Afghans in Britain

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Afghan British

Notables: Hammasa Kohistani
Total population
Approx. 40,000 in 2001[1] (including 14,875 Afghan-born)[2]
Regions with significant populations
Greater London (West London), West Midlands (Birmingham)
Languages
English, Persian (Dari), Pashto, and various other Languages of Afghanistan
Religion
Islam (primarily Sunni Muslim but also Shi'a Muslim)

Afghans in Britain are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ethnic origins are from Afghanistan. There are 45000 Afghan British in the UK as of 2005.

Contents 1 History 1.1 First Immigrants 1.2 Wars and Refugees 1.3 Stansted Hijacking 1.4 Prior to 9/11 and Discrimination 2 Demographics 2.1 Population 2.2 Population growth 2.3 Population Spread 2.4 Ethnicity 2.5 Religion 3 Afghan British Relations 4 Notable individuals 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] History

[edit] First Immigrants

[edit] Wars and Refugees

Various wars in Afghanistan have lead to thousands of refugees and asylum seekers coming to the UK.

[edit] Stansted Hijacking

On 6 February 2000 an Ariana Afghan Airlines Boeing 727 with 156 people on board was hijacked by Afghans and flown to Stansted Airport. After a four-day stand-off the hostages on board were safely freed and the incident ended peacefully. It later emerged that the motive behind the hijack was to gain asylum in the UK, sparking debate about immigration into the country (it was even orchestrated jointly by the hijackers, their families and some passengers). A large number of passengers on board the plane also applied for asylum.^[3] In July 2004, it was reported that a number of hijackers had won their bid for asylum in the UK, their convictions for hijacking having been quashed for misdirection of the jury in 2003.^[4]

[edit] Prior to 9/11 and Discrimination

[edit] Demographics

[edit] Population

According to the 2001 UK Census, there were 14,875 Afghan-born people residing in the UK,^[2][5] with The Guardian estimating the number of ethnic Afghans in the UK regardless of birth place at 40,000.^[6] Also worth of note is that there are an estimated 75,000 native Northern Pashto speakers in the UK, although this language is not only spoken in Afghanistan.^[7]

[edit] Population growth

The Afghan community in the UK is one of the fastest growing of any national groups. In 2007, 10,555 Afghans were granted British citizenship. This is the third largest number from any nation on earth, only just behind the number of Indians and Filipinos granted British citizenship respectively.^[8]

[edit] Population Spread

The Afghan British population is likely to be one of the most compact ethnic minority groups in the UK, with around 73% of all Afghan British people residing in London, with the majority concentrated in the Western Boroughs. Harrow alone has 10,000 Afghans.^[9] Outside of London, only Birmingham has a population of Afghans in its thousands. According to the 2001 Census, the single largest Afghan community in the UK was West Southall where 1,121 Afghan born people and many more of Afghan descent live. The locations with the least Afghans are Northern Ireland and Wales, which as sub divisions are estimated to have no greater than 100 Afghan residents each.^[10]

[edit] Ethnicity

Afghanistan is home to many ethnicities, and this is reflected in the Afghan British population, which is estimated to be 40% Pashtun, 30% Tajik, 10% Hazara, 9% Uzbek, 3% Aimak, 2% Turkmen, 2% Baloch and 4% other.

[edit] Religion

Afghan British people are mainly Muslim, with large Sunni Muslims and a few Shi'a Muslims.

[edit] Afghan British Relations

Afghanistan and the UK have a long and complex history. The UK has proved a popular destination for Afghan asylum seekers from the country's various war, some of which were actually between Afghanistan and the United Kingdom. See also: Anglo-Afghan Wars.

[edit] Notable individuals

• British people of Afghan descent

[edit] See also

• Demographics of Afghanistan

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Afghan Students in the UK
• British Afghan Women
• Afghanaid - a British organization/charity supporting Afghan children
• Dedicated to serving Afghans in London
• Afghans in the UK
• Khyber.com- London based, general Pashtun information site with Islam, history, and entertainment sections

v • d • e Migration to the United Kingdom from Asia Britons of East Asian origin East Asian Chinese · Hong Kong · Japanese · Korean Britons of South Asian origin South Asian Afghan · Bangladeshi · Indian · Nepali · Pakistani · Sri Lankan · Tamil Britons of Southeast Asian origin Southeast Asian Burmese · Filipino · Malaysian · Singaporean · Thai · Vietnamese Britons of West Asian origin West Asian Armenian · Assyrian · Cypriot · Iranian · Iraqi · Israeli · Kurdish · Lebanese · Turkish · Yemeni

v • d • e Afghan diaspora By country Australia · Canada · Germany · Netherlands · Pakistan · Tajikistan · United Kingdom · United States See also Afghan refugees