Crossing the Atlantic shrank from five weeks to eight days, and immigration surged
In the eighteenth century an Atlantic crossing could take up to five weeks. By the early twentieth it took about eight days. As the time and cost of moving fell, so did the opportunity cost of leaving home, and migration rates climbed, helping push America's foreign-born share to nearly 15 percent in the 1800s.
Economists describe these decisions with push and pull factors. Push factors drive people out of their home country, voluntarily or not, such as poor access to resources or poverty. Pull factors attract them to a particular destination, including jobs and higher wages. If pay abroad outweighs pay at home by more than the cost of moving, labour migration becomes likely. One study of emigration from Guatemala found environmental pressures mattered even more than economic ones when people were asked directly.
The word immigration dates from the seventeenth century, describing peaceful movement between the emerging nation states. The same traveller is an immigrant to the destination country and an emigrant to the country left behind. Tourists and commuters do not count, though overstaying a visa can turn a visitor into an immigrant, and seasonal labour is sometimes included.
By 2015 the world had 244 million international migrants, 41 percent more than in 2000. The United States held 19 percent of them, followed by Germany and Russia with 12 million each, Saudi Arabia with 10 million, Britain with 9 million and the United Arab Emirates with 8 million. Asia gained 26 million migrants between 2000 and 2015 and Europe about 20 million. Migrants in Africa were youngest, with a median age of 29, while those in Oceania were oldest at 44.
Asia is the birthplace of 43 percent of international migrants, Europe of 25 percent and Latin America of 15 percent. India has the largest diaspora, around 16 million, ahead of Mexico at 12 million and Russia at 11 million. A 2012 Gallup survey estimated that 640 million adults would move abroad given the chance, with 23 percent naming the United States and 7 percent Britain. Research suggests migration can benefit both sending and receiving countries, and that most immigrants and their children assimilate substantially.
Source: Immigration
