Hispanic and Latin American Australians

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Hispanic and Latin American Australians
Total population
302,903 (total)
98,432 (by birth)
216,747 (by ancestry)
Regions with significant populations
Sydney  · Melbourne  · Brisbane
Languages
Australian English  · Spanish  · Portuguese
Religion
Predominantly Catholic, with minorities of Atheists and Protestants
Related ethnic groups
Hispanics  · Lusitanics

Hispanic and Latin American Australians (Spanish : australianos hispanos y latinoamericanos) refers to Australians who are of Hispanic, and/or Latin American origin irrespective of their ancestral backgrounds, and their descendants. Brazilian Australians make up the largest proportion of Hispanic and/or Latin American Australians, followed by Chilean Australians and Salvadoran Australians. Most Hispanic and Latin American Australians speak English but many continue to use Spanish or Portuguese as well.

Contents

At the 2006 Census 86,156 Australian residents declared that they were born in South America (69,157), Central America (12,959) or the Caribbean (4,040). [1] They constitute only 0.43% of the Australian population. Other statistics state that 1.12 % of Australia's population are of Latin American origin. 93,795 residents declared themselves being of South American, Central American or Caribbean ancestry (either alone or in combination with one other ancestry). [2]

Until 2006, Chile was the country that had contributed the largest proportion of immigrants to Australia. In the 2006 Census 23,305 Australian residents declared they were born in Chile. Other Hispanic or Latin American countries include El Salvador (18,000), Spain (12,276), Argentina (11,369), Uruguay (9,376), Brazil (6,647), Peru (6,322), Colombia (5,706), and Ecuador (1,356). [3] But in the 2011 Census, Brazil became the largest source of immigrants of Hispanic or Latin American origin in Australia, with a total of 14,509 Brazil-born people living in the country, leaving Chile in second place. [4] 4,872 were born in Mexico in 2016. Mexican Australians are concentrated in Brisbane and Sydney. [5]

Cultural backgrounds

Within the Hispanic and Latin American minority, there are people of different national and ethnic origins. Physical appearances vary widely and often show the blending of European, Amerindian, and African features that has occurred over many generations. Most Central Americans, as are other Hipanic or Latin Americans, are mestizos. Mestizos have both European and American Indian ancestors and, in some cases, African ancestors as well. Their European ancestors were mostly Spaniards. Most Spaniards possess typical Mediterranean features - olive skin, dark hair and eyes. Their Indian ancestors were living in what is now Latin America when the Spaniards arrived.

Argentines

Most Argentines are of Italian and/or Spanish descent, though other groups such as the British, Eastern Europeans, Arabs, Mestizos/Morochos (the Argentine equivalent of mixed people), Jews, Mulattoes, and Asians also immigrated to Argentina.

Brazilians

Most Brazilians are mostly Portuguese, Lebanese, Pardo, Italian, German, Arab, Amerindian and East Asian. Most of the African ancestors were brought as slaves to the region while it was in Portuguese control.

Colombians

Most Colombians are of Mestizo, Spanish, German, Italian, French, Lebanese, Jew and Arab descent, while some Colombians are pure African or mixed Spanish and African descent (known as mulattoes) with their African ancestors having been brought over by the Spaniards to work as slaves.

Salvadoran

Most Salvadoran are Mestizos, Indigenous and of Spanish descent, with other minorities groups such as Lebanese, French, Germans (these settled on the Pacific coast).

Chileans

Most Chileans are mestizos and of Spanish descent, and other ethnic groups such as the British, Germans, Eastern Europeans, Jews, Arabs, and Asians also immigrated to Chile, and native settlers Mapuche and Rapa Nui (from Chilean Pacific territory of Easter Island).

Peruvians

Most Peruvians are mestizos, Indigenous and of Spanish descent, with other minorities groups such as Italians, Germans, Asians (Chinese and Japanese), and Arabs.

Many other Hispanics and Latin Americans are pure-blooded descendants of Spanish settlers, both colonial and post-independence (with majority are Cubans, and Puerto Ricans; Portuguese in case of Brazil). Many Mexicans and other Hispanics from Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama) to South America (Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru) are pure-blooded Indigenous.

