Leaving Home: Migration Yesterday and Today

The nineteenth century is often called the century of mass migration. Multiple factors, including new opportunities created by the industrial revolution, left many people from underdeveloped regions, searching to find a better life somewhere else. Now, with migration still as a key global trend—an estimated 500 million currently on the move worldwide—it is important to identify the motivations and experiences behind these initial emigrants. This fascinating book, complete with 420 illustrations, describes the great migration movements from the eighteenth century all the way up the present day. It traces the reasons for migration; accompanies the emigrants on their long journey to their destinatios in America, Afirca, Australia, and New Zealand; and describes their new living conditions abroad. In their contributions, internationally renowned experts in migratory history convery a deep and empathetic overview of both past and present global migration movements.