Emigration to Lebanon History | Waves and Consequences

Lebanon has had a long and painful relationship with emigration. For more than a century, successive waves of Lebanese people have left their country, driven by war, economic hardship, or a lack of opportunities. Every departure is a wound: that of a country deeply loved but where one can no longer live.

Caught between the desire to return and the reason that commands staying elsewhere, entire generations have grown up in this in-between. Understanding emigration in Lebanon and its history means understanding a country that is losing its young and able forces while still remaining, despite everything, alive in the hearts of its diaspora.

Emigration in Lebanon History | Waves and Consequences

Reading time: ~14 min

Brief Summary

• The origins of emigration in Lebanon: a story that begins in the 19th century
• The Lebanese civil war and the exodus (1975-1990)
• The major waves of Lebanese migration: a historical overview
• The 2019 crisis and the 2020 explosion: a new wave of forced emigration
• The economic impact of emigration on Lebanon
• Lebanon, a host country in spite of itself: Syrian refugees and their impact
• Memory, art, and resistance to erasure
• A fragile and resilient country: what the history of emigration tells us about Lebanon
• FAQBrief Summary

• The origins of Lebanese emigration (19th century): the first waves of migration go back to the Ottoman era, driven by famine, persecution, and poverty.
  
• The civil war and the exodus (1975-1990): fifteen years of religious conflict caused a massive exodus, emptying the country of part of its workforce and elites. 
• Contemporary crises and the new wave of emigration: the 2019 financial crisis, the Beirut port explosion in 2020, and the economic collapse triggered a third wave of migration, hitting Lebanese youth first and foremost. 
• The economic impact of emigration: the brain drain weakens Lebanon in the long term, even if remittances from the diaspora serve as a lifeline for many families. 
• Syrian refugees in Lebanon: the country itself has become a host nation, facing unprecedented demographic and economic pressure. 
• Memory, identity, and art in the face of exile: in the face of these repeated departures, some artists choose to stay and document what emigration erases.

The origins of emigration in Lebanon: a story that begins in the 19th century

Historical context and first reasons for leaving

The history of emigration in Lebanon goes back to the late 19th century, under the Ottoman Empire. The Mount Lebanon region was hit by a series of crises at the time: repeated famines, religious persecution, relative overpopulation, and a lack of economic opportunities. Thousands of Lebanese, mostly Maronite Christians, set out for the Americas, West Africa, and Australia.

This first wave of migration laid the foundations for a Lebanese diaspora that today numbers between 8 and 14 million people abroad, compared to only 4 to 5 million residents in Lebanon itself. This disproportion is unique in the world and reflects the historical scale of Lebanese migration waves.

World War I made the situation even worse. The naval blockade imposed by the Ottomans caused a devastating famine in Mount Lebanon between 1915 and 1918, killing between 100,000 and 200,000 people according to historical estimates. Those who could, fled. Transnational migration networks then started to form, linking Lebanese communities scattered around the world back to their home villages. These ties would never really be broken.  

After Lebanon gained independence in 1943, a period of relative prosperity slowed down the departures. Beirut became the financial and cultural capital of the Middle East, nicknamed the 'Paris of the East.' But this calm wouldn’t last long. To better understand the Ottoman architecture of Beirut and what it says about that era, it’s worth taking a look at the city’s built traces.

The Lebanese Civil War and the Exodus (1975-1990)

A prolonged war and its migratory consequences

April 13, 1975, marks the start of the Lebanese civil war, a religious conflict of extreme violence that would last fifteen years. The country is torn apart by rival militias, foreign interventions, and massive destruction of infrastructure. The civilian population is caught in the middle.

Faced with physical insecurity, the collapse of essential services, and the total disorganization of the labor market, hundreds of thousands of Lebanese are choosing to leave the country. This second major wave of migration is particularly painful because it mainly affects the middle class and elites: doctors, engineers, teachers, entrepreneurs.

The brain drain that begins as a result deprives Lebanon of a crucial part of its human capital, at the very moment it needs it most to withstand challenges and rebuild. According to a systematic review of literature on armed conflicts and labor markets, the loss of skilled labor in war-torn countries has a lasting impact on productivity and the ability to rebuild the economy.

Internal displacement is massive as well. Entire neighborhoods in Beirut are being abandoned, villages are emptied of their inhabitants, and families are separated by front lines that cut through them. The green line that cuts Beirut in two remains, in people’s memories, the symbol of this divide. Some of these abandoned houses, silent witnesses of the exodus, are the ones Bénédicte de Vanssay Moubarak has been documenting for eighteen years as part of The Beyt Archive.  

