Table of Contents
Definition of Migration
(noun) The movement of people from one geographic area (e.g., country, food source) to another, typically referring to moving across political boundaries.
Examples of Migration
- Moving from Eastern Europe to the United States.
- Moving from one oasis to another.
- Moving from one suburb to another.
Migration Pronunciation
Syllabification: mi·gra·tion
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /mie-grAY-shuhn/
- British English – /mie-grAY-shuhn/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˌmaɪˈɡreɪʃ(ə)n/
- British English – /mʌɪˈɡreɪʃn/
Usage Notes
- Plural: migrations
- Migration typically is viewed as transitory, moving from place to place, immigration and emigration are forms of migration that are generally permanent.
- Migration can be “voluntary” or “forced.”
- Types:
- The (adjective) migratory or (adjective) migrational patterns of (noun) migrants (verb) migrating are studied by demographers.
Additional Information
- Word origin of “migration” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Benson, Michaela, and Karen O’Reilly. 2009. “Migration and the Search for a Better Way of Life: A Critical Exploration of Lifestyle Migration.” Sociological Review 57(4):608–25. doi:10.1111/j.1467-954x.2009.01864.x.
- Castles, Stephen. 2007. “Twenty-first Century Migration as a Challenge to Sociology.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 33(3):351–71. doi:10.1080/13691830701234491.
- Castles, Stephen, Hein de Haas, and Mark J. Miller. 2014. The Age of Migration: International Population Movements in the Modern World. 5th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Urry, John, and M. Sheller, eds. 2004. Tourism Mobilities: Places to Play, Places in Play. London: Routledge.
- Winder, R. 2013. Bloody Foreigners: The Story of Immigration to Britain. Rev. ed. London: Abacus.
Related Terms
- birth rate
- demography
- mortality rate
- population
- population composition
- society
- State
- urbanization
- world-systems theory
- zero population growth
Works Consulted
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Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/).
Cite the Definition of Migration
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “migration.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved December 2, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/migration/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
migration. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/migration/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “migration.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed December 2, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/migration/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“migration.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 2 Dec. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/migration/>.