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Immigration to British Columbia
One of the first recorded immigration of Serbians to Canada comes in the 1850s. More specifically to British Columbia, Serbian men arrived with the hopes to gain employment and help provide for their families back home (Historical Sketch, Archives of Ontario). Being the pioneers, these men paved the way for thousands of others to eventually leave the Balkan Peninsula for good and establish a new life in North America. Photo Source: https://geology.com/canada/british-columbia.shtml. -
Second-Wave Immigration to British Columbia
The second wave of Serbian immigrants to Canada came shortly afterwards in the 1870s. During this time, the newcomers decided to settle throughout Canada instead of just British Columbia (Historical Sketch, Archives of Ontario). Thanks to rapidly expanding industries both in Southern and Northern Ontario, the province provided an economic incentive for those leaving an economically unstable place (Historical Sketch, Archives of Ontario). Photo Source: https://geology.com/canada/ontario.shtml -
WWI: Influx of Immigrants
The horrors of the Great War proved to be too much for many Serbians. Canada's rapid industrial development follow the war provided an incentive for stability and employment, and many migrated for that reason (Petrovic &Tomovic, 2007). Photo Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vojska_Ada_Ciganlija.jpg -
WWII: Influx of Immigration
After suffering tremendously once again during the Second World War, many Serbians fled from the Balkans to Canada for a better life. Many people who were POW's and or were expelled due to their monarchist loyalties, and or ethnicity did not wish to return to the now united communist Yugoslavia, therefore the economic prosperity in Canada provided a great incentive for migration (Kosinski, 1978) Photo Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Serbs_expelled_from_Croatia,_July_1941.jpg -
1900s: Fall of Yugoslavia
Following the dissolution and eventual civil-war in the Former Yugoslavia, many Serbians fled for Canada. Between 1990-95, it was estimated that an approximate 30,000 people from the former Yugoslavia declared refugee status in Canada (Casey, 2017) The majority identified as Serbian. This continued throughout the remainder of the 1990s (Statistics Canada, 2017). Photo Source: http://thesrpskatimes.com/the-operation-storm-it-wasnt-a-war-it-was-ethnic-cleansing-of-serbs-from-croatia/ -
Present
Currently, there is said to be over 30,000 Serbians living in Canada (Statistics Canada: Census 2016, 2017). It should be noted that those who arrived in Canada often times stayed in groups. Cities such as Kitchener-Waterloo, Toronto, Windsor, Niagara Falls, and Hamilton hold a significant population of Serbian people (Statistics Canada: Census 2016, 2017). Photo Image: https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/dv-vd/imm/index-eng.cfm
