| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Democratic Republic of the Congo-born residents 19,510 Congolese-born (2011 census) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Greater London | |
| Languages | |
| French, Lingala, British English, Kikongo, Tshiluba and Swahili | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholicism and Anglicanism |
Congolese in the United Kingdom consist of immigrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) living in the United Kingdom as well as their British-born descendants. The demonym Congolese can also refer to people from the Republic of Congo, of whom there are fewer living in the UK.
According to the 2001 UK census 8,569 DRC-born people were residing in the UK. [1] In the 2011 census, 18,913 people born in the DRC were recorded as resident in England, 280 in Wales, [2] 298 in Scotland [3] and 19 in Northern Ireland. [4]
The majority of Congolese in the United Kingdom have come as political refugees. Congolese migration to the UK is a recent phenomenon, starting in the late 1980s. [5] Significant numbers of Congolese have been coming to the UK as refugees since the early 1990s. [6] According to official data, larger Congolese populations are found in Belgium and France. [1]
Some 11,000 Congolese people are estimated to reside in London, with large numbers being found in Hackney, Edmonton, Tottenham, Newham and Barking & Dagenham where a community of 3,000 Congolese individuals reside. [6] In 2006, community leaders suggested that there might be 30,000 to 40,000 Congolese in the UK, though the International Organization for Migration considers these to be unreliable estimates. [5]
Demographic features of the population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo include ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
The population of the United Kingdom was estimated at over 67.0 million in 2020. It is the 21st most populated country in the world and has a population density of 270 people per square kilometre, with England having significantly greater density than Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Almost a third of the population lives in south east England, which is predominantly urban and suburban, with about 9 million in the capital city, London, whose population density is just over 5,200 per square kilometre.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Kinshasa, DRC, DR Congo, or simply the Congo and known from 1971–1997 as Zaire, is a country in Central Africa. By land area, the DRC is the second-largest country in Africa and the 11th-largest in the world. With a population of around 112 million, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the most populous officially Francophone country in the world. The national capital and largest city is Kinshasa, which is also the economic center. The country is bordered by the Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Angola, the Cabinda exclave of Angola and the South Atlantic Ocean.
The latest (2021) population estimate for the City of Sheffield is 554,401 residents. This represents an increase of about 17,000 people since the last census in 2011.
Spaniards in the United Kingdom are people of Spanish descent resident in Britain. They may be British citizens or non-citizen immigrants.
Latin American migration to the United Kingdom dates back to the early 19th century. However, before the 1970s, when political and civil unrest became rife in many Latin American countries, the United Kingdom's Latin American community was not particularly large. Economic migration to the United Kingdom has since increased. Brazilian and Colombian-born residents are the two largest groups standing at 95,000 and 36,000 respectively as of 2019. A number of refugees and asylum seekers moved to the UK during the late 20th century, however, since the turn of the century, Latin Americans have been migrating to the UK for a wide range of reasons and at present the community consists of people from all walks of life. The UK is also home to British-born people of Latin American ancestry. During the 2008–2014 Spanish financial crisis, Britain also became one of the favourite European destinations for some of the roughly 1.4 million Latin Americans who had acquired Spanish citizenship.
Koreans in the United Kingdom include Korean-born migrants to the United Kingdom and their British-born descendants tracing ancestries from North Korea and South Korea.
British Iraqis are British citizens who originate from Iraq.
Colombians in the United Kingdom or Colombian Britons include British citizens or residents who are of Colombian ancestry. According to the 2011 UK Census, the Colombian-born population of England was 25,016, Wales 166, Scotland 507 and Northern Ireland 72.
Czechs in the United Kingdom refers to the phenomenon of Czech people migrating to the United Kingdom from the Czech Republic or from the political entities that preceded it, such as Czechoslovakia. There are some people in the UK who were either born in the Czech lands or have Czech ancestry, some of whom descended from Jewish refugees who arrived during World War II.
Ugandan migration to the United Kingdom refers to the movement of people from Uganda. Today, a small proportion of people in the United Kingdom were either born in Uganda, or have Ugandan ancestry.
British Afghans are British citizens and non-citizen residents born in or with ancestors from, Afghanistan, part of worldwide Afghan diaspora. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates that there were 79,000 people born in Afghanistan living in the UK in 2019.
Congolese Americans are Americans descended from the peoples of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Republic of the Congo, which themselves consist of hundreds of ethnic groups.
Algerians in the United Kingdom are residents of the UK with ancestry from Algeria. They include Algerian-born immigrants and their British-born descendants.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the east of the country in particular, has been described as the "Rape Capital of the World", and the prevalence and intensity of all forms of sexual violence has been described as the worst in the world. Human Rights Watch defines sexual violence as "an act of a sexual nature by force, or by threat of force or coercion", and rape as "a form of sexual violence during which the body of a person is invaded, resulting in penetration, however slight, of any part of the body of the victim, with a sexual organ, or of the anal or genital opening of the victim with any object or other part of the body."
Lithuanians in the United Kingdom include individuals born in Lithuania who have migrated to the UK, among them Lithuanian citizens of Russian descent and Polish Lithuanian citizens, as well as their British-born descendants. The 2011 UK Census recorded 95,730 Lithuanian-born residents in England, 1,353 in Wales, 4,287 in Scotland, and 7,341 in Northern Ireland. The previous, 2001 UK Census, had recorded 4,363 Lithuanian-born residents. The Office for National Statistics estimates that 144,000 Lithuanian-born immigrants were resident in the UK in 2013.
Mongolians in the United Kingdom are a relatively small but fast emerging ethnic group, including both Mongolian expatriates and migrants residing in the UK along with British-born citizens who identify themselves to be of Mongolian national background or descent.
Sudanese in the United Kingdom including Sudanese-born immigrants to the UK and their British-born descendants are an extremely diverse national group, especially in terms of political and religious views. It is thought that the UK is home to the oldest Sudanese diaspora in the Western World, as well as one of the largest. Sudanese migrants to the UK have traditionally included professionals, business people and academics, and more recently have included asylum seekers fleeing Sudan's second civil war. Sudanese people live in many of the UK's largest cities and towns.
Congolese Australians are a people who were either born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or the Republic of the Congo, or are of Congolese heritage, who have since settled in Australia. The Congolese Australian population has seen a marked increase since the end of the 20th century, growing from 21 individuals in 1996, to 5,522 by the 2016 Census. The influx of Congolese immigrants in the 1990s were initially the result of the First Congo War, a civil war in the country of Zaire, as well as the effects of the Rwandan genocide on the eastern border of the country, which created rebel militia groups, completely destabilizing state authority at the time. According to the 2016 Census, approximately 80% (3,228) of all Congolese-born Australians arrived in Australia between 2006 and 2016, this sudden increase in Congolese immigration was the result of a conflict between the Democratic Republic of the Congo's conflict against the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, an ongoing conflict beginning in 2004. The Congolese Australian population have settled evenly across the country's states and territories, with the largest populations being located in Queensland, Western Australia, and Victoria. Like most African Australians, it is not uncommon for Congolese Australians to experience racism, and research on their experience has been ongoing following their arrival in the early 2000s.
Congolese nationality law is the nationality law for the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is regulated by the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as amended; the Congolese Nationality Code, and its revisions; the Congolese Civil Code; and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory. These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
