Arabs in Italy

Arabs in Italy
Arabi in Italia
عرب إيطاليا
Total population
719,545 (foreign citizens only)[1] 801,595 (by country of birth)[2]
Regions with significant populations
Languages
Arabic and Italian
Religion
Islam and Christianity

Arabs in Italy (Italian: Arabi in Italia, Arabic: عرب إيطاليا) are Italian residents of Arab heritage.

According to the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), most Arab non-Italian citizens residing in Italy come from North Africa, most notably from Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. Other notable countries of origin include Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Sudan, Jordan and Palestine.

As a result of mixed marriages and naturalization, many Arabs in Italy are Italian nationals or second-generation children of expatriates. Between 2008 and 2020, almost 340,000 people from Arab-speaking countries acquired Italian citizenship. As Italy doesn't collect data based on ethnicity it is not possible to know the actual number of Italians with Arab ancestry.

History

In the 9th century AD, Arabs conquered the island of Sicily and formed the Emirate of Sicily under Islamic rule.[3] During this period, there were several attempts to invade mainland Italy, with the Emirate of Bari being one of the most notable examples.[4]

During the subsequent Swabian rule under the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, who spent most of his life as king of Sicily in his court in Palermo, Moors were progressively eradicated until the massive deportation of the last Muslims of Sicily.[5] As a result of the Arab expulsion, many towns across Sicily were left depopulated. By the 12th century, Swabian kings granted immigrants from northern Italy (particularly Piedmont, Lombardy and Liguria), Latium and Tuscany in central Italy, and French regions of Normandy, Provence and Brittany (all collectively known as Lombards.)[6][7] settlement into Sicily, re-establishing the Latin element into the island, a legacy which can be seen in the many Gallo-Italic dialects and towns found in the interior and western parts of Sicily, brought by these settlers.[8]

Population

Foreigners from Arab countries in Italy according to the 2021 Census[1]
Ancestry Population % of Italy population
Moroccan 428,947 0.724%
Egyptian 139,569 0.236%
Tunisian 97,407 0.164%
Algerian 18,538 0.031%
Somali 7,629 0.014%
Syrian 6,633 0.011%
Iraqi 6,035 0.009%
Lebanese 4,374 0.007%
Libyan 2,741 0.005%
Sudanese 2,382 0.004%
Jordanian 1,616 0.003%
Palestinians 1,078 0.002%
Mauritanians 779 0.001%
Saudi 734 <0.001%
Bahrain 413 <0.001%
Yemeni 308 <0.001%
Qatari 101 <0.001%
Kuwaiti 101 <0.001%
Emirati 67 <0.001%
Omani 48 <0.001%
Djibouti 26 <0.001%
Comoros 19 <0.001%
Total 719,545 1.215%
People from Arab countries who became Italian citizens between 2008 and 2020 by country of origin[9]
Previous citizenship Population % of Italy population
Moroccan 249,147 0.421%
Tunisian 39,616 0.067%
Egyptian 27,510 0.046%
Algerian 11,865 0.020%
Lebanese 2,444 0.004%
Somali 1,999 0.003%
Syrian 1,993 0.003%
Jordanian 1,569 0.003%
Iraqi 827 0.001%
Sudanese 658 0.001%
Palestinians 485 <0.001%
Mauritanians 352 <0.001%
Libyan 307 <0.001%
Yemeni 66 <0.001%
Kuwaiti 31 <0.001%
Saudi 13 <0.001%
Bahrain 7 <0.001%
Djibouti 6 <0.001%
Qatari 4 <0.001%
Emirati 4 <0.001%
Comoros 3 <0.001%
Omani 1 <0.001%
Total 338,907 0.572%
Foreign-born people from Arab countries by country of birth (2021 census)[10]
Country of birth Population % of Italy population
Morocco 457,002 0.771%
Egypt 137,335 0.232%
Tunisia 108,831 0.184%
Libya 32,257 0.054%
Algeria 21,404 0.036%
Somalia 10,880 0.018%
Syria 8,227 0.014%
Lebanon 8,052 0.014%
Iraq 6,872 0.012%
Sudan 3,007 0.005%
Jordan 2,969 0.005%
Saudi Arabia 1,373 0.002%
United Arab Emirates 860 0.001%
Mauritania 818 0.001%
Kuwait 710 0.001%
Yemen 397 <0.001%
Qatar 250 <0.001%
Bahrain 100 <0.001%
Palestine 83 <0.001%
Oman 81 <0.001%
Djibouti 70 <0.001%
Comoros 17 <0.001%
Total 801,595 1.353%

Notable people

For a more comprehensive list, see List of Arabs in Italy.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Cittadini stranieri in Italia – 2021". tuttitalia.it. Only non-Italian citizens with permanent residence in Italy are included.
  2. ^ "People by country of birth – 2021". eurostat.eu.
  3. ^ Metcalfe, Alex (2009-09-17). Muslims of Medieval Italy. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2911-4.
  4. ^ Bondioli, Lorenzo M. (2018-12-12). "Islamic Bari between the Aghlabids and the Two Empires". The Aghlabids and Their Neighbors: 470–490. doi:10.1163/9789004356047_024. ISBN 9789004356047. S2CID 165262442.
  5. ^ Abulafia, David (2000). Mediterranean encounters, economic, religious, political, 1100–1550. Ashgate Publishing. p. 236. ISBN 0-86078-841-5. Archived from the original on 4 May 2016. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  6. ^ Società Siciliana per la Storia Patria. Archivio Storico Siciliano (12 December 1876). "Archivio Storico Siciliano". Palermo. Retrieved 12 December 2017 – via Internet Archive.
  7. ^ Barone, Francesco (2003). "Islām in Sicilia nel XII e XIII secolo: ortoprassi, scienze religiose e tasawwuf". In Di Bella, Saverio; Tomasello, Dario (eds.). L'Islam in Europa tra passato e futuro. Cosenza: Pellegrini Editore. p. 104. ISBN 88-8101-159-X.
  8. ^ "History and etymology of Aidone and Morgantina". Italy This Way. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  9. ^ "Acquisition of citizenship, Italy".
  10. ^ "Population by country of birth".
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