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Total population | |
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Languages | |
English, Welsh | |
Religion | |
Christianity (mostly Anglicanism and Presbyterianism) | |
Related ethnic groups | |
Welsh, Scottish Australians, Irish Australians, Cornish Australians, English Australians, Welsh New Zealanders, Welsh Argentines, Welsh Americans, Welsh Canadians |
Welsh Australians are citizens of Australia whose ancestry originates in Wales.
According to the 2006 Australian census 25,317 Australian residents were born in Wales, [2] while 113,242 (0.44%) claimed Welsh ancestry, either alone or with another ancestry. [1]
The name Jones, which is common Wales although the name first arrived from England in the middle ages, is one of most-common surnames in Australia, accounting for over 1% of Australians, which suggests a higher rate of Welsh ancestry than indicated by self-identification.[ citation needed ]
A 1996 study gives the total ethnic strength of Welsh Australians as 243,400. This is made up by 44,100 of un-mixed origin and 683,700 of mixed origin. [3] This would make the Welsh the fifth largest Anglo-Celtic group in Australia after the English, Irish, Scottish and Cornish.
It is believed that the eastern coast of Australia reminded Captain James Cook of the coast of South Wales (especially the Vale of Glamorgan coast, which he knew), hence the name he gave to it, "New South Wales". The first European colony in Australia was in New South Wales, beginning with the First Fleet of 1788. Welsh people numbered amongst these first settlers, and continued to arrive in the new colony through the British policy of penal transportation that was implemented for many criminal acts.[ citation needed ]
Mass emigration from Wales to Australia began in the nineteenth century with New South Wales and Victoria being popular destinations. Nineteenth-century Welsh settlers were mostly farmers, followed later by gold diggers and coal miners.[ citation needed ]
A gold rush began in Australia in the early 1850s, and the Eureka Stockade rebellion in 1854 was an early expression of nationalist sentiment. Amongst its leaders was the Welsh-born Chartist John Basson Humffray, one of a significant group of immigrants that came over from Wales at this time.[ citation needed ]
Name | Born-Died | Notable for | Connection with Australia | Connection with Wales |
---|---|---|---|---|
Tony Abbott | 1957– | former prime minister | has lived in Australia since he was three years old | born in England and maternal grandmother was Welsh |
James Atkin, Baron Atkin of Aberdovey (also known as Lord Atkin) | 1867–1944 | lawyer and judge | born in Australia | grew up in Wales from age 4; always thought of himself as Welsh |
John Beard | 1943– | artist | lives in Australia | born in Wales |
Edgeworth David | 1858–1934 | geologist and explorer (discovered the Hunter Valley coalfield) | spent most of his life in Australia | born in Wales |
Stella Donnelly | 1992– | Musician | Moved to Australia at age ten | born in Wales |
Hughie Edwards | 1914–1982 | senior officer in the RAF, former governor of Western Australia, recipient of Victoria Cross, most highly decorated serviceman of WW2 | Born in Australia | Welsh parents |
Tyson Frizell | 1991– | Rugby League footballer | Born in Australia | Welsh father |
Julia Gillard | 1961– | Former prime minister | Migrated to Australia at age five | born in Wales |
Samuel Griffith | 1845–1920 | former premier of Queensland, chief justice of the High Court; principal author of the Constitution of Australia | migrated to Australia in 1853 | born in Wales |
Rolf Harris | 1930–2023 | artist, entertainer and convicted child sex offender | born in Australia, lived in the United Kingdom since 1953 | Welsh parents |
Billy Hughes | 1862–1952 | former prime minister | migrated to Australia 1884 | Welsh parents |
Jean Jenkins | 1938– | former senator | migrated to Australia 1969 | Welsh parents and upbringing |
Joseph Jenkins | 1818–1898 | diarist, poet and swagman | resident in Australia 1869-1894 | born in Wales |
Andrew Johns | 1974– | Rugby League footballer | born in Australia, represented New South Wales and Australia | Welsh grandfather |
David Jones (merchant) | 1793–1873 | retailer and businessman | set up his business in Australia | born in Wales |
T. Harri Jones | 1921–1965 | poet and lecturer | migrated to Australia | born in Wales |
John McCarthy | 1967– | Australian rules footballer | migrated to Australia | born in Wales |
Dannii Minogue | 1971– | singer and entertainer | born in Australia | mother born in Wales |
Kylie Minogue | 1968– | singer and actress | born in Australia | mother born in Wales |
Alf Morgans | 1850–1933 | former premier of Western Australia | moved to Australia in 1896 | born in Wales |
Thomas Price (South Australian politician) | 1852–1909 | former premier of South Australia | moved to Australia in 1883 | born in Wales |
Naomi Watts | 1968– | actress | moved to Australia when she was 15 | lived in Wales between the ages of seven and 14; mother's parents Welsh |
Rhys Williams | 1988– | professional soccer player | born in and grew up in Australia; member of the Socceroos in 2009–2010 | Welsh grandparents on his father's side; played for the Welsh under-21 team [4] [5] |
Anglo-Celtic Australians is an ancestral grouping of Australians whose ancestors originate wholly or partially in the British Isles - predominantly in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Sudanese Australians are people of Sudanese origin or descent living in Australia. The largest population of Sudanese Australians reside in Victoria (6,085).
