South African Australians (Afrikaans: Suid-Afrikaanse Australiërs) are citizens or residents of Australia who are of South African descent.
Total population | |
---|---|
144,666 (by ancestry, 2021)[1] (0.6% of the Australian population)[1] 189,207 (by birth, 2021)[1] | |
Regions with significant populations | |
New South Wales | 39,548 |
Queensland | 35,226 |
Western Australia | 33,310 |
Victoria | 26,082 |
South Australia | 6,288 |
Languages | |
Related ethnic groups | |
According to the 2021 Australian census, 189,207 Australian residents were born in South Africa, making up 0.7% of the country's population. In addition, 144,666 people born in Australia claim South African ancestry, making up 0.6% of the total population. A strong majority of South African Australians are Australian citizens, with 76% possessing Australian citizenship. In the same 2021 census, 144,666 Australian residents claimed "South African" ancestry while another 6,153 stated their ancestry as "Afrikaner" and 501 as "Zulu".[2]
Immigration from South Africa to Australia, particularly by professionals, accelerated in the 1990s. More than half of the South African Australians arrived following the election of Nelson Mandela in 1994.[3] A behaviour stigmatised by white South Africans who remained in their homeland as "Packing for Perth" ("PFP") was also a humorous dig and reference to supporters of the Progressive Federal Party – a political party formed in 1977 that drew support mainly from liberal English-speaking white people.[4] As per 2021 census, 60% of Australians who are born in South Africa, claimed English, Dutch, German and Scottish ancestry, while only 40% claimed "South African" as an ancestry.
Notable people
edit- Joany Badenhorst (Paralympic snowboarder)
- Brad Banducci (CEO of Woolworths Group)
- Wendy Botha (pro surfer)
- Robin Bell (athlete)
- Scherri-Lee Biggs (Miss Universe Australia 2011)
- Lauren Brant (former Hi-5 member)
- Kearyn Baccus (soccer player)
- Gavin Buckley (current mayor of Annapolis, Maryland)
- J. M. Coetzee (writer, 2003 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate)
- Bryce Courtenay (writer)
- Michelle Cowan (AFL / AFLW Coach)
- Collette Dinnigan (fashion designer)
- Ceridwen Dovey (writer)
- Anton Enus (SBS newsreader)
- Damian Cupido (Australian rules football player)
- Dane Haylett-Petty (rugby union football player)
- Dean Geyer (singer, and actor)
- David Gonski (chair, Australian Stock Exchange)
- Frances Hargreaves (actress)
- Cariba Heine (actress)
- Robert Holmes à Court (1937-1990) (businessman, Australia's richest person)
- Jason Johannisen (Australian Rules football player)
- Craig Johnston (soccer player)
- Dena Kaplan (actress)
- Gail Kelly (CEO, Westpac)
- Marius Kloppers (CEO, BHP)
- Marnus Labuschagne (Australian Test cricketer)
- Jessica Marais (actress)
- Sisonke Msimang (writer)[5]
- Kerr Neilson (fund manager)
- Paul O'Brien (actor)
- Craig Reucassel (comedian)
- Lovemore N'dou (boxer)
- Clyde Rathbone (rugby player)
- Selwyn (R&B singer)
- Troye Sivan (actor and singer-songwriter)
- Tammin Sursok (actress)
- Daniel Vickerman (rugby player)
- Margaret Wild (writer)
- Nathaniel Willemse (singer)
- Young Pluto (boxer)
- Morné Morkel (Former South Africa International Cricketer)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Community profile 2021 abs.gov.au
- ^ "Cultural Diversity: Census". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
- ^ The African migrants who fear a lower standard of living Sydney Morning Herald
- ^ Kaplan, David (3 October 2019). "Packing for Perth: Skills flight is a reality, and we must plan for it". The Daily Maverick. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
- ^ Kembrey, Melanie (9 August 2018). "Sisonke Msimang interview: 'The dream of freedom was a sort of home for us'". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 17 August 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2019.