Iraqis in Finland () are residents of the Republic of Finland who have Iraqi ancestry. Among them are Finnish-born native citizens, Iraqi-born naturalised citizens, as well as Iraqi nationals residing in Finland. , a total number of 31,215 people of Iraqi ancestry live in Finland. Of the total number of Iraqis in the country, 23,474 people were born in Iraq, 12,586 have Iraqi citizenship and 12,522 have dual citizenship.
Migration
Most Iraqis in Finland have come as refugees. Of the 32,000 people who sought asylum in Finland in 2015, 21,000 were Iraqis, or two-thirds of all asylum seekers.
Asylum based on clan feuds Iraq is a clan-based society like many in the Middle East. Many Iraqis claim asylum in Finland on the basis that they are threatened by rival clans in their home country, but the refugee conventions state that asylum is granted on the basis of being persecuted by authorities of a country. Persecution by other civilians is primarily a concern of police in the country of origin. This creates contradictions because officials in Iraqi police authorities might themselves be members of a rival clan.
Mandaeans Finland has a community of Iraqi Mandaeans.
Demographics
People born in Iraq and living in Finland, according to Statistics Finland. Country of birth Iraq by municipality (2024) Municipality Population Whole country 23,120 Helsinki 6,377 Vantaa 3,619 Espoo 3,425 Turku 2,462 Tampere 1,192 Lahti 695 Oulu 527 Vaasa 346 Jyväskylä 303 Hämeenlinna 260 Salo 260 Kerava 212 Kuopio 185 Pori 176 Raseborg 170 Kaarina 147 Kotka 131 Rovaniemi 123 Raisio 121 Kirkkonummi 117 Porvoo 106 Kouvola 99 Seinäjoki 92 Pirkkala 82 Järvenpää 71 Mikkeli 70 Kajaani 67 Hyvinkää 66 Lohja 66 Rauma 63 Forssa 61 Lieto 61 Joensuu 59 Nurmijärvi 51 Lempäälä 50 Kauniainen 48 Kokkola 47 Vihti 44 Kangasala 43 Raahe 37 Tuusula 36 Uusikaupunki 35 Nokia 34 Lappeenranta 32 Kemi 30 Naantali 30 Jakobstad 30 Tornio 30 Loimaa 29 Riihimäki 29 Jämsä 25 Pargas 24 Sipoo 24 Laitila 23 Hanko 20 Kuusamo 17 Heinola 16 Orimattila 16 Imatra 15 Nykarleby 15 Ylöjärvi 15 Loviisa 14 Rusko 14 Sastamala 14 Karkkila 13 Kristinestad 13 Lieksa 13 Kankaanpää 12 Akaa 11 Janakkala 11 Kittilä 11 Mariehamn 11 Savonlinna 11 Iisalmi 10 Kemijärvi 10 Muurame 10 Pudasjärvi 10
People with Iraqi citizenship living in Finland according to Statistics Finland. Citizens of Iraq by municipality (2024) Municipality Population Whole country 13,993 Helsinki 4,045 Vantaa 2,320 Espoo 2,066 Turku 1,091 Tampere 629 Lahti 442 Oulu 321 Vaasa 201 Salo 167 Jyväskylä 165 Kerava 145 Pori 141 Hämeenlinna 118 Kuopio 110 Rovaniemi 110 Raseborg 102 Seinäjoki 80 Kotka 79 Kirkkonummi 75 Porvoo 74 Kouvola 73 Mikkeli 69 Raisio 62 Joensuu 49 Järvenpää 49 Lohja 48 Rauma 48 Pirkkala 47 Kaarina 46 Forssa 42 Kajaani 39 Kauniainen 37 Vihti 37 Raahe 36 Hyvinkää 35 Nurmijärvi 32 Uusikaupunki 29 Jakobstad 28 Kokkola 27 Kemi 26 Kangasala 22 Loimaa 21 Jämsä 19 Laitila 19 Nokia 19 Lieto 18 Tuusula 17 Lappeenranta 16 Lempäälä 16 Nykarleby 16 Hanko 15 Kuusamo 15 Kemijärvi 14 Loviisa 14 Riihimäki 14 Tornio 14 Imatra 13 Kankaanpää 13 Kittilä 12 Kristinestad 12 Sastamala 11 Sipoo 11 Iisalmi 10 Janakkala 10 Naantali 10 Pargas 10 Ylöjärvi 10
Notable people
Mohammad Al-Emara, football referee Hussein al-Taee, politician Asaad Abu Gilel al-Taie, politician Hassan Blasim, film director Arjan Goljahanpoor, footballer Dario Naamo, footballer
See also Finland–Iraq relations Iraqi diaspora Immigration to Finland
References