The end of the war in 1990 didn’t bring a massive return. Many who left have started new lives elsewhere. Post-war reconstruction is slow and uneven. Social polarization is growing. The country is trying to rebuild, but the scars are deep, and the sectarian structures that fueled the conflict are still intact.  

What to remember: The Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990) caused hundreds of thousands of Lebanese to leave, mostly professionals and skilled workers. This brain drain has weakened the country’s economic and social fabric for years, long after the fighting ended.

The major waves of Lebanese migration: a historical overview

The five major waves of Lebanese emigration from the 19th century to today

Period	Main causes	Favored destinations	Migrant profile
Late 19th c  – 1914	Famine, Ottoman persecutions, poverty	Americas, West Africa	Farmers, traders, Maronite Christians
1915–1918	Famine in Mount Lebanon, Ottoman blockade	Egypt, Americas	Civilian population struggling to survive
1975–1990	Civil war, insecurity, infrastructure destruction	France, Canada, Australia,	Gulf  Middle class, elites, skilled professionals
1990–2019	Political instability, unemployment, lack of prospects	Gulf, Europe, Americas	Young graduates, managers
2019 to today	Financial crisis, 2020 explosion, economic collapse	France, Canada, Germany, Gulf	Young graduates, doctors, engineers

   
The 2019 crisis and the 2020 explosion: a new wave of forced emigration 

Financial crisis, urban disaster, and accelerated departures

In October 2019, Lebanon plunged into an unprecedented financial crisis. The bankrupt banking sector froze people's deposits, hyperinflation wiped out purchasing power, and food insecurity affected a growing part of the population. The Lebanese pound lost more than 90% of its value in just a few years. The World Bank ranks this crisis among the most severe in the world since the mid-19th century.

On August 4, 2020, the explosion at the Beirut port killed more than 200 people, injured thousands, and destroyed entire neighborhoods of the capital. It was the final straw for many who were still hesitating to leave. The Beirut port explosion in 2020 became the symbol of a failing state, unable to protect its citizens. To understand how art responded to this collective trauma, one can read the testimony published on Beirut after the explosion: art as resilience.

This third major wave of Lebanese migration is marked by a massive brain drain. It's doctors, nurses, engineers, and teachers who leave first, drawn by opportunities in Europe, Canada, and the Gulf. According to estimates reported by the International Organization for Migration, Lebanon lost a significant portion of its healthcare professionals in just a few years.

Lebanese youth are on the front lines. For tens of thousands of young graduates, leaving is no longer a choice but a necessity. Studying abroad, finding a job elsewhere, starting over in a country where infrastructure works and salaries are paid in stable currency: these are survival imperatives, not adventures. The tension between wanting to come back and the reason to stay is constant, and it affects all Lebanese families.

• Good to know: The Lebanese financial crisis that started in 2019 is considered by the World Bank as one of the most severe economic crises globally since the mid-19th century. It has massively accelerated emigration, particularly among skilled professionals.

The economic impact of emigration on Lebanon

Between remittances and loss of human capital

Lebanese emigration has deep and contradictory economic consequences. On one hand, the remittances sent by the Lebanese diaspora around the world have long been a pillar of the national economy. These money transfers represented, before the crisis, between 15 and 20% of Lebanon's GDP according to World Bank data. For many families remaining in Lebanon, these remittances are the main source of income, allowing them to pay bills, children’s school fees, or medical expenses in a country where social protection is almost non-existent.

On the other hand, the brain drain deprives Lebanon of the human capital essential for its reconstruction.   

Studies on armed conflicts and labor markets show that the loss of skilled labor in crisis-hit countries has a lasting impact on productivity and the ability to maintain public services. A country that loses its doctors, engineers, and teachers cannot rebuild itself.

Population displacement in Lebanon thus creates a vicious circle: the more the country loses its skills, the less it can provide decent living conditions for those who remain, which in turn leads to more departures. The community resilience of Lebanese abroad is remarkable. The transnational migration networks that have been built for over a century help newcomers integrate more quickly into host countries, thanks to already established communities. But this integration comes at the expense of Lebanon itself, which sees its vital workforce leave without being able to keep them.

