| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Armenian 264 (2018 Census) [1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Auckland · Wellington | |
| Languages | |
| New Zealand English · Armenian · Russian | |
| Religion | |
| Majority Armenian Apostolic Church |
Armenian New Zealanders refers to New Zealand citizens or permanent residents who are fully or partially of Armenian descent. According to the 2018 census, 264 New Zealanders declared their ethnicity as Armenian. [1]
Although Armenia is located in the South Caucasus, ethnic Armenians are classified as a subset of Europeans under the Ethnicity New Zealand Standard Classification by Stats NZ Tatauranga Aotearoa. [2]
The earliest Armenian community appeared in the 1860's, they were mostly gold miners. However, the majority of Armenians migrated to New Zealand around the 1990's.[ citation needed ]
The country's largest Armenian organisation is the Auckland-based Armenian Society of New Zealand (ASNZ). It was founded in 1996 and is currently headed by Hermik Sookiassian. ASNZ defines its mission as follows: "To aid and facilitate the preservation of the Armenian identity amongst the Armenians of New Zealand, as well as be a central point of contact for anyone seeking to learn more about Armenia and Armenians." [3]
In 2018, a monument to the Armenian alphabet was carved in Armenia and shipped to New Zealand where it was installed by the Meadowood Community House in Unsworth Heights where ASNZ members hold regular meetings and cultural events. [4]
Saint Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church is an Auckland-based religious community without a permanent physical location. Occasional services are held in various Anglican church buildings when Armenian priests visit Auckland from Australia and elsewhere. [5]
A smaller group called the Armenian Association of Wellington exists in New Zealand's capital and third-largest city, Wellington. [6]
The demographics of New Zealand encompass the gender, ethnic, religious, geographic, and economic backgrounds of the 5.3 million people living in New Zealand. New Zealanders predominantly live in urban areas on the North Island. The five largest cities are Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton, and Tauranga. Few New Zealanders live on New Zealand's smaller islands. Waiheke Island is easily the most populated smaller island with 9,140 residents, while Great Barrier Island, the Chatham and Pitt Islands, and Stewart Island each have populations below 1,000. New Zealand is part of a realm and most people born in the realm's external territories of Tokelau, the Ross Dependency, the Cook Islands and Niue are entitled to New Zealand passports.
Iwi are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, iwi roughly means 'people' or 'nation', and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English.
The Catholic Church in New Zealand is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the leadership of the Pope in Rome, assisted by the Roman Curia, and with the New Zealand bishops.
The Assyrian diaspora refers to ethnic Assyrians living in communities outside their ancestral homeland. The Eastern Aramaic-speaking Assyrians claim descent from the ancient Assyrians and are one of the few ancient Semitic ethnicities in the Near East who resisted Arabization, Turkification, Persianization and Islamization during and after the Muslim conquest of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey.
New Zealanders of European descent are mostly of British and Irish ancestry, with significantly smaller percentages of other European ancestries such as Germans, Poles, French, Dutch, Croats and other South Slavs, Greeks, and Scandinavians. European New Zealanders are also known by the Māori-language loanword Pākehā.
Chinese New Zealanders or Sino-New Zealanders are New Zealanders of Chinese ancestry. The largest subset of Asian New Zealanders, many of the Chinese immigrants came from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, or other countries that have large populations of Chinese diaspora. Today's Chinese New Zealand group is also composed of diasporic communities from Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam and Singapore. As of 2018, Chinese New Zealanders account for 4.9% of the population of New Zealand, and are the largest Asian ethnic group in New Zealand, accounting for 36.3% of Asian New Zealanders.
Hinduism is the second largest religion in New Zealand. It is also one of the fastest-growing religions in New Zealand. According to the 2023 census, Hindus form 2.9% of the population of New Zealand. There are about 153,534 Hindus in New Zealand.
New Zealand society is generally accepting of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) peoples. The LGBTQ-friendly environment is epitomised by the fact that there are several members of Parliament who belong to the LGBTQ community, LGBTQ rights are protected by the Human Rights Act, and same-sex couples are able to marry as of 2013. Sex between men was decriminalised in 1986. New Zealand has an active LGBTQ community, with well-attended annual gay pride festivals in most cities.
