Be it because of war, persecution or natural disasters, getting displaced from one's home country with nowhere to go is an ordeal that has been endured by people since the advent of civilization. Historical records have proved that such people, who are termed refugees, have sought refuge in other countries as a means of survival.

The mass exodus of over 1.5 million Irish adults and children during the potato famine of 1845-1855 in Ireland, the expulsion of Jews from Spain in the 15th century, and the Huguenot exodus from France in 1685, are some of the examples, among others. World Refugee Day is celebrated on June 20 to highlight the plight of these displaced people.

In the present day, the number of refugees worldwide has more than doubled over the past decade, surpassing 30 million last year alone. However, the majority of those affected by the largest refugee crises in history find themselves unable to reach affluent nations in Europe or North America. Instead, they seek refuge in neighboring countries that may be more accessible and provide some level of safety. Let us take a look at countries with the highest number of refugees.

Turkey

More than 3.67 million refugees are being accommodated in Turkey, with the majority of them—approximately 3.64 million—being "Syrians under temporary protection." While many still live in substandard conditions, the majority of Syrian- refugees in Turkey reside in host communities as opposed to unofficial tented settlements.

Germany

Germany was housing 1.2 million refugees at the start of last year, compared to 2.2 million this year. In addition to roughly 665,000 Syrian refugees and over 875,000 Ukrainian refugees, there are also over 183,000 Afghan and 151,000 Iraqi refugees in Germany.

Pakistan

Pakistan currently hosts a substantial refugee population of approximately 1,539,554 million individuals, with the vast majority originating from Afghanistan. Many Afghans have have sought refuge in Pakistan for many years, having initially escaping the ten-year Soviet-Afghan War. Since 2001, there has been a surge in the number of Afghan refugees finding shelter within Pakistan's borders.

Uganda

Over 430,000 refugees in Uganda are from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and almost 1 million from South Sudan.

Russia

The Russian Federation began to host 1.45 million refugees last year making it one of the largest host nations in the world.

Poland

Poland joined the list of nations that have taken in the most refugees as a result of the crisis that took place in Ukraine last year. 1.2 million of the 1.21 million refugees that are currently residing in Poland are from Ukraine.

(Edited by : Anushka Sharma)