The Italian community of Melbourne is the second largest

ethnic group An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

in Greater

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 metro ...

Victoria (Australia) Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in ...

, second to the

Anglo-Celtic Australian 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. While Anglo-Celtic Australians do not form an offici ...

s ethnic group. The 2011 Census counted that of the 185,402 residents that were born in Italy who live in Australia, 68,823 lived in Melbourne, which was the highest percentage of the country at 37.1%. The same could be said for the total Australian population of Italian ancestry, with 279,112 of the 916,121 (30.4%) listed as Melbourne residents, which is the highest Italian population in Australia and the Oceanic continent per city. IT born Mel

History

Victorian gold rush era

Inaugural records of the Italian community of

are debated as official records are obscured. It is known that the

Victorian gold rush The Victorian gold rush was a period in the history of Victoria, Australia approximately between 1851 and the late 1860s. It led to a period of extreme prosperity for the Australian colony, and an influx of population growth and financial capit ...

of the 1850s attracted thousands of

Italians , flag = , flag_caption = The national flag of Italy , population = , regions = Italy 55,551,000 , region1 = Brazil , pop1 = 25–33 million , ref1 = , region2 ...

and Swiss Italians to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. The drain on the labour supply occasioned by the gold rush caused Australia to also seek workmen from Europe for land use and the development of cultivation. It is the approximate number of Italians who joined the Victorian gold mines is obscure, and until 1871 Italians did not receive a special place in any Australian

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

figures. By 1881, the first year of census figures on Italian migrants in all Australian states, not just 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 ...

, there were 947 (0.10%) in Victoria, of whom one-third were in Melbourne.

World wars' migration

Following Italy's involvement in world war I, many Italians particularly from the southern regions of

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

and descended into both, the south eastern and northern suburbs of

. Following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Australia saw a huge influx of Italian migrants settling all throughout Melbourne. The northern inner-suburbs saw the highest population densities of Italian migration between the 1940s-60's. These suburbs consisted of Brunswick,

Brunswick East Brunswick East is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Merri-bek local government area. Brunswick East recorded a population of 13,279 at the 2021 ...

Brunswick West Brunswick West is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business district, located within the City of Merri-bek local government area. Brunswick West recorded a population of 14,746 at the 202 ...

, Carlton,

Carlton North Carlton North is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Yarra local government areas. Carlton North recorded a population of 6,177 ...

, Fitzroy, Fitzroy North, Parkville and Princes Hill. Of all the listed suburbs, the highest concentration in Carlton, saw the eventual establishment of Melbourne's current

Little Italy Little Italy is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian culture. There are ...

, on

Lygon Street Lygon Street is located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, running through the inner northern suburbs of Carlton, Carlton North, Princes Hill and Brunswick East. Lygon Street is synonymous with the Italian community of Melbourne, forming ...

, between the intersections of Elgin & Queensberry streets.

Post global financial crisis migration

In the recent years, Australia has been witnessing a new wave of migration from Italy in numbers not seen in half a century, as thousands flee the economic hardship in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, with the

Financial crisis of 2007–08 Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of f ...

playing a large role, many Italians migrated from Italy to Australia in large numbers. The explosion of numbers saw more than 20,000 Italians arrive in Australia in 2012-13 on temporary visas, exceeding the number of Italians that arrived in 1950-51 during the previous migration boom following World War II.

Today

Today, the city of Melbourne is a

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, with the city's population consisting of 68,823 residents by birth, and 279,112 residents by heritage, as of 2011. Recent

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

expansion on Lygon street has seen many new Italian restaurants open in the

side and also seen the re location o
Mondo Music
(50 Lygon Street Brunswick East) - the iconic retail store specialising in Italian DVD's, CD's and other Italian merchandise. The recently redeveloped Abruzzo club opened 377 on Lygon in late 2015, and the international award-winning 400 gradi restaurant, that was declared to have the 'world's best pizza' in 2014.