Malaysian Australians refers to Malaysians who have migrated to Australia or Australian-born citizens who are of Malaysian descent. This may include Malaysian Chinese, Malays, Malaysian Indians, Orang Asal, mixed Malaysians and other groups.
Chilean Australians are Australians of Chilean descent or Chileans who have obtained Australian citizenship. Chileans are the second largest group of Hispanic and Latin American Australians residing in Australia. The biggest Chilean Australian communities are primarily found in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.
Australians, colloquially known as Aussies, are the citizens, nationals and individuals associated with the country of Australia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or ethno-cultural. For most Australians, several of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being Australian. Australian law does not provide for a racial or ethnic component of nationality, instead relying on citizenship as a legal status.
Samoan Australians refers to Australian citizens or residents who are of ethnic Samoan descent or people born in Samoa but grew up in Australia. However, there are many New Zealand-born Samoans living in Australia, known as Samoan New Zealand Australians. Most Samoans in Australia live in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. Most people of Samoan heritage speak Samoan as their first language.
Egyptian Australians are Australian citizens and Australian permanent residents of Egyptian descent. According to the Australian 2011 Census, 36,532 Australian citizens and permanent residents declared that they were born in Egypt, while based on the 2006 Census, at least an additional 31,786 declared that they were of full or partial Egyptian ancestry and born in a country other than Egypt. The 2021 Census shows that the majority of Egypt-born Australians are located in Sydney (19,680) and Melbourne (13,312).
Hispanic and Latin American Australians 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.
Jordanian Australians refers to Australians of Jordanian descent or a Jordan-born person who resides in Australia. According to Australia's 2011 Census there were a total of 4,621 Jordan-born people in Australia, an increase of 24.2 per cent from the 2006 Census (3,397). The vast majority of Jordanian Australians reside in the state of New South Wales.
Argentine Australians are Australian citizens of Argentine descent or birth. According to the Census there were 9,879 Australians who claimed full or partial Argentine ancestry and 20,940 Argentina-born citizens who were residing in Australia at the moment of the census.
Scottish Australians are residents of Australia who are fully or partially of Scottish descent.
Afghan Australians are Australians tied to Afghanistan either by birth or by ancestry.
The English diaspora consists of English people and their descendants who emigrated from England. The diaspora is concentrated in the English-speaking world in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, South Africa, India and to a lesser extent, Zimbabwe, Zambia and continental Europe.
French Australians, some of whom refer to themselves as Huguenots, are Australian citizens or residents of French ancestry, or French-born people who reside in Australia. According to the 2011 Census, there were 110,399 people of French descent in Australia and 24,675 French-born people residing in the country at the time of the census, representing an increase of 28.6 percent compared to the 2006 Census. The largest French Australian community is in the state of New South Wales, where they number 8,936 people, many of whom reside in Sydney.
Ethiopian Australians are immigrants from Ethiopia to Australia and their descendants. However, as Ethiopia is a multi-ethnic country with significant inter-ethnic tensions, not all individuals from Ethiopia accept the label "Ethiopian", instead preferring to identify by their ethnic group. In particular, various Oromo people use the term 'Oromo Australian' instead. In contrast, there are many individuals who prefer to label themselves as Ethiopian Australians. This is because they oppose labelling themselves based on their ethnicity as they see it as divisive and politicising their ethnic identity. This is common among the Amharic-speaking community along with ethnically mixed individuals, compared to others who stand by their ethnic identity.
Caribbean Australians are people of Caribbean ancestry who are citizens of Australia.
European Australians are citizens or residents of Australia whose ancestry originates from the peoples of Europe. They form the largest panethnic group in the country. At the 2021 census, the number of ancestry responses categorised within European ancestral groups as a proportion of the total population amounted to more than 57.2%. It is impossible to quantify the precise proportion of the population with European ancestry. For instance, many census recipients nominated two European ancestries, tending towards an overcount. Conversely, 29.9% of census recipients nominated "Australian" ancestry, tending towards an undercount.
Singaporean Australians are Australians of Singaporean descent. As Singapore is a multi-racial country, a Singaporean Australian could either be of Chinese, Malay or Indian descent, the main races of Singapore. According to the 2006 Australian census, 39,969 Australians were born in Singapore while 4,626 claimed Singaporean ancestry, either alone or with another ancestry.
Fijian Australians refers to Australian citizens or residents of Australia who are of ethnic iTaukei or Indian descent. Most Fijians Australians live in New South Wales (Sydney), Queensland (Brisbane) and Victoria (Melbourne).
Tongan Australians are Australians who are of ethnic Tongan descent or Tongans who hold Australian citizenship.