Australian people, or simply 

Australians, are the citizens of Australia.

Australia is a multi-ethnic nation, and therefore the term "Australian" is
not a racial identifier. Aside from the Indigenous Australian population,
nearly all Australians or their ancestors immigrated within the past two
centuries.
The mainstream Australian culture (occasionally defined as the Anglo-
Celtic culture), is a Western culture largely derived from the traditions
of Western European migrants beginning with the
early English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish settlers.[4] The populations
of Sydney, Melbourne and the other major cities are different than the
demographics of rural Australia as a result of the differing migration
patterns.
Australian People can refer to:

 The citizens of Australia, as defined by Australian nationality law

 People whose ancestors lived in Australia
Contents
 [hide]

1 Indigenous

Australians

2 Australian

Diaspora

3 Population

o 3.1 Histori

cal

o 3.2 Ancest

ry

4 Languages

5 Religion

6 Nationality

7 References

8 See also

[edit]Indigenous Australians
See also: Indigenous Australians
The earliest accepted timeline for the first arrivals of indigenous
Australians to the continent of Australia places this human migration to
at least 40,000 years ago most probably from the islands of Indonesia
and Papua New Guinea.[5]
These first inhabitants of Australia were originally hunter-
gatherer peoples, who over the course of many succeeding generations
diversified widely throughout the continent and its nearby islands.
Although their technical culture remained static—depending on wood,
bone, and stone tools and weapons—their spiritual and social life was
highly complex. Most spoke several languages, and confederacies
sometimes linked widely scattered tribal groups. Aboriginal population
density ranged from one person per square mile along the coasts to one
person per 35 square miles (91 km2) in the arid interior. Food
procurement was usually a matter for the nuclear family, requiring an
estimated 3 days of work per week. There was little large game, and
outside of some communities in the more fertile south-east, they had no
agriculture.
Australia may have been sighted by Portuguese sailors in 1701,
and Dutch navigators landed on the forbidding coast of modern Western
Australia several times during the 17th century. Captain James
Cook claimed the east coast for Great Britain in 1770, the west coast
was later settled by Britain also. At that time, the indigenous population
was estimated to have been between 315,000 and 750,000,[6] divided
into as many as 500 tribes[citation needed] speaking many different languages.
In the 2006 Census, 407,700 respondents declared they
were Aboriginal, 29,512 declared they were Torres Strait Islander, and a
further 17,811 declared they were both Aboriginal andTorres Strait
Islanders.[7] After adjustments for undercount, the indigenous population
as of end June 2006 was estimated to be 517,200, representing about
2.5% of the population.[6]
Since the end of World War II, efforts have been made both by the
government and by the public to be more responsive to Aboriginal rights
and needs. Today, many tribal Aborigines lead a settled traditional life in
remote areas of northern, central, and western Australia. In the south,
where most Aborigines are of mixed descent, most live in the cities.
[edit]Australian Diaspora
Main article: Australian Diaspora
There is an estimated 1 million Australians (approx. 5% of the
population) residing outside Australia. Hundreds of thousands of young
Australians traditionally spend time living in Europe, especially in
the United Kingdom, but most return to Australia. The Trans-Tasman
Travel Arrangement facilitates open migration to and from New Zealand.
Key factors impacting upon the Australian Diaspora are rise of a global
labour market, more accessible and economical international transport,
and increasingly sophisticated communication technologies along with a
growing interest in broader global community.
[edit]Population

Main article: Demographics of Australia

The current Australian population is estimated at 22,599,000 (16
February 2011).[8] This does not include an estimated 1 million
Australians living overseas (see above), but it includes the estimated
24% of Australians born overseas (in various nations, but predominantly
the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Italy, China, Vietnam, India,
the Philippines, and Greece).[9]
[edit]Historical

The data in the table is sourced from the Australian Bureau of

Statistics[10][11] Note that population estimates in the table below do not
include the Aboriginal population before 1961. Estimates of Aboriginal
population prior to European settlement range from 300,000 to one
million, with archaeological finds indicating a sustainable population of
around 750,000.[12]
 %  %  %
Yea Populatio Yea Populatio Yea Populatio
Pre-Federation chang chang chang
r n r n r n
e e e
190 194 198 14,923,26
3,788,123 - 7,109,898 4.9 6.3
1 1 1 0
190 4,059,083 7.2 194 7,465,157 5.0 198 16,018,35 7.3
 6 6 6 0
Yea Populatio Yea Populatio
191 195 199 17,284,03
r n r n 4,489,545 10.6 8,421,775 12.8 12.8
1 1 1 6
191 195 199 18,310,71
4,943,173 10.1 9,425,563 11.9 5.9
6 6 6 4
178 184
859 332,328 192 196 10,548,26 200 19,413,24
8 8 5,455,136 10.4 11.9 6.0
1 1 7 1 0
192 196 11,599,49 200 20,848,76
6,056,360 11.0 10.0 7.4
179 185 6 6 8 6 0
4,588 1,050,828
8 8 193 197 13,067,26
6,526,485 7.8 12.7
1 1 5
 