Lebanon, a host country despite itself: Syrian refugees and their impact

Paradoxically, Lebanon itself has become an important host country, mainly for Syrian refugees fleeing the civil war that has been devastating their country since 2011. According to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Lebanon has taken in up to 1.5 million registered Syrian refugees, which represented about 16% of its total population in 2017, one of the highest per capita rates in the world.

This considerable demographic pressure is on a country already weakened by its own crises. The massive arrival of Syrian refugees has increased tensions on public services, the labor market, and Lebanon's state finances. Access to essential services, already insufficient for the local population, has become even more difficult. Pressure on housing, water, and education has fueled social tensions and polarization between communities. The ICRC and the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) have both documented the scale of these displacements and their impact on host countries like Lebanon.

This situation highlights Lebanon's complexity when it comes to emigration and population movements: a country that has sent its children abroad for more than a century is also forced to absorb the exodus from neighboring countries, without the necessary resources to do so under decent conditions.

Memory, art, and resistance against erasure

In the face of this long history of emigration from Lebanon, the abandoned houses of Beirut, Lebanon, are the silent archives of these departures. Every collapsed façade, every boarded-up door, every wrought-iron balcony overtaken by vegetation tells the story of a family that left, often without being able to return.

 

It’s this conviction that lies at the heart of Bénédicte de Vanssay Moubarak’s approach and the The Beyt Archive project: documenting through watercolor what emigration, war, and time erase. Each work is a form of memory resistance, an act of presence in the face of absence. For those who want to learn more about this artistic and documentary approach, the About the Artist page goes into the foundations in detail.

The watercolor collections available on 2bdesign each carry the story of a place, a family, a neighborhood that survived the exodus or that still bears its traces. The War and Consequences collection is even more directly tied to this memory of departures and destruction.

Art doesn’t fix departures. But it can name what’s been lost, keeping alive the memory of a country that millions of Lebanese carry within them, wherever they live in the world. Maybe that’s the most lasting form of resistance to erasure.

A Fragile and Resilient Country: What the History of Emigration Tells Us About Lebanon

Emigration in Lebanon and its history are not just a series of statistics or dates. It’s the story of a country caught in an apparently endless cycle: conflicts, economic crises, departures, attempts at rebuilding, new departures. It’s the story of families torn between two shores, of children raised abroad with a longing for a country they sometimes have never really known.

It’s also the story of the Lebanese diaspora around the world that, despite everything, continues to send money, come back for the holidays, and hold onto the keys of a house that may no longer even exist. Understanding this history is how we understand why Lebanon is both so fragile and so resilient, so present in hearts and yet so absent in the daily lives of those who have left it.

FAQ
How many Lebanese people live abroad today?

Estimates vary depending on the source, but the Lebanese diaspora around the world is generally estimated to be between 8 and 14 million people, which is much more than the resident population in Lebanon, estimated at around 4 to 5 million inhabitants. This disproportion is unique in the world and reflects the historical scale of Lebanese migration waves.

Which countries host the most Lebanese from the diaspora?

The main Lebanese communities are found in Brazil, Argentina, the United States, Australia, France, Canada, and the Gulf countries. In France, the Franco-Lebanese community is particularly significant in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, and Nice, with deep historical and cultural ties between the two countries.

What is the role of remittances in the Lebanese economy?

Remittances sent by the Lebanese diaspora represented between 15 and 20% of Lebanon's GDP before the 2019 crisis, according to the World Bank. These transfers are an essential source of funding for many families remaining in the country, partially compensating for the lack of social protection and low local wages.

Has the situation improved since the 2020 explosion?

The situation remains very difficult. The economic collapse, the depreciation of the Lebanese pound, political paralysis, and the failure of public services continue to drive emigration. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UNHCR closely monitor the evolution of migration flows leaving Lebanon, which remain high.

What is the brain drain and why is it particularly serious for Lebanon?

Brain drain refers to the massive departure of skilled professionals, especially doctors, engineers, teachers, and researchers. For Lebanon, this phenomenon is particularly destructive because it deprives the country of the skills needed for its reconstruction. When a hospital loses its doctors or a university loses its teachers, the whole collective resilience capacity weakens.

Are there works of art that document Lebanese emigration and its traces?

Yes. Several Lebanese and Franco-Lebanese artists work on the memory of abandoned places and the traces left by emigration. Bénédicte de Vanssay Moubarak's approach is an example: her watercolors of abandoned houses in Beirut and Lebanon form a visual archive of what successive departures have left behind.