora
*List of Arab Americans