Washington DC area (Somali community)

The US Census Bureau's 2020–2024 survey counted 6,080 Somali people in the Washington DC metro area, most of them in Northern Virginia (US Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, B02025, via Census Reporter). Fairfax County alone counted 3,064 (ACS 2020–2024, B02025, Fairfax County).

How many Somalis live in the Washington DC area?

The American Community Survey (ACS) for 2020–2024 counted 6,080 people in the metro area who named Somali as a race group, alone or with another (margin of error 1,164) (ACS 2020–2024, B02025). By ancestry it counted 4,269, and 2,600 people were born in Somalia (ACS 2020–2024, B04006; B05006). By ancestry, that makes it the second-largest Somali metro outside Minnesota and Ohio, after Seattle (ACS 2020–2024, B04006, Seattle metro).

Most live in Virginia. By race, the survey counted (ACS 2020–2024, B02025, via Census Reporter):

• Fairfax County, Virginia: 3,064
• Prince William County, Virginia: 1,314
• Loudoun County, Virginia: 569
• Montgomery County, Maryland: 335
• Alexandria, Virginia: 246
• Prince George's County, Maryland: 182
• Arlington County, Virginia: 153
• District of Columbia: 76

Virginia as a whole counted 5,807, the eighth-largest state count, while Maryland counted 838 (ACS 2020–2024, B02025, by state). Fairfax County had 1,289 people born in Somalia (ACS 2020–2024, B05006, Fairfax County). County figures under 1,500 carry wide margins of error (Census Reporter).

How did Somalis come to the Washington area?

Somalia's link to Washington began with independence: its embassy there was established in 1960 (Embassy of Somalia in Washington, Ministry of Foreign Affairs). The embassy closed during the war and stayed closed for about 24 years (Voice of America, November 2015).

Nationally, only about 2,500 Somalis lived in the United States in 1990 (Pew Research Center, June 2016). The US then admitted about 151,000 Somali refugees from 1990 to 2024, with the largest yearly intake, 13,331, in 2004 (DHS Yearbook 2009, Table 14; DHS Yearbook 2024, Table 14).

Few Somali refugees are placed directly in the capital region today. In the 2025 fiscal year, 8 were placed in Virginia, 19 in Maryland and 1 in the District of Columbia (Refugee Processing Center, FY2025 arrivals by state).

Work and business

Bailey's Crossroads, in Fairfax County, is a centre of East African business in the region (Washingtonian, September 2023). Build America Plaza there, a mainly Ethiopian pair of strip malls, includes a Somali takeout counter (Washingtonian).

The Somali diaspora as a whole sent US$1.73 billion home in 2023, a World Bank-based figure (Minnesota Reformer, March 2026). Since 1 January 2026, a 1% US tax applies to cash-funded transfers abroad (Minnesota Reformer).

Who speaks for the community?

The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Somalia, at 1609 22nd Street NW, is the Somali state's office in the United States (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). At its reopening ceremony in November 2015, Somalia's foreign minister said "we are out of the dark, we are part of the world" (VOA, 2015). US Assistant Secretary of State Linda Thomas-Greenfield attended (VOA).

The embassy's own page dates the resumption of full operations to November 2016 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs).

What does the community face now?

The end of Temporary Protected Status. Somalia's TPS designation, in place since 16 September 1991, ended on 14 August 2026 (USCIS). About 700 people nationwide held it, and an appeal has been filed (MPR News, August 2026).

Asylum cases. At the end of 2024, UNHCR counted 1,355 recognised refugees and 3,945 asylum seekers from Somalia in the United States (UNHCR Refugee Data Finder API). How many live in the Washington area is not published.

How is the Washington area tied to home?

The embassy handles Somali passports, national ID (NIRA) registration and powers of attorney (wakaalad) for Somalis across the United States (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). It also points visitors to Somalia's e-visa system (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). For the national picture, see United States (Somali diaspora).

Related pages

• United States (Somali diaspora)
• Other US Somali communities
• Seattle and South King County
• Refugee papers and status
• Why and how Somalis left
• Somali refugees by the numbers

Sources

1. US Census Bureau. American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates, Tables B02025, B04006 and B05006 (Somali), Washington metro, counties and cities of Northern Virginia and Maryland, District of Columbia and states. Via Census Reporter API. censusreporter.org. Checked 2026-11-12.
2. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Somalia. Embassy of the Federal Republic of Somalia in Washington DC: about. usa.mfa.gov.so. Checked 2026-11-12.
3. Voice of America. "Somalia's US embassy reopens after 24 years." 19 November 2015. voanews.com. Checked 2026-11-12.
4. Pew Research Center. "5 facts about the global Somali diaspora." 1 June 2016. pewresearch.org. Checked 2026-11-12.
5. US Department of Homeland Security. Yearbook of Immigration Statistics 2009, Table 14 (refugee arrivals by nationality). ohss.dhs.gov. Checked 2026-11-12.
6. US Department of Homeland Security, Office of Homeland Security Statistics. Yearbook of Immigration Statistics 2024, Table 14. ohss.dhs.gov. Checked 2026-11-12.
7. US Department of State, Refugee Processing Center. "FY 2025 Arrivals by State and Nationality as of 30 Sep 2025." rpc.state.gov. Checked 2026-11-12.
8. Ike Allen, Washingtonian. "Experience Ethiopian cuisine at these local restaurants and markets." 7 September 2023. washingtonian.com. Checked 2026-11-12.
9. Minnesota Reformer. "Feds making it harder for immigrants to send money to family." 10 March 2026. minnesotareformer.com. Checked 2026-11-12.
10. US Citizenship and Immigration Services. "Temporary Protected Status Designated Country: Somalia." uscis.gov. Checked 2026-11-12.
11. MPR News. "Judge's order allows end to TPS protections for people from Somalia." 17 August 2026. mprnews.org. Checked 2026-11-12.
12. UNHCR. Refugee Data Finder API, Somalia as country of origin, 2024. unhcr.org. Checked 2026-11-12.