Lygon Street - Melbourne's Little Italy

The

Italian restaurant ''Italian Restaurant'' is an Italian comedy television series. Cast *Gigi Proietti: Giulio Broccoli *Nancy Brilli: Connie Mancuso *Adriano Pappalardo: Frank Di Giacomo *Tiberio Murgia: Salvatore *Cristiana Capotondi: Angie *Luigi Montini: Mancu ...

district synonymous with Lygon Street district occupies a number of blocks between Queensberry Street in the South, along

, to Elgin Street in the North. Restaurants can also be found along the streets intersecting Lygon Street, towards the

Carlton Gardens The Carlton Gardens is a World Heritage Site located on the northeastern edge of the Central Business District in the suburb of Carlton, in Melbourne, Australia. A popular picnic and barbecue area, the heritage-listed Carlton Gardens are home ...

in the East and the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb ...

in the West. The Lygon Street Festa is an annual celebration that is one of Australia's largest outdoor street festivals, celebrating the

Italian culture Italy is considered one of the birthplaces of Western culture, Western civilization and a Power (international relations)#Power as status, cultural superpower. Italian culture is the culture of the Italians, a Romance languages, Romance eth ...

and cuisine of Melbourne which is held in the district in November. The La Mama Theatre and Courthouse Theatre are also in this area, as is the heritage-listed neon sign at Borsari's Corner, named after Italian cyclist Nino Borsari, on the corner of Grattan Street.

Toto's Pizza House Toto's Pizza House (Toto's) was the first pizzeria established in Melbourne, Australia, now a small chain of Pizza stores. Toto's opened for business on 7 July 1961 in Lygon Street, Carlton, Victoria, where the business remained until closing in ...

, the first pizzeria established in Australia, has been located at the southern end of Lygon Street continuously since its opening in 1961. Towards the centre of the district, on the corner of Lygon Street and Argyle Place, there is a small Italian-inspired

piazza A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

namedPiazza Italia, which is a joint-redevelopment by Melbourne and its

, in

. The block between Cardigan street and Arglye Place South, are synonymous for the site of celebrations of Italian sport. During the annual

Australian Grand Prix The Australian Grand Prix is an annual motor racing event which is under contract to host Formula One until 2035. One of the oldest surviving motorsport competitions held in Australia, the Grand Prix has moved frequently with 23 different ven ...

, the restaurant district, particularly the stated block, is bathed in red and yellow banners in support of the

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

racing team and, in 1982 and 2006, it was also a major site of Australian celebrations when Italy's national football team won the

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...

and

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro votes to declare independence from Serbia; The 2006 ...

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...

s. In 2012, the block, where Notturno Cafe is situated, was the most popular site during the 2012 Euro Cup. In the early hours of 28 June, Lygon street was brought to a stand still following Italy's 2-1 victory over

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

in the semi-finals, advancing to the final against eventual winners

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, where supporters celebrated on the street for hours, blocking traffic in all directions.

Sport

Melbourne's Italian community has played influential roles in many sports throughout

. Association Football (soccer) and

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

have been the most popular sports the community has engaged in, at professional levels. There has been influence in the sports of

bocce (, or , ), sometimes anglicized as bocce ball, bocci or boccie, is a ball sport belonging to the boules family. Developed into its present form in Italy, it is closely related to British bowls and French , with a common ancestry from ancie ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...

, and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

in the community.

Association Football (Soccer)

Football (soccer) has been a fundamental characteristic of sport in Melbourne's Italian community. Many clubs in the past seventy years, competing competitively or defunct, have been in suburbs all over Melbourne, with two clubs participating in the former

National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its d ...

, being Brunswick Juventus Junior FC ''(formerly Brunswick Juventus)'' and

Carlton SC Carlton Soccer Club is a defunct Australian association football (soccer) club. It participated in the National Soccer League from the 1997–98 season until round eight of the 2000–01 season, after which it folded. The club was strongly linked ...

. There are currently at least eighteen active clubs based in Melbourne who are competing in various divisions throughout Victoria.

National team players

Clubs

In Melbourne, there are numerous social and sports clubs founded by and/or have a strong Italian following, or have official Italian recognitions. Active clubs as of the 2022 Victorian football season

Australian Rules Football

In June 2007 the Victorian Football League-Australian Football League announced a (VFL/AFL)

Italian Team of the Century The Victorian Football League-Australian Football League (VFL/AFL) Italian Team of the Century was announced in June 2007. It recognises the role of Italian Australian players in the sport. Players and/or at least one of the player's parents or ...

, in recognition of the role of

Italian Australian Italian Australians ( it, Italiani Australiani) are Australians with Italian ancestry. Italian Australians constitute the sixth largest ancestry group in Australia, and one of the largest groups in the global Italian diaspora. At the 2021 ce ...

players have had in the sport. The vast majority of the official players were born &/or raised in

. These players consist of:

Notable people

The following list contains notable

s who were born and/or raised in Melbourne. The list is structured in alphabetical order by surname, and the resident's listed occupation is what he/she was known for. (Incomplete List) *

Emma Alberici Emma Alberici (born 3 February 1970) is an Australian journalist and former foreign correspondent who was the chief economics correspondent for the ABC Television (Australian TV network), Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television network ...

