Table of Contents
Definition of Immigration
(noun) The movement (migration) of people into an area to settle there permanently, adding to the population.
Example of Immigration
- Chris immigrated into Canada from the United States.
Immigration Pronunciation
Syllabification: im·mi·gra·tion
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /im-uh-grAY-shuhn/
- British English – /im-i-grAY-shuhn/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˌɪməˈgreɪʃən/
- British English – /ɪmɪˈɡreɪʃən/
Usage Notes
- Plural: immigrations
- You immigrate into a new country and emigrate from your home country.
- You can remember this distinction by thinking “Exit” for emigration and “Into” for immigration.
- Immigration is a type of migration which is typically is viewed as transitory (i.e. moving from place to place with the seasons); immigration along with emigration are generally permanent.
- Also called in-migration.
- The (adjective) immigratory or (adjective) immigrational patterns of (noun) immigrants (verb) immigrating are studied by demographers.
Additional Information
Related Terms
- birth rate
- culture
- demography
- mortality rate
- population
- population composition
- society
- State
- urbanization
- world-systems theory
- zero population growth
Works Consulted
Andersen, Margaret L., and Howard Francis Taylor. 2011. Sociology: The Essentials. 6th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Brinkerhoff, David, Lynn White, Suzanne Ortega, and Rose Weitz. 2011. Essentials of Sociology. 8th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Ferrante, Joan. 2011. Sociology: A Global Perspective. 7th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Ferris, Kerry, and Jill Stein. 2010. The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology. 2nd ed. New York: Norton.
Macmillan. (N.d.) Macmillan Dictionary. (https://www.macmillandictionary.com/).
Macionis, John, and Kenneth Plummer. 2012. Sociology: A Global Introduction. 4th ed. Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
Merriam-Webster. (N.d.) Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (http://www.merriam-webster.com/).
Oxford University Press. (N.d.) Oxford Dictionaries. (https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/).
Stolley, Kathy S. 2005. The Basics of Sociology. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Tischler, Henry L. 2011. Introduction to Sociology. 10th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wiktionary, The Free Dictionary. Wikimedia Foundation. (http://en.wiktionary.org).
Cite the Definition of Immigration
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “immigration.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved November 8, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/immigration/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
immigration. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/immigration/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “immigration.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed November 8, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/immigration/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“immigration.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 8 Nov. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/immigration/>.