Asian New Zealanders are
New Zealanders
New Zealanders ( mi, Tāngata Aotearoa), colloquially known as Kiwis (), are people associated with New Zealand, sharing a common history, culture, and language (New Zealand English). People of various ethnicities and national origins are citiz ...
of
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
n ancestry (including
naturalised
Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the i ...
New Zealanders who are
immigrants
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...
from specific regions in
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
and descendants of such immigrants).
Terminology
In the
New Zealand census
The New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings ( mi, Te Tatauranga o ngā Tāngata Huri Noa i Aotearoa me ō rātou Whare Noho) is a national population and housing census conducted by government department Statistics New Zealand every five y ...
, the term refers to a
pan-ethnic group
Panethnicity is a political neologism used to group various ethnic groups together based on their related cultural origins; geographic, linguistic, religious, or 'racial' (i.e. phenotypic) similarities are often used alone or in combination to d ...
that includes diverse populations who have ancestral origins in East Asia (e.g.
Chinese New Zealanders
Chinese New Zealanders ( mi, Tāngata Hainamana o Aotearoa; ) or Sino-New Zealanders are New Zealanders of Chinese ancestry. The largest subset of Asian New Zealanders, many of the Chinese immigrants came from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, ...
,
Korean New Zealanders
Korean New Zealanders (Korean: 한국계 뉴질랜드인), also referred to informally as Korean Kiwis, Kokis or Kowis, are New Zealand citizens and residents of Korean ancestry. The 2018 New Zealand census found 35,664 Koreans in the country, vi ...
,
Japanese New Zealanders
are New Zealand citizens of Japanese ancestry, which may include Japanese immigrants and descendants born in New Zealand. Japanese people first began immigrating to New Zealand in the 1890s. Until 1920, 14 Japanese citizens resided in New Zeal ...
), Southeast Asia (e.g.
Filipino New Zealanders
Filipino New Zealanders, colloquially known as KiwiPinos, refers to New Zealanders who migrated from the Philippines or descendants born in New Zealand of Filipino peoples, Filipino ancestry.
The 1936 New Zealand census recorded six New Zealand ...
,
Vietnamese New Zealanders
Vietnamese New Zealanders ( vi, Người New Zealand gốc Việt) are New Zealanders of partially or full Vietnamese ancestry.
According to the 2018 census, 10,086 New Zealanders identify themselves as with the Vietnamese ethnic group. Many o ...
,
Malaysian New Zealanders), and South Asia (e.g.
Nepalese New Zealanders,
Indian New Zealanders
Indian New Zealanders are persons of Indian origin or descent, living in New Zealand. The term includes Indians born in New Zealand, as well as immigrants from India, Fiji, as well as other regions of Asia, parts of Africa such as South Africa a ...
,
Sri Lankan New Zealanders,
Bangladeshi New Zealanders
Bangladeshi New Zealanders ( bn, নিউজিল্যান্ডীয় বাংলাদেশী) refers to New Zealand citizens or residents who have full or partial Bangladeshi heritage or people who emigrated from Bangladesh and re ...
,
Pakistani New Zealanders
Pakistani New Zealanders, also known as Pakistani Kiwis, are New Zealanders of Pakistani descent or Pakistan-born people who have immigrated to New Zealand.
Demographics
According to 2001 statistics, Pakistani Kiwis size around a population of 3,0 ...
). Notably, New Zealanders of
West Asian
Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes An ...
and
Central Asian
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former S ...
ancestry are excluded from this term.
Colloquial usage of ''Asian'' in New Zealand excludes Indians and other peoples of
South Asian descent. ''Asian'' as used by
Statistics New Zealand
Statistics New Zealand ( mi, Tatauranga Aotearoa), branded as Stats NZ, is the public service department of New Zealand charged with the collection of statistics related to the economy, population and society of New Zealand. To this end, Stats ...
includes South Asian ethnic group.
The first Asians in New Zealand were Chinese workers who
migrated to New Zealand to work in the gold mines in the 1860s. The modern period of Asian immigration began in the 1970s when New Zealand relaxed its restrictive policies to attract migrants from Asia. At the
2013 census, 471,708 New Zealanders declared that they had an Asian ancestral background. This represents about 12% of all responses.
Most Asian New Zealanders live in the
Auckland Region.
Demographics
![Asians ethnicity 2018 mapped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Asians_ethnicity_2018_mapped.png)
There were 718,995 people identifying as being part of the Asian ethnic group at the
2018 New Zealand census
Eighteen or 18 may refer to:
* 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19
* one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018
Film, television and entertainment
* ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...
