Swedish Iranians
| Svenskiranier ایرانیان سوئد | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
|
(92,428[1] 1.7% of the Swedish population (2012)[2]) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö, Uppsala. | |
| Languages | |
| Swedish, Persian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Kurdish, Luri (See languages of Iran) | |
| Religion | |
| Shi'a Islam, Sunni Islam, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Judaism |
Swedish Iranians consist of people of Iranian nationality who have settled in Sweden, as well as Swedish residents and citizens of Iranian heritage.
There are approximately 63,828 people born in Iran living in Sweden today, as well as 28,600 people born in Sweden with at least one parent born in Iran. They are one of Sweden's largest minorities, accounting for nearly one percent of the population.
The very first wave of Iranian refugees consisted of 5,000 Iranian refugees who fled to Sweden in 1979-1980 most of them were middle-aged, middle-class socialists who were opposing the revolution . When the Iran-Iraq War broke out in 1980, almost 20,000 Iranian citizens found asylum in Sweden. Many of them ended up living on welfare, despite many having middle-class backgrounds.. Second generation Iranian Swedes are over-represented in higher education and in some well paying professions like dentistry and engineering.
About 60% percent of them go on to higher education – more than the Swedish average (45 percent)[3] Middle East and Iranian culture – with its emphasis on education – may be part of the reason for this. Becoming an engineer or a doctor is a mantra in many families. Abundantly represented minorities amongst the Swedish Iranians, like in other Iranian diaspora nations are Azerbaijanis, Kurds, Armenians and Assyrians.
Notable Iranians in Sweden
- Sara Zahedi, mathematician and winner of European Mathematical Society prize
- Hanif Bali, MP and part of the party executive of the Moderate Party
- Mana Aghaee, poet and writer
- Minoo Akhtarzand, governor of Jönköping County
- Ali Arian, Commercial Property entrepreneur
- William Atashkadeh, professional footballer
- Farzan Athari, fashion model
- Ali Esbati, politician
- Jasmine Kara, singer and songwriter
- Arash Bayat, footballer
- Reza Khelili Dylami, politician in Sweden
- Arash Labaf, platinum-selling artist
- Cameron Cartio, singer
- Mohammad Fazlhashemi, Professor in History of Ideas, Umeå University
- Azita Ghahreman, poet, translator, writer, member of the International PEN
- Lina Leandersson, actress
- Hanni Beronius, beauty queen and Miss Universe Sweden 2012
- Janet Leon, singer
- Akira Corassani, UFC fighter
- Lasse Lindroth, comedian and actor
- Zinat Pirzadeh, comedian
- Reza Madadi, professional MMA fighter and convicted criminal.
- Trita Parsi, founder and president of the National Iranian American Council
- Laleh Pourkarim, singer-songwriter
- Sheri Nowrozi, singer
- Babak Najafi, film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer
- Daniel Rahimi, professional Ice hockey player
- Behrang Safari, Swedish international footballer
- Ilya Salmanzadeh, music producer
- Nima Sanandaji, scientist and author
- Nahid Persson Sarvestani, film director
- Maryam Yazdanfar, Riksdag politician
- Nina Zanjani, actress
- Mika Zibanejad, professional Ice hockey player
- Amin Nazari, professional football player
- Omid Nazari professional football player
- Eddie Razaz, singer
- Sean Banan, (real name Sina Samadi) singer and entertainer
- Mahan Baghdadi, youth football player
- Nima Tavallaey, Italian football journalist
- Parisa Amiri, television host
- Ramin Nouri, sports journalist
- Arash Pournouri, music manager
- Farzad Nouri, comedian and radio host
- Zohreh Khoban, Swedish political scientist
See also
References
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