Colonialism and migration: an overview

Abstract

European commercial and colonial expansion created the demand for intercontinental migration via the sea routes. The most important stream went from the Old World (Europe and Africa) to the New World: America. This continued to be the case, even after the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century, when most colonies on the continent of America had detached themselves from their parent countries. In addition, a stream of migrants between Asia and America came then into being. The intercontinental migrations within the Old World, directly connected with European expansion, were small compared to the mainstream to the Americas. Within all these streams of migration there were considerable changes in the ethnic composition and social status of the migrant population from the 16th century onward to some time into the 20th century.