, making up 15.3% of New Zealand's population.
This is an increase of 235,890 people (50.0%) since the
2013 census, and an increase of 353,046 people (99.6%) since the
2006 census
6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number.
In mathematics
Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...
. Some of the increase between the 2013 and 2018 census was due to
Statistics New Zealand
Statistics New Zealand ( mi, Tatauranga Aotearoa), branded as Stats NZ, is the public service department of New Zealand charged with the collection of statistics related to the economy, population and society of New Zealand. To this end, Stats ...
adding ethnicity data from other sources (previous censuses, administrative data, and imputation) to the 2018 census data to reduce the number of non-responses.
There were 348,948 males and 358,650 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.973 males per female. The median was 31.3 years, compared to 37.4 years for all New Zealanders; 143,691 people (20.3%) were aged under 15 years, 188,235 (26.6%) were 15 to 29, 330,210 (46.7%) were 30 to 64, and 45,462 (6.4%) were 65 or older.
At the 2018 census, 23.0% of the Asian ethnic group was born in New Zealand, up from 22.7% at the 2013 census and 20.0% at the 2006 census. Of those born in New Zealand, 64.6% were under the age of 15.
In terms of population distribution, 62.6% of Asian people live in the Auckland region, 23.9% live in the North Island outside the Auckland region, and 13.8% live in the South Island. The
Puketāpaka local board area of Auckland has the highest concentration of Asian people at 49.1%, followed by the
Howick local board area Howick may refer to:
Places
*Howick, KwaZulu-Natal, in South Africa
**Howick Falls
* Howick, Lancashire, a small hamlet (Howick Cross) and former civil parish in England
*Howick, New Zealand
**Howick Historical Village
** Howick (New Zealand elect ...
(46.5%) and the
Whau local board area
''Entelea arborescens'' or whau is a species of malvaceous tree endemic to New Zealand. ''E. arborescens'' is the only species in the genus ''Entelea''. A shrub or small tree to 6 m with large lime-like leaves giving a tropical appearance, ...
(40.3%).
Hamilton City has the highest concentration of Asian people outside Auckland at 18.5%. The
Chatham Islands
The Chatham Islands ( ) (Moriori: ''Rēkohu'', 'Misty Sun'; mi, Wharekauri) are an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean about east of New Zealand's South Island. They are administered as part of New Zealand. The archipelago consists of about te ...
had the lowest concentration of Asian people at 0.9%, followed by
Great Barrier Island
Great Barrier Island ( mi, Aotea) lies in the outer Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand, north-east of central Auckland. With an area of it is the sixth-largest island of New Zealand and fourth-largest in the main chain. Its highest point, Mount Hobson ...
(1.6%) and the
Rangitīkei District (2.1%).
Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Korean are the most commonly nominated Asian ancestries in New Zealand. Chinese New Zealanders were 4 percent of the New Zealand population (2013) and Indian New Zealanders were 3 percent of the New Zealand population (2013).
Between the 2001 and 2013 censuses, the proportion of the New Zealand population born in Asia almost doubled in size from 6.6% in 2001 to 11.8% in 2013. Some cities have seen a sharper increase in Asian born population, such as Auckland where 23% of all residents were Asian in 2013.
Social and political issues
Immigration
The political party
New Zealand First has frequently criticised immigration on economic, social and cultural grounds. New Zealand First leader
Winston Peters
Winston Raymond Peters (born 11 April 1945) is a New Zealand politician serving as the leader of New Zealand First since its foundation in 1993. Peters served as the 13th deputy prime minister of New Zealand from 1996 to 1998 and 2017 to 2020, ...
has on several occasions characterised the rate of Asian immigration into New Zealand as too high; in 2004, he stated: "We are being dragged into the status of an Asian colony and it is time that New Zealanders were placed first in their own country." On 26 April 2005, he said: "
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...
will be disturbed to know that in 17 years' time they will be outnumbered by Asians in New Zealand", an estimate disputed by Statistics New Zealand, the government's statistics bureau. Peters quickly responded that Statistics New Zealand had underestimated the growth-rate of the Asian community in the past.
In April 2008, deputy New Zealand First party leader
Peter Brown drew widespread attention after voicing similar views and expressing concern at the increase in New Zealand's ethnic Asian population: "We are going to flood this country with Asian people with no idea what we are going to do with them when they come here." "The matter is serious. If we continue this open door policy there is real danger we will be inundated with people who have no intention of integrating into our society. The greater the number, the greater the risk. They will form their own mini-societies to the detriment of integration and that will lead to division, friction and resentment."