Religion in New Zealand encompasses a wide range of groups and beliefs. New Zealand has no state religion and freedom of religion has been protected since the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi.
New Zealand Jews, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion, form with Hawaii (8,000–10,000), the joint-second largest (7,500–10,000) Jewish community in Oceania, behind Australia (118,000).
Christianity in New Zealand dates to the arrival of missionaries from the Church Missionary Society who were welcomed onto the beach at Rangihoua Bay in December 1814. It soon became the predominant belief amongst the indigenous people, with over half of Māori regularly attending church services within the first 30 years. Christianity remains New Zealand's largest religious group, but no one denomination is dominant and there is no official state church. According to the 2018 census 38.17% of the population identified as Christian. The largest Christian groups are Anglican, Catholic and Presbyterian. Christian organisations are the leading non-government providers of social services in New Zealand.
Greek New Zealanders are New Zealand citizens and residents who are of full or partial Greek ancestry; either those who immigrated to or are born in New Zealand. Large concentrations of the community are to be found in Wellington, and to a lesser extent Christchurch and Auckland. Smaller communities of Greeks reside in Palmerston North, Wanganui, Dunedin, Hamilton, Nelson and Napier. Many Greek New Zealanders maintain their Greek identity through the observation of Greek customs and traditions, and their adherence to their Greek Orthodox (Christian) faith, whilst also assimilating into New Zealand society.
Sri Lankan New Zealanders, also known informally as “Sriwis”, are New Zealanders of Sri Lankan heritage living in New Zealand. This includes at least three Sri Lankan ethnic groups in New Zealand: the Sinhalese, Sri Lankan Tamil and Burghers. Sri Lankans in New Zealand span over 140 years emigration. In 2013 there were 9,579 Sri Lankans in New Zealand and increased to 16,830 by 2018.
Japanese New Zealanders are New Zealand citizens of Japanese ancestry, which may include Japanese immigrants and descendants born in New Zealand. Japanese people first began immigrating to New Zealand in the 1890s. Until 1920, 14 Japanese citizens resided in New Zealand. Japanese immigration was halted during the period of the Pacific War and recommenced around the 1950s. From this period onwards, Japanese immigration remained small until the 1990s. In 1997, Japanese peoples were the 19th-largest ethnic group in New Zealand. As of the 2018 census, 18,141 New Zealand residents identify themselves as Japanese New Zealanders.
Buddhism is New Zealand's third-largest religion after Christianity and Hinduism standing at 1.5% of the population of New Zealand. Buddhism originates in Asia and was introduced to New Zealand by immigrants from East Asia.
Bangladeshi New Zealanders refers to New Zealand citizens or residents who have full or partial Bangladeshi heritage or people who emigrated from Bangladesh and reside in New Zealand. There are around 2,259 Bangladeshis in New Zealand, according to the census in 2018. The largest Bangladeshi communities are mainly present in Auckland with smaller communities in other cities such as Christchurch, Dunedin and Wellington.
Zimbabwean New Zealanders are New Zealand citizens who are fully or partially of Zimbabwean descent or Zimbabwe-born people who reside in New Zealand. They include migrants to New Zealand of people from Zimbabwe, as well as their descendants. Today, over 5,614 people in New Zealand have Zimbabwean ancestry in 2016, making them the second largest source of African immigrants to New Zealand after South Africa.
Assyrians in New Zealand are New Zealanders of Assyrian descent or Assyrians who have New Zealand citizenship. The Assyrian community in New Zealand began in the 1990s when refugees from Iraq and Iran settled in the country.
A majority-minority or minority-majority area is a term used to refer to a subdivision in which one or more racial, ethnic, and/or religious minorities make up a majority of the local population.
Kiribati New Zealanders refers to New Zealand citizens or permanent residents who are fully or partially of I-Kiribati descent. According to the 2018 census, 3,225 New Zealanders declared their ethnicity as Kiribati.
 | ||
| Historic areas of Armenian settlement | ||
| Caucasus | ||
| Former Soviet Union | ||
| Americas | ||
| Europe | ||
| Middle East | ||
| Asia | ||
| Africa | ||
| Oceania | ||