Vanessa Amorosi Vanessa Joy AmorosiSharon Verghis"Back on track" ''The Sun-Herald'', 18 October 2009, Archived fro''the original''on 6 March 2016. (born 8 August 1981) is an Australian singer-songwriter and recording artist. Her combined album and single sales ...

Tina Arena Filippina Lydia "Tina" Arena (born 1 November 1967) is an Australian singer-songwriter, musician, musical theatre actress and record producer. She is one of Australia's highest-selling artists and has sold over 10 million records worldwid ...

George Baldessin George Baldessin (19 May 1939 – 9 August 1978) was an Italian–Australian artist. Early life and education George Victor Joseph (George) Baldessin was born on 19 May 1939 in San Biagio di Callalta, Veneto, Italy.Zimmer, JennyBaldessin, Geor ...

* Pietro Baracchi *

Ron Barassi Sr. Ronald James Barassi (24 October 1913 – 31 July 1941) was an Australian rules footballer who played with Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL). His grandfather came from Italy, and Ron was the father of Hall of Famer Ron Barassi ...

* Ron Barassi Jr. *

Melissa Barbieri Melissa Anne Barbieri (born 20 February 1980) is an Australian international football goalkeeper who plays for Melbourne City in the A-League Women. She earned over 86 caps with the Australia women's national soccer team and competed at four FI ...

Enza Barilla Enza Barilla (born 10 April 1991) is an Australian football (soccer) player, who last played for Melbourne Victory in the Australian W-League. Barilla also plays for Bundoora United FC, along with fellow Victory players Gülcan Koca Gülca ...

Steve Bastoni Steve Bastoni (born 4 March 1966) is an Award winning, Italian-born Australian actor. He became a household name in Australia for his role as Constable Yannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos in ''Police Rescue'' and as Steve Parker in ''Neighbours''. H ...

* Edo Benetti *

Peter Bevilacqua Pietro Paolo Bevilacqua ( en, Peter Paul Bevilacqua; born 29 June 1933 in San Marco in Lamis, Italy) is a former Australian rules footballer and soccer player. Bevilacqua's Australian rules career was short and uneventful at the highest level ...

Cris Bonacci Cristina "Cris" Bonacci (born 15 October 1964) is an Australian-born producer, songwriter, and musician. She was the lead guitarist in the British heavy metal band Girlschool (1984 to 1992, 2004) and has also provided session guitar work for ot ...

Marco Bresciano Mark Bresciano ( ; ; born 11 February 1980) is an Australian former professional soccer player who played as a midfielder. Born in Melbourne, Bresciano played youth football for Bulleen Lions, before moving into the National Soccer League wit ...

Anthony Callea Anthony Cosmo Callea (born 13 December 1982) is an Australian singer-songwriter and stage actor who rose to prominence as the runner-up in the 2004 season of ''Australian Idol''. Callea's debut single, a cover of Celine Dion and Andrea Bocell ...

Blake Caracella Blake Caracella (born 15 March 1977) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is currently serving as an assistant coach with the Essendon Football Club. He is the brother of Craig Caracella ...

* Frank Carbone *

Emmanuel Carella Emmanuel "Manni" Carella (born 15 July 1982) is an Australian pop singer who has released an album, ''Emmanuel'' (April 2005). He has issued three Top 40 singles with "Don't Say a Word" reaching No. 7 in August 2003. He was voted '' T ...

Andrew Carrazzo Andrew Carrazzo (born 15 December 1983) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Junior career Carrazzo played junior football with the St Simons Foo ...

Vin Catoggio Vincenzo "Vin" Catoggio (born 13 May 1954) is a former Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League. He was noted for his outrageous afro haircut and because of this was considered one of the real characters of the game. He is o ...

* Orfeo Cecconato *

Chris Cester Christopher James Cester (born 16 September 1981) is an Australian musician, songwriter, producer and founding mainstay drummer and backing vocalist of rock band Jet. As a member of Jet, Cester has won awards as a songwriter from the Australas ...

Santo Cilauro Santo Luigi Cilauro (born 25 November 1961) is an Australian comedian, television and feature film producer, screenwriter, actor, author and cameraman who is also a co-founder of '' The D-Generation''. Known as the weatherman in ''Frontline'', ...

Gabriella Cilmi Gabriella Lucia Cilmi ( ; ; born 10 October 1991) is an Australian pop singer. A contralto, Cilmi is known for her distinctive raspy singing voice. Her debut album, '' Lessons to Be Learned'', was released in March 2008, becoming a moderate in ...

