There are around 100 million people in the world who have Farsi ancestors. If we consider that there are 70 million people in Iran, then the other 30 million are believed to have settled in different parts of the world.

The educated Farsi speaking population is the biggest ethnic group in the world and has crossed domestic boundaries in search of greener pastures in the developed or developing nations for better career prospects. Iran’s biggest brain drain is believed to have taken place during the period of the Islamic revolution in 1979-80. Over two-thirds of the Iranian populace is seeking a higher education, and out of these, a few hundred thousands leave the country every year in search of more lucrative opportunities.

Most of the highly educated have settled in the developed countries of Europe, in America, and in Canada. They are at the head of different departments in reputed academic institutes in these and other developed countries, which proves their skills and the high level of knowledge that has enabled them to reach these positions.

Countries in which the Farsi speaking population can be found in considerably large numbers include: the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Sweden, Russia, Canada, Germany, Denmark, Austria, France, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Norway, Greece, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Turkey, China, India and Australia.

The Farsi population in the United States of America

Today, there are a several millions of Farsis living in the USA, in different parts of the country. The Farsi population in the US is found in high concentrations in Los Angeles, Orange County, Sacramento, San Diego, Coachella Valley and Imperial Valley in the state of California. Other areas where Farsis live include New York City, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Washington D.C. The region in and around Los Angeles has so many Farsis that this area has been denoted as “Tehrangeles.”

The Farsi speaking population living in the US can be categorized into four groups:

1. Farsi students,
2. Farsi physicians/doctors
3. Farsi teachers and
4. Farsi research professionals.

Thus, it can be seen that American Farsis are highly educated in various academic fields or are receiving a higher educations at US universities.

Some well-known American Farsis are:

• Anousheh Ansari – the first woman space tourist is of Farsi descendency.
• Mayor Jamshid Delshad of Beverly Hills is a Farsi descendent who was recently elected as the Mayor and is the first person born in Iran to be elected to such a position in the US.
• Goli Ameri is another Farsi who is the US Assistant Secretary of State for Education and Cultural affairs.
• Farhad Rostampour is the first American Farsi pilot to set a record for flying around the world.

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