Mexicans

Most Mexican Australians are mestizos. [6]

Distribution

Sydney is home to the largest proportion of Hispanic and Latin American Australians - 66% of Uruguay-born, 62% of Peru-born, 47% each of Chile-born and Colombia-born, and 42% of Brazilian-born respondents at the 2006 Census were residing in Sydney. Persons from El Salvador however have different settlement patterns - only 18% were residing in Sydney, while 32% were in Melbourne and 21% were in Brisbane. [7]

As of 2019, there are approximately 7,420 Mexican-born people living in Australia. [8]

Culture

Cuisine

Food is one area in which the Hispanic world has influenced cuisine in Australia. Mexican foods are especially popular. The taco, a folded tortilla filled with meat, cheese and other ingredients. Other Hispanic dishes, such as enchiladas, tamales, tostadas and empanadas are also served in many Hispanic-themed restaurants.

Notable Hispanic and Latin American Australians

There have been many distinguished Hispanic and Latin American Australians, in sports, the arts, politics and other areas. These include:

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Mestizo</i> Spanish term to denote a person with mixed European and non-European indigenous ancestry

Mestizo is a person of mixed European and indigenous non-European ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturally European even though their ancestors are indigenous. The term was used as an ethno-racial exonym for mixed-race castas that evolved during the Spanish Empire. It was a formal label for individuals in official documents, such as censuses, parish registers, Inquisition trials, and others. Priests and royal officials might have classified persons as mestizos, but individuals also used the term in self-identification.

White is a racialized classification of people generally used for those of mostly European ancestry. It is also a skin color specifier, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, ethnicity and point of view.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spanish language in the Americas</span> Family of language varieties

The different varieties of the Spanish language spoken in the Americas are distinct from each other as well as from those varieties spoken in the Iberian peninsula, collectively known as Peninsular Spanish and Spanish spoken elsewhere, such as in Africa and Asia. There is great diversity among the various Latin American vernaculars, and there are no traits shared by all of them which are not also in existence in one or more of the variants of Spanish used in Spain. A Latin American "standard" does, however, vary from the Castilian "standard" register used in television and notably the dubbing industry. Of the more than 498 million people who speak Spanish as their native language, more than 455 million are in Latin America, the United States and Canada in 2022. The total amount of native and non-native speakers of Spanish as of October 2022 exceeds 595 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Cone</span> Southern subregion of South America

The Southern Cone is a geographical and cultural subregion composed of the southernmost areas of South America, mostly south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Traditionally, it covers Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean. In terms of social, economic and political geography, the Southern Cone comprises Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, and sometimes includes Brazil's four southernmost states. In its broadest definition, taking into account common history and geography, it also includes Paraguay, another Spanish-speaking country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hispanic America</span> Predominantly Spanish-speaking countries of North and South America

The region known as Hispanic America and historically as Spanish America is all the Spanish-speaking countries of the Americas. In all of these countries, Spanish is the main language - sometimes sharing official status with one or more indigenous languages or English, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion.

Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, Europeans and African slaves during colonial times. Cumbia is said to have come from funeral traditions in the Afro-Colombian community.

Afro–Latin Americans or Black Latin Americans are Latin Americans of full or mainly sub-Saharan African ancestry.

Latin Americans are the citizens of Latin American countries.

Asian Latin Americans are Latin Americans of Asian descent. Asian immigrants to Latin America have largely been from East Asia or West Asia. Historically, Asians in Latin America have a centuries-long history in the region, starting with Filipinos in the 16th century. The peak of Asian immigration occurred in the 19th and 20th centuries. There are currently more than four million Asian Latin Americans, nearly 1% of Latin America's population. Chinese, Japanese, and Lebanese are the largest Asian ancestries; other major ethnic groups include Filipinos, Syrians, Indians, and Koreans. Brazil is home to the largest population of East Asian descent, estimated at 2.08 million. The country is also home to a large percentage of West Asian descendants. With as much as 5% of their population having some degree of Chinese ancestry, Peru and Mexico have the highest ratio of any country for East Asian descent. Though the most recent official census, which relied on self-identification, gave a much lower percentage.

