Pakistani Australians

Pakistani Australians
Total population
(31,277 (2010)[1]
0.14% of the Australian population)
Regions with significant populations
Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide & Darwin[2]
Languages
English (Australian and Pakistani), Urdu, Saraiki , Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashto and others
Religion
Islam and Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Overseas Pakistani

Pakistani Australians refers to someone born in Australia of Pakistani descent or to someone who has immigrated to Australia from Pakistan or has Pakistani ancestry. Most Pakistani Australians are Muslims by religion though there is also a sizeable Christian minority.[2]

History in Australia

Immigration to Australia from Pakistan mostly occurred in the 1970s, however Pakistani migrants can be dated back to the early 1950s. Early Muslim migrants (known as "Ghans") entered Australia as camel drivers in the late 1800s from areas which are now part of modern-day Pakistan.[2] Since then the number of Pakistani immigrants increased dramatically, with thousands of Pakistanis entering the Australia each year since that time. Pakistani Australians tended to be urban, well-educated, and professional. Many of them had come from cities like Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Hyderabad and Peshawar, and were familiar with Western culture and ways of living. Still most of the Pakistanis immigrating to the Australia are mainly students, professionals and economic migrants who do tend to have some sort of education.

Demographics

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for 2009–10 indicate that there are about 31,277 Pakistani Australians.[1] Sydney has one of the largest Pakistani communities in Oceania, and has been increasing since the point system was introduced to allow immigrants into Australia. According to the 2006 Census in Victoria there are an estimated 4,703 Pakistani born persons, with the majority living in Melbourne. The number has since tripled from the previous census which was in 1996. Those living in Victoria that are Pakistani born are highly educated with more than a third working in professional positions and about half working in 'clerical, production, service, transport and sales positions'.[2]

In 2012 7,400 Pakistani international students were studying in Australia, an increase from close to 5,000 in 2007. Under the Australia-Pakistan Scholarship Program, 500 scholarships were available to Pakistani students from 2005–2010 to facilitate postgraduate studies in Australia. Australia has become one of the largest markets for Pakistani students outside the United States and United Kingdom.[3]

Notable people

Further information: List of Pakistani Australians

Politics

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf political party has a local chapter in New South Wales (NSW), Victoria (VIC), Queensland(QLD) and Western Australia (WA), organised by members of the Pakistani Australian community.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Migration, Australia, 2009–10". Australia-Born and Overseas-Born. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 2011-06-16. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 History of immigration from Pakistan March 2, 2012
  3. ↑ "Pakistan country brief". Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia). Australian Government. November 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  4. ↑ PTI Australia

External links

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