Migration
Around the World
Migration
Around the World
An International Studies student's look at how migration affects the world. (Sponsored by the The College of New Jersey)
Fact: About 125 million people live outside their country of birth.
Since the dawn of man, humans have migrated to all parts of the globe. Whether the reason be politics, climate, weather, religious, or just adventure related, these immigrants have helped to form the world in which we live today. However, migration is not a topic of the past and has, in fact, become one of the most controversial issues in the present world.
*Click on a continent below to learn about how migration has, and continues to, shape the past, present, and future of that region.*
A Brief History of Migration
Scientists believe that the first humans appeared somewhere in Africa about 100,000 to 150,000 years ago. Around 60,000 years ago, some tribes traveled to the Near East and eventually on to Australasia. Approximately 20,000 years after this, it is believed, others made their way to the north into what is now Europe, and east into present-day Asia. From there, scientists say that some then migrated even further east in the Americas by way of what would later become the Bering Straight. One cause of such a great migration was the search of sustenance, since the peoples of that time relied on hunting and gathering their food in order to eat.
The Bering Land Bridge
About 12,500 years ago during the 2nd Ice Age, however, the drastically changing climate forced these hunter-gatherers to find some other means of getting food. At the end of the last ice age, the world's climate was both warmer and drier. In turn, these ancient peoples, who had traveled so far for so long, began to adapt to this new climate - planting crops and settling near water. And it is these small settlements that gave way to the powerful civilizations that were to come.
Scheme of Indo-European migrations from ca. 4000 to 1000 BC
The purple area corresponds to the assumed Urheimat (Samara culture, Sredny Stog culture). The red area corresponds to the area which may have been settled by Indo-European-speaking peoples up to ca. 2500 BC; the orange area to 1000 BC.
With more control over their food supply, larger social groups began to form. In turn, these peoples began to reproduce at a greater rate. With this large population, not everyone had to work on the farm - thus began specialization. As the tribes became even bigger, the need for governmental organization arose. In addition, the domestication of animals provided means of transportation and clothing.
The Pyramid of the Moon in Teotihuacan, Mexico.
The period of time before the Middle Ages that saw a dramatic increase in human migration and is fittingly called "The Great Migration." Historians often break this time period up into two 'phases'. The first phase, which ran from 300 to 500 AD, witnessed the migration of Germanic and other tribes who eventually settled in the areas of the former Western Roman Empire. During the second phase, which lasted from 500 to 900 AD, Slavic, Turkic and other tribes settled into Eastern Europe. In addition, tribes such as the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes continued to arrive in Western Europe spreading all the way into the British Isles.
2nd to 5th Century Migrations
Later migrations, while not giving rise to new states, did disrupt Europe in the years to follow. Some examples of this are the invasion of the Arabs into Spain, the Crusades, the settlement of Muslims in south-eastern Europe and the expulsion of the Jews from Spain at the end of the Reconquista. Starting in the 16th century, European colonialism led to the suppression, flight, or sometimes extermination of many natives in the Americas, South Asia, Africa and Australia, where European influence can still be seen today.
Movement of the Crusaders
In modern times, migrants have traversed the globe for many different reasons. One example is the dramatic expulsion of the Jews from Europe during World War II. However, migration does not require a large-scale event to occur. For many centuries, pilgrims of all religions have sought religious freedom and continue to do so to this day. Still others are chased out by political persecution while other groups are forced from their homelands by mother nature. As economies rise and fall, many wealthier countries experience an influx of immigrants into their respective countries as they attempt to start a new and better life in a land of more opportunities. And while migration may not be as visibly drastic as it was in the earlier times of civilization, it remains to this day a prominent and influential occurrence that continues to shape the world and the people who call it their home.
North America | South America | Europe | Asia | Africa