Syrians in Turkey


Syrians in Turkey includes Turkish citizens of Syrian origin, Syrian refugees, and other Syrian citizens resident in Turkey. Istanbul, the most populous city in Turkey, hosts the highest number of Syrians.

History

Syrians in Turkey include migrants from Syria to Turkey, as well as their descendants. The number of Syrians in Turkey is estimated at over 3.5 million people as of March 2020, and consists mainly of refugees of the Syrian Civil War.
In 2017, Syrian citizens accounted for 24% of all work permits granted to foreign nationals, making Syrians the largest single group of foreign nationals with work permits.
Following the Turkish military intervention in the Afrin District in Northern Syria against the Kurdish YPG militia, some Turkish politicians have suggested that Syrian refugees in Turkey should be repatriated to Syria.

Ethnic groups

Syrians living in Turkey are formed of various ethnic and religious groups. The majority are Arabs, Syrian Turkmen and Syrian Kurds.

Arabs

Turkmen

In May 2016 the Russian government-controlled news agency Sputnik claimed that there were 300,000 Syrian Turkmen refugees in Turkey. By December 2016 the Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary :tr::Ümit Yalçın|Ümit Yalçın stated that Turkey opened its borders to 500,000 Syrian Turkmen.

Kurds

Others