Portuguese Australians refers to Australians of Portuguese descent or Portuguese-born people living in Australia.
Despite their rather modest number compared to the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
and
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
communities, Portuguese Australians form a very organised, self-conscious and active community in many fields of Australian life. With a population spread over many parts of the continent,
sporting teams, social clubs, radio shows, newspapers, outdoor cultural festivals, culinary feasts, and even a
traditional ethnic neighbourhood, the ever-growing Portuguese Australians form roughly 0.26% of Australia's population in 2016. The biggest Portuguese Australian community is in
Petersham, Sydney: but there are other communities around Australia such as
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
,
Wollongong
Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near wa ...
,
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
and
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
. There are also communities present, to a lesser extent, in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
,
Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
and
Darwin. At the time of the 2016 census, there were 61,885 Portuguese migrants and Australians with Portuguese heritage living in Australia.
Portuguese cuisine
The oldest known book on Portuguese cuisine, entitled ''Livro de Cozinha da Infanta D. Maria de Portugal'', from the 16th century, describes many popular dishes of meat, fish, poultry and others.
''Culinária Portuguesa'', by António-Maria De O ...
has also made its way into mainstream Australian society, with the fast expansion and establishment of restaurant and fast food outlets such as "
Nando's
Nando's (; ) is a South African multinational fast casual chain that specialises in flame-grilled peri-peri style chicken. Founded in Johannesburg in 1987, Nando's operates over 1,200 outlets in 30 countries. Their logo (also seen as a sort of ...
", "
Oporto
Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropo ...
" and "
Ogalo" to confirm its success. The Portuguese "
pastel de nata
''Pastel de nata'' ( (plural: ''pastéis de nata''; , )) is a Portuguese egg custard tart pastry, optionally dusted with cinnamon. Outside Portugal, they are particularly popular in other parts of Western Europe, Asia and former Portuguese colon ...
" is a very popular delicacy in Australia and is commonly found throughout the country.
One of the most high-visibility moments for the Portuguese community was in 2005, when António Milhinhos, a shopkeeper from
Darwin, was awarded the
Senior Australian of the Year Award for his outstanding charity works and continuous catastrophe relief since 1983.
History
In New South Wales
A wave of post-war immigrants migrated from Europe to Sydney, in particular the Portuguese, who settled in the inner-city areas of
Petersham (sometimes considered Australia's largest Portuguese enclave) and
Surry Hills
Surry Hills is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is immediately south-east of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Sydney. Surry Hills is surround ...
.
In Victoria
Portugal’s links with Australia may extend as far back as the sixteenth century, predating
Captain Cook
James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean and ...
’s voyage to Australia by 250 years. Some evidence suggests that Portuguese explorers were the first Europeans to visit Australia.
Three hundred years later, a few Portuguese were among the earliest settlers in Australia. Emanuel and Ana Serrão and their infant daughter arrived in Sydney in 1824, and moved to
Warrnambool
Warrnambool ( Maar: ''Peetoop'' or ''Wheringkernitch'' or ''Warrnambool'') is a city on the south-western coast of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Warrnambool had a population of 35,743. Situated on the Princes Highway, Warrnambool (A ...
with their family in 1852. Few followed, and by 1901 only 86 Victorians were Portugal-born. Males made up 90% of the community.
The Portugal-born population in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
declined in the early twentieth century, and by 1933, only 12 were recorded in the census.
While the post-war migration boom had little effect on the Portuguese population of Victoria, the late 1960s saw the beginning of a dramatic increase in immigration. After the
Portuguese colonial wars
The Portuguese Colonial War ( pt, Guerra Colonial Portuguesa), also known in Portugal as the Overseas War () or in the former colonies as the War of Liberation (), and also known as the Angolan, Guinea-Bissau and Mozambican War of Independence, ...
in
Angola
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and
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
ended in 1974, and the former Portuguese colony of
East Timor
East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-west ...
was
invaded by
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
n troops in 1975, more ethnic Portuguese immigrants settled in Victoria. The number of immigrants from Portugal also increased, from 131 in 1966 to 2,335 in 1986.
By 2016, 2,727 Portugal-born migrants were living in Victoria. The Portuguese community in Victoria today also includes people from the former
Portuguese colonies
The Portuguese Empire ( pt, Império Português), also known as the Portuguese Overseas (''Ultramar Português'') or the Portuguese Colonial Empire (''Império Colonial Português''), was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and the l ...
of
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
,
East Timor
East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-west ...
,
Cape Verde,
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
,
Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
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, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
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,
Goa
Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
and
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.
Members of the Portugal-born community today are predominantly employed as tradespeople and workers within the manufacturing and construction industries. Almost three-quarters still speak Portuguese at home.
The community is supported by organizations including the Portuguese Community Council of Australia, which serves as an umbrella organization for all Portuguese people in Australia. Portuguese language radio programs, language classes and sporting clubs help maintain the community in Victoria. Events such as performances by
Madeira Folk Dancing provide an opportunity for the wider community to appreciate the rich, vibrant Portuguese culture.
In Western Australia
Portuguese migrants from the islands of
Madeira settled in
Fremantle in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
in the 1950s and established a fishing community which, by the mid-1980s, had grown to about 6,000 people, including their descendants. Since then, Perth and Western Australia in general have been a frequent destination for Portuguese students and skilled labor, and although no mass-migration has occurred, the Portuguese population is still prevalent in the state. John Da Silva, the founder and owner of Bell-Vista vegetables, one of Western Australia's biggest vegetable provider migrated to Fremantle in the Portuguese migrant wave to that area in the 1960s.
[Bell-Vista Fruit and Vegetables]
Portuguese Australians
See also
*
Brazilian Australians
Brazilian Australians ( pt, Brasileiro-Australiano) refers to Australian citizens of Brazilian birth or descent.
According to the 2021 Census, Green Square, New South Wales and Zetland, New South Wales had the highest number of Brazilians living ...
*
European Australians
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 E ...
*
Europeans in Oceania
European exploration and settlement of Oceania began in the 16th century, starting with the Spanish ( Castilian) landings and shipwrecks in the Mariana Islands, east of the Philippines. This was followed by the Portuguese landing and settling tem ...
*
Immigration to Australia
The Australian continent was first settled when ancestors of Indigenous Australians arrived via the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and New Guinea over 50,000 years ago.
European colonisation began in 1788 with the establishment of a ...
*
Petersham, New South Wales
Petersham is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Petersham is located 6 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Australia, local government area ...
*
Portuguese in France
*
Portuguese in the United Kingdom
Portuguese in the United Kingdom are citizens or residents of the UK who are connected to the country of Portugal by birth, descent or citizenship.
Background
History and settlement
The New Christians, who had converted from Judaism to Roman C ...
*
Portuguese people
The Portuguese people () are a Romance nation and ethnic group indigenous to Portugal who share a common culture, ancestry and language. The Portuguese people's heritage largely derives from the pre-Celts, Proto-Celts (Lusitanians, Conii) a ...
*
Portuguese in Asia and Oceania
*
Theory of the Portuguese discovery of Australia
The theory of Portuguese discovery of Australia claims that early Portuguese navigators were the first Europeans to sight Australia between 1521 and 1524, well before the arrival of Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon in 1606 on board the who is ...
References
External links
Consulate General of Portugal, Sydney
{{Portal bar, Australia, Portugal
European Australian