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Iranians in the Netherlands
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Iranians in the Netherlands
Iranians in the Netherlands (Dutch: Iraniërs in Nederland; Persian: ایرانیان هلند) form one of the newer and larger populations of the Iranian diaspora in Europe.
Iranians in the Netherlands have commonly been referred to as Dutch Iranians (Nederlandse Iraniërs) or Iranian Dutch (Iraanse Nederlanders), in addition to Dutch Persians (Nederlandse Perzen) or Persian Dutch (Perzische Nederlanders). However, one scholar who used the term "Dutch Iranians" also expressed reservations over the validity of such a "hyphenated notion of identity" in the Dutch context, in comparison to the less problematic term "Iranian American".
Other collective terms used to refer to the Iranian diaspora in the Netherlands include "Iranian community" (Iraanse gemeenschap), "Persian community" (Perzische gemeenschap), and simply "Persians" (Perzen).
Though the Netherlands had a nominally Persian population since the early seventeenth century, this consisted mostly of Armenian merchants (the so-called Persianen), who, by the beginning of the nineteenth century, had largely assimilated into the larger Dutch population. In more recent times, other European countries, such as Germany and France, have had Persian communities since the early 20th century, whereas most of the Iranian population in the Netherlands is of relatively recent provenance; virtually all came to the country after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. The overall migration was quite significant relative to the whole size of Iranian emigration to Europe; from 1990 to 1999, the Netherlands was Europe's second most-popular destination for Iranian asylum seekers, behind Germany. However, from 1981 to 2001, only 1,292 were formally recognised as "invited refugees" (Dutch: Uitgenodigde vluchtelingen), the vast majority in the period 1987–1990.
As of 2009[update], statistics of the Dutch Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek showed:
For a total of 30,617 persons (16,758 men, 13,855 women). This represented nearly double the 1996 total of 16,478 persons. Numerically, most of the growth was in the foreign-born segment of the population, whose numbers increased from 14,628 over the period in question; however, the rate of growth was fastest in the locally born segment of the population, which almost tripled in size from 1,850 persons.
Iran is a largely Muslim country, a fact reflected in the backgrounds of Iranian migrants to the Netherlands. However, most migrants do not continue to practise their religion. Those who do often find themselves viewed as threats and suffer exclusion from Dutch society; this trend strengthened with the growth of political Islam in the 1980s.
In 2007, Ehsan Jami, a Dutch politician of Iranian descent, criticised the Islamic prophet Muhammad, describing him as a "criminal". Together with Loubna Berrada (founder of the Advisory Committee for Integration, part of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy), Jami founded the Central Committee for Ex-Muslims in 2007. The organisation, supported by Afshin Ellian, aims to support apostates from Islam and to bring forth the reality of women's rights violations in the religion. On 4 August 2007, Jami was attacked in his hometown Voorburg by three men. The attack was widely believed to be linked to his activities for the committee. The national anti-terrorism coordinator's office, the public prosecution department, and the police decided during a meeting on 6 August that "additional measures" were necessary for the protection of Jami, who subsequently received extra security.
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Iranians in the Netherlands
Iranians in the Netherlands (Dutch: Iraniërs in Nederland; Persian: ایرانیان هلند) form one of the newer and larger populations of the Iranian diaspora in Europe.
Iranians in the Netherlands have commonly been referred to as Dutch Iranians (Nederlandse Iraniërs) or Iranian Dutch (Iraanse Nederlanders), in addition to Dutch Persians (Nederlandse Perzen) or Persian Dutch (Perzische Nederlanders). However, one scholar who used the term "Dutch Iranians" also expressed reservations over the validity of such a "hyphenated notion of identity" in the Dutch context, in comparison to the less problematic term "Iranian American".
Other collective terms used to refer to the Iranian diaspora in the Netherlands include "Iranian community" (Iraanse gemeenschap), "Persian community" (Perzische gemeenschap), and simply "Persians" (Perzen).
Though the Netherlands had a nominally Persian population since the early seventeenth century, this consisted mostly of Armenian merchants (the so-called Persianen), who, by the beginning of the nineteenth century, had largely assimilated into the larger Dutch population. In more recent times, other European countries, such as Germany and France, have had Persian communities since the early 20th century, whereas most of the Iranian population in the Netherlands is of relatively recent provenance; virtually all came to the country after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. The overall migration was quite significant relative to the whole size of Iranian emigration to Europe; from 1990 to 1999, the Netherlands was Europe's second most-popular destination for Iranian asylum seekers, behind Germany. However, from 1981 to 2001, only 1,292 were formally recognised as "invited refugees" (Dutch: Uitgenodigde vluchtelingen), the vast majority in the period 1987–1990.
As of 2009[update], statistics of the Dutch Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek showed:
For a total of 30,617 persons (16,758 men, 13,855 women). This represented nearly double the 1996 total of 16,478 persons. Numerically, most of the growth was in the foreign-born segment of the population, whose numbers increased from 14,628 over the period in question; however, the rate of growth was fastest in the locally born segment of the population, which almost tripled in size from 1,850 persons.
Iran is a largely Muslim country, a fact reflected in the backgrounds of Iranian migrants to the Netherlands. However, most migrants do not continue to practise their religion. Those who do often find themselves viewed as threats and suffer exclusion from Dutch society; this trend strengthened with the growth of political Islam in the 1980s.
In 2007, Ehsan Jami, a Dutch politician of Iranian descent, criticised the Islamic prophet Muhammad, describing him as a "criminal". Together with Loubna Berrada (founder of the Advisory Committee for Integration, part of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy), Jami founded the Central Committee for Ex-Muslims in 2007. The organisation, supported by Afshin Ellian, aims to support apostates from Islam and to bring forth the reality of women's rights violations in the religion. On 4 August 2007, Jami was attacked in his hometown Voorburg by three men. The attack was widely believed to be linked to his activities for the committee. The national anti-terrorism coordinator's office, the public prosecution department, and the police decided during a meeting on 6 August that "additional measures" were necessary for the protection of Jami, who subsequently received extra security.