Latin American Canadians are Canadians who are descendants of people from countries of Latin America. The majority of Latin American Canadians are multilingual, primarily speaking Spanish, Portuguese, French and English. Most are fluent in one or both of Canada's two official languages, English and French. Spanish and Portuguese are Romance languages and share similarities in morphology and syntax with French.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peruvians</span> People identified with the country of Peru

Peruvians are the citizens of Peru. What is now Peru has been inhabited for several millennia by cultures such as the Caral before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Peruvian population decreased from an estimated 5–9 million in the 1520s to around 600,000 in 1620 mainly because of infectious diseases carried by the Spanish. Spaniards and Africans arrived in large numbers in 1532 under colonial rule, mixing widely with each other and with Native Peruvians. During the Republic, there has been a gradual immigration of European people. Chinese and Japanese arrived in large numbers at the end of the 19th century.

White Latin Americans or European Latin Americans are Latin Americans of European descent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chileans</span> Ethnic group native to Chile; people identified with the country of Chile

Chileans are an ethnic group and nation native to the country of Chile and its neighboring insular territories. Most Chileans share a common culture, history, ancestry and language. The overwhelming majority of Chileans are the product of varying degrees of admixture between European ethnic groups with peoples indigenous to Chile's modern territory. Chile is a multilingual and multicultural society, but an overwhelming majority of Chileans have Spanish as their first language and either are Christians or have a Christian cultural background.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demographics of South America</span>

As of 2017, South America has an estimated population of 418.76 million people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European emigration</span> European-descended people living outside Europe

European emigration is the successive emigration waves from the European continent to other continents. The origins of the various European diasporas can be traced to the people who left the European nation states or stateless ethnic communities on the European continent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Argentines</span> People of the country of Argentina or who identify as culturally Argentine

Argentines are the people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, several of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being Argentine. In the past the National Gentilic for Citizens of Argentina was mistakenly translated as Argentinians, a term that is no longer considered accurate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spanish diaspora</span> Emigrants from Spain and their descendants

The Spanish diaspora consists of Spanish people and their descendants who emigrated from Spain. In the Americas, the term may refer to those of Spanish nationality living there; "Hispanic" is usually a more appropriate term to describe the general Spanish-speaking populations of the Americas together with those in Spain. The diaspora is concentrated in places that were part of the Spanish Empire. Countries with sizeable populations are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, and, to a lesser extent, Brazil, Belize, Haiti, United States, Canada, the Philippines and the rest of Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethnic groups in Latin America</span> Overview of ethnic groups in Latin America

The inhabitants of Latin America are from a variety of ancestries, ethnic groups and races, making the region one of the most diverse in the world. The specific composition of the group varies from country to country. Many have a predominance of European-Amerindian or Mestizo population; in others, Amerindians are a majority; some are dominated by inhabitants of European ancestry; and some countries' populations have large African or Mulatto populations.

Latin American Asians are Asian people of full or partial Latin American descent.

The Latin American diaspora refers to the dispersion of Latin Americans out of their homelands in Latin America and the communities subsequently established by them across the world.

References

  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics 20680-Country of Birth of Person (minor groups) by Sex - Australia
  2. Australian Bureau of Statistics 20680-Ancestry (full classification list) by Sex - Australia
  3. of Birth of Person (full classification list) by Sex&producttype=Census Tables&method=Place of Usual Residence&areacode=0 ABS Census - Country of Birth, 2006
  4. "The Brazil-born Community". Australian Government, Department of Immigration and Border Protection. Archived from the original on 18 November 2013. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  5. "Community Information Summary - Mexico-born" (PDF).
  6. "Mexicans in Australia - Cultural Atlas".
  7. ABS Census - ethnicity
  8. "Relación Bilateral México-Australia". embamex.sre.gob.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 June 2022.