193 197 14,033,08
180 186 6,778,372 3.4 7.4
10,263 1,539,552 6 6 3
8 8

181 187
25,859 2,092,164
8 8

182 188
58,197 2,981,677
8 8

183 189
151,868 3,664,715
8 8

[edit]Ancestry

For generations, the vast majority of both colonial-era settlers and post-
Federation immigrants came from the United Kingdom and Ireland,
although the gold rushes also drew migrants from other countries. Since
the end of World War II, Australia's population more than doubled,
spurred by large-scale European immigration during the immediate post-
war decades. At this time, the White Australia Policy discouraged non-
European immigration.
Abolition of the White Australia Policy in the mid-1970s led to a
significant increase in non-European immigration, mostly from Asia and
the Middle East. About 90% of Australia's population is
of European descent. Over 8% of the population is of Asian descent
(predominantly Chinese, Vietnamese, Filipino and Indian).[13] The total
indigenous population is estimated to be about 520,000 individuals,
including people of mixed descent.[6] The population of Queensland also
includes descendants of South Sea Islanders brought over
for indentured servitude in the 19th century.
In the 2006 Australian Census residents were asked to describe their
ancestry, in which up to two could be nominated. Proportionate to the
Australian resident population, the most commonly nominated ancestries
were:[13]
 Australian (37.13%)  Lebanese (0.92%)  Serbian (0.48%)
 English (31.65%)  Vietnamese (0.87%)  Māori (0.47%)
 Irish (9.08%)  Armenian (0.82%)  Spanish (0.42%)
 Scottish (7.56%)  New Zealander (0.81%)  Macedonian (0.42%)
 Italian (4.29%)  Filipino (0.81%)  South African (0.4%)
 German (4.09%)  Maltese (0.77%)  Sinhalese (0.37%)
 Chinese (3.37%)  Croatian (0.59%)  Hungarian (0.3%)
 Greek (1.84%)  Australian Aboriginal (0.58%)  Russian (0.3%)
 Dutch (1.56%)  Welsh (0.57%)  Turkish (0.3%)
 Indian (1.18%)  French (0.5%)  American (0.28%)

At the 2006 Census 455,026 people (or 2.3% of the total Australian
population) reported they were of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
origin.[7]
[edit]Languages

Main article: Languages of Australia

English, a West Germanic language, is the de facto national language of
Australia and is spoken by the majority of the population, regardless of
other languages spoken. The Australians speak Australian English,
however Australian Aboriginal English and Torres Strait English, along
with various creoles and pidgins, are spoken by the Indigenous
Australians. Australia is home to a great number of unique but
endangeredIndigenous Australian languages, as well as Australian
Aboriginal sign languages. Australia's hearing-impaired community
primarily uses Auslan, a member of the BANZSL language family.
The diverse backgrounds of Australians lead to a great number of
community languages being spoken:

Speaker Speaker
Language Speakers Language Language
s s

15,581,33 Indigenous Australian

English only 55,705 Samoan 28,525
3 languages

Italian 316,895 Korean 54,623 Portuguese 25,779

Greek 252,226 Turkish 53,857 Khmer 24,715

Cantonese Chinese 244,553 Polish 53,389 Assyrian 23,526

Arabic 243,662 Serbian 52,534 Punjabi 23,164

Mandarin Chinese 220,600 French 43,216 Persian 22,841

Vietnamese 194,863 Indonesian 42,036 Hungarian 21,565

Spanish 98,001 Maltese 36,514 Bengali 20,223

Filipino (Tagalog) 92,331 Russian 36,502 Urdu 19,288

German 75,634 Dutch 36,183 Afrikaans 16,806

Hindi 70,011 Japanese 35,111 Bosnian 15,743

Macedonian 67,835 Tamil 32,700

Croatian 63,612 Sinhalese 29,055

 Christianity (as % of total)
[edit]Religion Roman Catholicism 25.8%
Anglicanism 18.7%
Christianity 63.9% Islam 1.7% Main article: Religion in
Other
No religion 18.7%
Judais
0.4% Australia denomination
19.4%
m
No Australians have various Source: ABS [14]

11.2% Other 2%
response religions and spiritual
Buddhism 2.1% Source: ABS beliefs. The Australian Bureau of
[14]

Statistics gathers information on religious belief

[14]
in the national census.  As in many Western countries, the level of
active participation in church worship is lower than would be indicated by
the proportion of the population identifying themselves as Christian;
weekly attendance at church services is about 1.5 million, or about 7.5%
of the population.[15]

[edit]Nationality

Australians share Australian nationality, which is governed by Australian

nationality law. Since there is no national identification card, commonly
accepted proofs of Australian citizenship are the Australian passport, an
Australian birth certificate (prior to 1986, when jus soli was abolished), or
an Australian citizenship certificate. Australia permits dual
citizenship with no restriction.
[edit]