Race-based discrimination and violence
Asians, specifically
Chinese New Zealanders
Chinese New Zealanders ( mi, Tāngata Hainamana o Aotearoa; ) or Sino-New Zealanders are New Zealanders of Chinese ancestry. The largest subset of Asian New Zealanders, many of the Chinese immigrants came from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, ...
and others of
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
n origin, were repeatedly met with
discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic. Chinese New Zealander MP
Raymond Huo
Raymond Huo (; born 1964) is a New Zealand politician who was a Member of Parliament from 2008 to 2014 and from 2017 to 2020. He was first elected in as the New Zealand Labour Party's first MP of Chinese descent. He was the third Chinese New ...
said there were racial abuse incidents in the country's Chinese community. An online petition to bar people from China from entering the country was signed by more than 18,000 people, most of whom had ostensible contempt for Chinese people in general. In
Rolleston Rolleston may refer to:
Places
* Rolleston, Queensland, Australia
* Rolleston, Leicestershire, England
* Rolleston, Nottinghamshire, England
** Rolleston railway station
* Rolleston on Dove, Staffordshire, England
** Rolleston Hall
* Rolleston, ...
,
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
, an email was sent to a Chinese-origin student's parent, which reportedly said, "our Kiwi kids don't want to be in the same class with your disgusting virus spreaders."
Mayor of Auckland
The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amal ...
Phil Goff
Philip Bruce Goff (born 22 June 1953) is a New Zealand politician. He was a member of the New Zealand Parliament from 1981 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 2016. He served as leader of the Labour Party and leader of the Opposition between 11 N ...
said he was "sickened" by the reports of Asian-origin people being racially targeted at swimming pools, public transport and restaurants.
See also
*
List of ethnic origins of New Zealanders
In the most recent New Zealand census, in 2018, 70.2 per cent of the population identified as European and 16.5 per cent as Māori. Other major pan-ethnic groups include Asians (15.1 percent) and Pacific peoples (8.1 perc ...
Asians in other countries
*
Asian Americans
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...
*
Asian Argentines
Asian Argentine or Asian Argentinian, are Argentine citizens or residents of Asian ancestry. The vast majority trace their ancestry to West Asia, primarily Lebanon and Syria, and East Asia, namely China and Japan. Though there are other communiti ...
*
Asian Australians
Asian Australians refers to Australians of Asian ancestry, whether full or partial, including naturalised Australians who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants. At the 2021 census, the number of ances ...
*
Asian Canadians
Asian Canadians are Canadians who were either born in or can trace their Ancestor, ancestry to Asia, the continent of Asia. Canadians with Asian ancestry comprise both the largest and fastest growing group in Canada, after European Canadians, wi ...
*
Asian Brazilians
Asian Brazilians ( pt, brasileiros asiáticos) refers to Brazilian citizens or residents of Asian ancestry. The vast majority trace their origins to Western Asia, particularly Lebanon, or East Asia, namely Japan. The Brazilian census does not use ...
*
Asian Peruvians
Asian Peruvians, primarily referring to those of Chinese and Japanese descent. Around 36,000 constitute some 0.16% of Peru's population as per the 2017 Census in Peru. In the 2017 Census in Peru, only 14,223 people self-reported ''tusán'' or ...
*
Asian South Africans
Indian South Africans are South Africans who descend from indentured labourers and free migrants who arrived from British India during the late 1800s and early 1900s. The majority live in and around the city of Durban, making it one of the l ...
*
Asian French
*
Asian people
Asian people (or Asians, sometimes referred to as Asiatic people)United States National Library of Medicine. Medical Subject Headings. 2004. November 17, 200Nlm.nih.gov: ''Asian Continental Ancestry Group'' is also used for categorical purpos ...
*
British Asian
British Asians (also referred to as Asian Britons) are British citizens of Asian descent. They constitute a significant and growing minority of the people living in the United Kingdom, with 6.9% of the population identifying as Asian/Asian Bri ...
*
East Asians in the United Kingdom
East Asians in the United Kingdom are East Asians living in the United Kingdom. They have been present in the country since the 17th century and primarily originate from countries such as China, Hong Kong (SAR of China), Japan, South Ko ...
References
External links
Stats NZ site
{{Immigration to New Zealand