Kurdish women in Beirut | |
Total population | |
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75,000 - 100,000
70,000 (estimate 2020) | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Beirut | |
Languages | |
Arabic and Kurmanji Kurdish | |
Religion | |
Islam | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Kurds |
Kurds in Lebanon are people born in or residing in Lebanon who are of full or partial Kurdish origin. Estimates on the number of Kurds in Lebanon prior to 1985 were around 60,000. Today, there are tens of thousands of Kurds in Lebanon, mainly in Beirut.
Most Kurds in Lebanon have come in recent decades, but the Kurdish community of Lebanon dates back to the 12th century, when Lebanon was ruled by the Kurdish Ayyubid dynasty. The Ottomans also sent loyal Kurdish families to modern-day Syria and Lebanon, where they got administrative roles. These Kurdish groups settled in and ruled many areas of Lebanon for a long period of time.: 27
The Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, where many Syrian Kurdish refugees have taken shelter.The first modern wave of Kurdish immigration to Lebanon was in the period of 1925-1950 when thousands of Kurds fled violence and poverty in Turkey. The second wave of Kurds entered in the late 1950s and early 1960s, most of whom fled from political repression in Syria and Turkey. During the early 1990s, the Lebanese government destroyed many squatter quarters in Beirut, where many Kurds lived, leading to the emigration of nearly one quarter of Lebanon's Kurdish population.
During the Lebanese Civil War, Kurds fought for the Lebanese National Movement.
As of 2012, around 40% of all Kurds in Lebanon do not have Lebanese citizenship.
Kurdish population | ||||
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Asia |
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Europe |
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North America |
Demographics of Lebanon | |||||||
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Religion1 |
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Ethnic minorities, refugees and foreign nationals | |||||||
1 The Lebanese people has the most religious diversity of all peoples in the Middle East, comprising 18 recognized religious sects recognized by the Constitution of Lebanon. 2 Under the terms of the Constitution of Lebanon, the Druze community is designated as a part of the Lebanese Muslim community. |