Chris Ciriello Christopher Ciriello (born 1 October 1985) is an Australian field hockey player. He plays for the Victorian Vikings in the Australian Hockey League. He made his senior national team début in January 2008. He earned a gold medal at the 2010 Me ...

Simon Colosimo Simon Colosimo (born 8 January 1979) is an Australian former soccer player who played as a centre back and defensive midfielder. He spent two years playing in Europe with spells in the Premier League with Manchester City and in the Belgian Fi ...

Vince Colosimo Vincenzo Colosimo (born 11 November 1966) is an Australian AFI Award winning stage, television and screen actor. He has worked in both Australia and the United States. He is of Italian descent and lives in Melbourne, Australia. He was previousl ...

* Paul Cosentino *

Frank Curcio Francis Eduardo Curcio (25 November 1912 – 11 November 1988) was an Australian rules footballer who played his entire 249 game career for the Fitzroy Lions in the Victorian Football League (VFL). He captained the club for four seasons, from ...

Andrew Daddo Andrew Dugald Daddo (born 18 February 1967) is an Australian actor, author and television and radio personality. Early life Daddo was born in Melbourne on 18 February 1967. He began his education at Mt Eliza Primary School and in year seven mo ...

Cameron Daddo Cameron Peter Daddo (born 7 March 1965) is an Australian actor, musician and presenter. From 1987 to 1988, he hosted dating game show '' Perfect Match Australia''. He won two Logie Awards for his performances in '' Golden Fiddles'' and ''Track ...

* Lochie Daddo * Fausto De Amicis * Ron De Iulio *

Brett Deledio Brett Edward Deledio (born 18 April 1987) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played 243 games over 12 seasons with the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), and a further 32 matches over three se ...

Anthony Di Pietro Anthony Di Pietro (born 15 February 1969) is a businessman from Melbourne, Australia. Di Pietro is most known for his current and longest standing chairmanship of Melbourne Victory FC. Alongside sport, Di Pietro is also the Chief Executive Offi ...

Robert DiPierdomenico Berto "Robert" DiPierdomenico (born 5 May 1958) is a retired Australian rules footballer who represented in the Australian Football League (AFL) from the 1970s to the 1990s. Popularly known by his nickname "Dipper", DiPierdomenico is one of th ...

* Frank Dimattina *

Paul Dimattina Paul Dimattina (born 22 November 1974) is a former Australian rules footballer who represented in the Australian Football League (AFL). Dimattina is of Italian descent and the son of former fruiterer Frank Dimattina. Dimattina played for Ric ...

Virgil Donati Virgil Donati (born 22 October 1958) is an Australian drummer, composer and producer. He holds the drum sticks in the traditional style and is also proficient at the keyboard. Donati formed Planet X with Derek Sherinian and was the band's princ ...

Brendan Fevola Brendan Fevola (born 20 January 1981) is a former professional Australian rules footballer. He played with the Carlton and Brisbane Lions football clubs in the Australian Football League (AFL). Fevola is regarded as one of the most effectiv ...

Matthew Foschini Matthew Foschini (born 19 October 1990) is an Australian footballer who plays as a defender for Oakleigh Cannons. Club career Early career Foschini began his football career at Glen Waverley Junior Soccer Club. Melbourne Victory On 18 Augu ...

* Vince Grella *

Tony Liberatore Anthony Liberatore (born 11 February 1966) is a former Australian rules footballer who represented the in the Australian Football League (AFL). Liberatore is the only player to have won league best-and-fairest medals in all three grades of VFL ...

*Mark Lo Giudicehttp://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/toughtalking-new-carlton-president-mark-logiudice-is-all-about-his-beloved-football-club/story-fni5f5nx-1226960537644?nk=b70db8e17093f9da87a9a7c7b1b20a15 *

Joe Misiti Joe Misiti (born 9 November 1974) is a former Australian rules football player who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Originally from Keilor Park and of Italian descent, he made his AFL debut in 1992 ...

* Dylan Murnane * Tony Pignata *

Mark Philippoussis Mark Anthony Philippoussis ( ; born 7 November 1976) is an Australian former professional tennis player of Greek and Italian descent. Philippoussis' greatest achievements are winning two Davis Cup titles with Australia in 1999 and 2003, winni ...

* Louisa Angelina Santospirito *

Stephen Silvagni Stephen Silvagni (born 31 May 1967) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). As the second member of three generations of Silvagnis to represent the Blues, he is r ...

* Lou Sticca

References

{{Ethnic groups in Australia European-Australian culture in Melbourne Demographics of Melbourne Italian-Australian culture in Melbourne Ethnic groups in Melbourne