Emigration is the act of leaving one’s native country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state, is termed migration. There are many reasons why people might choose to emigrate. Some are for political or economic reasons, or for personal reasons like finding a spouse while visiting another country and emigrating to be with them. Many older people living in rich nations with cold climates choose to move to warmer climates when they retire.
Emigration had a profound influence on the world in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, when millions of poor families left Europe for the United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, the rest of Latin America, Australia, and New Zealand.
Even though definitions may be vague and vary somewhat, emigration/immigration should not be confused with the phenomenon of involuntary migration, such as instances of population transfer or ethnic cleansing.
Motives to migrate can be either incentives attracting people away, known as pull factors, or circumstances encouraging a person to leave, known as push factors, for example:
Human migration is movement (physical or psychological) by humans from one district to another, sometimes over long distances or in large groups. The movement of populations in modern times has continued under the form of both voluntary migration within one’s region, country, or beyond, and involuntary migration (which includes the slave trade, trafficking in human beings and ethnic cleansing). People who migrate are called migrants, or, more specifically, emigrants, immigrants, or settlers, depending on historical setting, circumstances and perspective.
The pressures of human migrations, whether as outright conquest or by slow cultural infiltration and resettlement, have affected the grand epochs in history (e.g. the Decline of the Roman Empire); under the form of colonization, migration has transformed the world (e.g. the prehistoric and historic settlements of Australia and the Americas). Population genetics studied in traditionally settled modern populations have opened a window into the historical patterns of migrations, a technique pioneered by Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza.
In general we can divide factors causing migrations into two groups of factors: Push and pull factors. In general:
- Push Factors are economic, political, cultural, and environmentally based.
- Pull Factors are economic, political, cultural, and environmentally based.
- Barriers/Obstacles of which Nigeria in the 1970s and 1980s is an example.
On the macro level, the causes of migration can be distilled into two main categories: security dimension of migration (natural disasters, conflicts, threats to individual safety, poor political prospects) and economic dimension of migration (poor economic situation, poor situation of national market). [AIV document]
Push and Pull Factors
Push and pull factors are those factors which either forcefully push people into migration or attract them. A push factor is forceful, and a factor which relates to the country from which a person migrates. It is generally some problem which results in people wanting to migrate. Different types of push factors can be seen further below. A push factor is a flaw or distress that drives a person away from a certain place. A pull factor is something concerning the country to which a person migrates. It is generally a benefit that attracts people to a certain place. Push and pull factors are usually considered as north and south poles on a magnet.
- Not enough jobs
- Few opportunities
- “Primitive” conditions
- Political fear/persecution
- Poor medical care
- Loss of wealth
- Natural Disasters
- Death threats
- Poor housing
- Poor chances of finding courtship
- Job opportunities
- Better living conditions
- Political and/or religious freedom
- Better medical care
- Family links
- Better chances of finding courtship