Bosnian Australians

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Bosnian Australians
Bosanski Australijanci
Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Australia by SLA - BCP field 1252 Bosnia and Herzegovina Persons.svg
Total population
28,238 (by ancestry, 2021)
26,174 (by birth, 2021)
Regions with significant populations
Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth
Languages
Australian English, Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian
Religion
Predominantly Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Bosnian Americans, Bosnian diaspora, European Australians

Bosnian Australians are Australians of Bosnian ancestry. In the 2021 Australian census, 28,238 people stated that they had Bosnian ancestry and 26,174 Australian residents were born in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Contents


The distribution of Bosnian immigrants in Sydney as a percentage of the population Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Inner Sydney by POA - BCP field 1376 Bosnia and Herzegovina Total.svg
The distribution of Bosnian immigrants in Sydney as a percentage of the population

History

There have been three major influxes of Bosnians to Australia. The first period occurred in the aftermath of World War II, and the second occurred in the late 1960s/early 1970s following an economic depression and open border policy in the former Yugoslavia. [1]

Bosnian migrants who arrived in Australia in the 1960s made important contributions to modern-day Australia through their role in the construction of the Snowy Mountains Scheme in New South Wales. [2]

The most recent wave of migration was during the 1990s when many Bosnians sought refuge from the Bosnian War. This migration was assisted under the refugee scheme of the Australian Red Cross. [3]

By 1996, a year after the Bosnian War had ended, almost 14,000 migrants from Bosnia and Herzegovina were living in Australia. Most of the new arrivals settled in Victoria and Bosnia and Herzegovina was the fifth-largest source of migrants to Victoria in 1995-96.

By 2021, Victoria was home to 10,011 people from Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a predominant concentration in the Dandenong area.

Demographics

The majority of Bosnians reside in the south-east and west of Melbourne, south-west of Sydney and the southside of Brisbane. The Bosnian community in Queensland is more widely distributed in regional cities with a significant community on the Gold Coast, particularly in the Southport area.

Distribution of Bosnian-born residents:

StateNumber #Percentage of Bosnian-born community
Victoria9,19335.1%
New South Wales7,63929.2%
Queensland3,62613.9%
Western Australia2,96411.3%
South Australia2,1938.4%

Bosnian established mosques can be found in Deer Park (VIC), Noble Park (VIC), Penshurst (NSW), Smithfield (NSW), Wetherill Park (NSW), Eight Mile Plains (QLD), Southport (QLD) and Caversham (WA). [4]

The main ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosniaks, Serbs and Croats are also represented in Australia among those born in Bosnia and Herzegovina. [5]

AncestryNumber #Percentage of Bosnian-born community
Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim)13,95553.3%
Serbian6,86826.2%
Croatian5,14219.6%
Australian5001.9%

The percentage of residents born in Bosnia and Herzegovina that have Australian citizenship is considerably higher than most other ethnic groups at 95%. Most communities that escaped war and came to Australia as refugees have higher citizenship rates and this could be attributed to the Bosnian Australian community as well. [5]

Bosnian Australian demography by religion (note that it includes only Bosnian-born in Bosnia and Herzegovina and not Australian with a Bosnian background)
Religious group2021 [6] [a] 2016 [7] [b] 2011 [8] [c]
Pop. %Pop.%Pop.%
Eastern Orthodox 5,560 Increase2.svg4,645 Decrease2.svg7,063
Catholic 6,294 Increase2.svg5,162 Decrease2.svg5,585
Other Christian denomination 1,519 Decrease2.svg1,599 Increase2.svg87
(Total Christian)13,373Increase2.svg 11,406Decrease2.svgDecrease2.svg 12,735
Irreligion 5,537 Increase2.svg5,560 Increase2.svg3,882
Islam 6,261 Increase2.svg5,560 Decrease2.svg7,603
Other1000 Decrease2.svg1,854 Increase2.svg1,462
Total Bosnian Australian population26,171 Increase2.svg23,957 Decrease2.svg25,682

Media

The SBS broadcasts a Bosnian-language program on SBS Radio 2 from 2 PM every Tuesday and a repeat from 3 PM on Sunday. It also broadcasts BHT1 Dnevnik news program every Friday morning from 8 AM to 8:30 AM as part of its WorldWatch programming block.

Other community radio stations such as 3ZZZ (Melbourne), 4EB (Brisbane), 6EBA-FM (Perth), 2000FM (Sydney), VOX FM (Wollongong), 1CMS (Canberra), 5EBI (Adelaide) also broadcast in Bosnian.

Language

There are five Bosnian Saturday schools operating in Sydney: [9]

Sport clubs

Notable people

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Religious breakdown proportions based on "Bosnian" ethnic or cultural origin response on the 2021 census. [6]
  2. ↑ Religious breakdown proportions based on "Bosnian" ethnic or cultural origin response on the 2016 census. [7]
  3. ↑ Religious breakdown proportions based on "Bosnian" ethnic or cultural origin response on the 2011 census. [8]

References

  1. ↑ "Bosnians in Australia". January 2017.
  2. ↑ "About Australian Muslims".
  3. ↑ "Bosnians in Australia". January 2017.
  4. ↑ Haveric, Dzavid (February 2009). "History of the Bosnian Muslim Community in Australia: Settlement Experience in Victoria" (PDF). Institute for Community, Ethnicity and Policy Alternatives, Victoria University. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  5. 1 2 "2021 People in Australia who were born in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Census Country of birth QuickStats | Australian Bureau of Statistics". www.abs.gov.au. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
  6. 1 2 Government of Australia, Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021-08-10). "People in Australia who were born in Bosnia Herzegovina, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts". www.abs.gov.au. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  7. 1 2 Government of Australia, Australian Bureau of Statistics (2016-08-10). "People in Australia who were born in Bosnia Herzegovina, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts".
  8. 1 2 Government of Australia, Australian Bureau of Statistics (2011-08-10). "People in Australia who were born in Bosnia Herzegovina, provinces and territories and census metropolitan areas with parts".
  9. ↑ "Bosnian language schools".
  10. ↑ "About Us".
  11. ↑ "Maribyrnong Greens FC - Bosna Melbourne".
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