Somali People - Geographic Distribution

Geographic Distribution

Somalis constitute the largest ethnic group in Somalia, at approximately 85% of the nation's inhabitants. They are traditionally nomads, but since the late 20th century, many have moved to urban areas. While most Somalis can be found in Somalia proper, large numbers also live in Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Yemen, the Middle East, South Asia and Europe due to their seafaring tradition.

Civil strife in the early 1990s greatly increased the size of the Somali diaspora, as many of the best educated Somalis left for the Middle East, Europe and North America. In Canada, the cities of Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Hamilton all harbor Somali populations. Statistics Canada's 2006 census ranks people of Somali descent as the 69th largest ethnic group in Canada.

While the distribution of Somalis per country in Europe is hard to measure because the Somali community on the continent has grown so quickly in recent years, an official 2010 estimate reported 108,000 Somalis living in the United Kingdom. Somalis in Britain are largely concentrated in the cities of London, Sheffield, Birmingham, Cardiff, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, and Leicester, with London alone accounting for roughly 78% of Britain's Somali population. There are also significant Somali communities in the Netherlands: 31,237 (2011); Norway: 25,496 (2010); and Denmark: 16,550 (2008).

In the United States, Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Columbus, San Diego, Seattle, Washington, D.C., Houston, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Portland, Denver, Nashville, Lewiston, Portland, Maine and Cedar Rapids have the largest Somali populations.

An estimated 20,000 Somalis emigrated to the US State of Minnesota some ten years ago. The Twin Cities now have the highest population of Somalis in North America. The city of Minneapolis hosts hundreds of Somali-owned and operated businesses. Colorful stalls inside several shopping malls offer everything from halal meat, to stylish leather shoes, to the latest fashion for men and women, as well as gold jewelry, money transfer or hawala offices, banners advertising the latest Somali films, and video rental stores fully stocked with nostalgic love songs not found in the mainstream supermarkets, groceries, and boutiques. The number of Somalis has especially surged in the Cedar-Riverside area of Minneapolis.

Somalis now comprise one of the largest immigrant communities in the United Arab Emirates. Somali-owned businesses line the streets of Deira, the Dubai city centre, with only Iranians exporting more products from the city at large. Internet cafés, hotels, coffee shops, restaurants and import-export businesses are all testimony to the Somalis' entrepreneurial spirit. Star African Air is also one of three Somali-owned airlines which are based in Dubai.

Besides their traditional areas of inhabitation in Greater Somalia, a Somali community mainly consisting of entrepreneurs, academics and students also exists in Egypt. In addition, there is an historical Somali community in the general Sudan area. Primarily concentrated in the north and Khartoum, a geographical region where the local population exhibits strong cultural, physical and religious similarities with ethnic Somalis, the expatriate community mainly consists of students as well as some businesspeople. More recently, Somali entrepreneurs have established themselves in Kenya, investing over $1.5 billion in the Somali enclave of Eastleigh alone. In South Africa, Somali businesspeople also provide most of the retail trade in informal settlements around the Western Cape province.