Syrian Americans

Immigration Patterns

Among Syrians, the main impetus for immigration to the United States was the lure of economic opportunity. [Page 1292]However, others factors, such as religious warfare between Muslims and Christians, land disputes, and intertribal fighting, also pushed many to migrate. Because of inaccurate record keeping, it is difficult to approximate how many Syrians arrived during the early 19th century. However, census records indicate migration patterns during the late 19th and early 20th century changed from only a few hundred in 1887 to 4,000 in 1898. This jumped dramatically to more than 9,000 in 1913, and then dropped significantly around World War I. Immigration peaked again briefly before the Immigration Act of 1924, which restricted the number of immigrants entering the United States. Further, immigration was curbed between 1925 and 1948 because of the Depression and World War II. Many of the Syrian immigrants during these periods were mainly Christian or Jewish. Muslim Syrians arrived after 1965.

Beginning in 1965, Syrian immigration to the United States grew dramatically, mainly because the Immigration Act of 1924 expired, but also because of Arab-Israeli conflict and religious conflict in the Middle East. Approximately 65,000 Syrians immigrated between 1961 and 2000.

Contemporary Community

In recent years, people from Syria have sought permanent residency, refugee status, and completed the naturalization process to become citizens. From 1997 through 2007, about 2,500 Syrians immigrated to the United States annually. The number of refugees arriving during this time is quite low, with only 67 arriving in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. At least 1,900 Syrian Americans have become naturalized citizens annually beginning in 1997.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, there were 109,157 people of Syrian national origin in the United States in 2005. In geographic distribution, the top five states were California, New York, Florida, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 census, 45.9% speak English less than “very well.” The median family income among Syrian Americans was $49,171 compared with $50,890 for the United States as a whole. Of those Syrian-born present here in 2000, 26% had entered the country before 2000.

Among famous Syrian Americans are Tige Andrews, actor; Yasser Seirawan, chess grandmaster; Steven Paul Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple computers; and Jerry Seinfeld, comedian and actor.