Iraqis in Norway
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 30,144 (2014) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Oslo, Bergen, Stavanger, Bærum, Trondheim, Drammen, Kristiansand, Fredrikstad, Asker [1] | |
| Languages | |
| Norwegian, Iraqi Arabic, Kurdish, Neo-Aramaic | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly Islam. Minority Syriac Christianity and Catholicism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Arabs, Armenians, Assyrians, Azeris, Chaldeans, Iranians, Mizrahim, Turks, Some descendants Norwegians |
Iraqis in Norway make up approximately 30,144 people. They are mostly refugees from the Iran-Iraq war, the Saddam regime and in particular the Iraq War. Iraqis are the fifth largest immigrant group in Norway after Poles, Swedes, Pakistanis and Somalis.
Demographics
As of 1 January 2012[update], the Norwegian Statistisk Sentralbyrå reported that there were 28, 935 Iraqis in Norway of which 21, 784 are first generation immigrants and 7 151 are born in Norway to two Iraqi parents.[2]
Due to a large Iraqi population present in Norway, many have integrated and married Norwegians, as from 1996 to 2004, 179 marriages were contracted between a resident Iraqi man and a Norwegian woman, which makes up 19 per cent of the marriages.[3] Iraqis are a group of refugees with a relatively short duration of residence in Norway (80 per cent have lived in Norway less than 10 years).[3]
Notable people
- Nora Foss al-Jabri, child singer (Iraqi father and Norwegian mother)
- Namaa Alward, actress
- Mullah Krekar, Islamist
- Mohyeldeen Mohammad, Islamist
- Walid al-Kubaisi, writer
