Somalis in Germany

Somalis in Germany

Distribution of Somali citizens in Germany (2021)
Total population
33,900[1]
Regions with significant populations
Berlin · Kassel · Frankfurt
Languages
Somali, German
Religion
Islam

Somalis in Germany are citizens and residents of Germany who are of Somali descent. According to the Federal Statistical Office of Germany, as of 2020, there are a total 47,495 Somalia-born immigrants living in Germany. ^[1]

Between 1969 and 1991, the flow of Somali refugees to Germany was steady, but it increased quickly after 1991. Many of these later arrivals subsequently moved on to other countries, including the United Kingdom.^[2] UNHCR data suggests that 15,000 people from Somalia claimed asylum in Germany between 1990 and 1999.^[3] In March 2019, together with the International Organization for Migration, Germany started to run a resettlement programme for refugees in Ethiopia. A first group of 154 Somali refugees were resettled in Germany under the programme in October 2019.^[4] According to German Census data, Kassel has the highest share of Somali migrant and has a Somali cultural association. Other cities like Berlin and Frankfurt have also few numbers of Somali population.

In a BKA report on statistics from 2017, migrants to Germany from Somalia constituted 1.7% of all migrants and 2.9% of all migrant crime suspects.^[5]

According to the BMFSFJ, of the 5,797 women from Somalia living in Germany in May 2016 without German citizenship, 5,681 (98%) were victims of female genital mutilation.^[6]

According to research with 20 Somali refugee women living in shared reception facilities in Germany, many travelled to the country alone, with fear of sexual violence, forced marriage, honor killings or FGM being cited as gender-specific reasons for having fled Somalia.^[7]

In the 2010-2012 Somalia became one of the main jihadi destinations for German foreign terrorist fighters. A significant portion of these Somalis belonged to a group of al-Shabaab sympathizers in Bonn, along with German converts to Islam.^[8] Andreas Martin Muller, who has the alias Abu Nusaybah, is alleged to be one of the gunmen who attacked a military base in Lamu county Kenya from Somalia.

There were also several mass stabbings made by Somali migrants, including the mass stabbing in Würzburg (2021) where 3 women were killed and few others were injured and other mass stabbing in Ludwigshafen (2022) where 2 men were killed. Both stabbings were rumoured that these incidents were motivated to radicalized religious background.

• Utteh, Hassan Adam (1997). "The plight of the Somali refugees in Europe, with particular reference to Germany (1993)". In Utteh, Hassan Adam; Ford, Richard (eds.). Mending Rips in the Sky: Options for Somali Communities in the 21st Century. Lawrenceville, NJ: Red Sea Press. ISBN 1569020736.