Regional Patterns
Religion: Australia is made up of a diverse group of religions. The majority of Australia's population practices Protestantism or Christianity. "The Cultural Atlas," states, "Nearly all of Australia’s Jewish community reside in Melbourne and Sydney (90%)...the first Muslims who settled in Australia in large numbers arrived in the 1860s as cameleers from South Asia...The majority of Australia’s Muslims are Sunni, followed by Shi’a...Hinduism was brought to Australia during the nineteenth century by small groups of Hindus who worked as farm hands, hawkers, and cameleers alongside Muslims and Sikhs...The Hindu community grew significantly during the 1970s...Today, Hinduism is the fastest growing religion in Australia, up from 0.7% in 2006 to 1.9% in 2016. Much of this growth is attributed to migration, with over half (62.9%) of those who identify as Hindu being born in India...During the 1970s, a large wave of Buddhist migrants came in the 1970s from Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, and Malaysia...Many of Australia’s Buddhists have heritage in Buddhist countries. For example, according to the 2016 census, 25.9% were born in Vietnam and 13.8% were born in China. However, there are also Anglo-Australian Buddhists as well as those who have migrated from other English-speaking Western countries" (Australian Culture).
The charts above display religions throughout Australia.
Language: There are many languages spoken throughout Australia, the most popular one being English. There are also many other languages spoken, such as the languages of the immigrants in Australia, and Aboriginal languages. Brittanica states, "Although English is not Australia’s official language, it is effectively the de facto national language and is almost universally spoken. Nevertheless, there are hundreds of Aboriginal languages, though many have become extinct since 1950, and most of the surviving languages have very few speakers. Mabuiag, spoken in the western Torres Strait Islands, and the Western Desert language have about 8,000 and 4,000 speakers, respectively, and about 50,000 Aboriginal people may still have some knowledge of an Australian language" (People of Australia). The chart to the right displays the languages spoken in homes of Australia.
Ethnicity: Australia consists of over 250 different ethnic groups. Brittanica states, "The ties to Britain and Ireland were scarcely affected by immigration from other sources until then... Although some nine-tenths of Australia’s population is of European ancestry, more than one-fifth is foreign-born, and there is a small but important (and growing) Aboriginal population" (People Of Australia). There are also many Asian immigrants in Australia. For example, there is a fairly large population of Chinese immigrants in Australia. Around the 1850s many Chinese people migrated to Australia in search of jobs. Italians also immigrate to Australia in pretty large numbers. Around the 1850s there was a huge number of Italian immigrants in Victoria due to the gold rush. Brittanica also states, "From the 1950s onward large numbers of Italians also migrated to northern Queensland where they were recruited to work on the sugar plantations" (People Of Australia).
The images to the right are examples of Chinese and Italian communities in Australia.
Centripetal Forces: A centripetal force is a force that unites a country. A few examples of centripetal forces in Australia are the national anthem, a shared language (English), common religions (Christianity and Protestantism), common ethnicities (English and Australian), a fair legal system, and a stable government.
The map to the left displays how prominent the English language is throughout Australia, making it a unifying force.
Centrifugal Forces: A centrifugal force is a force that that divides a country. A few examples of centrifugal forces in Australia are different religions, different cultures, different political opinions, and different ethnicities. Australia has a very diverse set of religions, ethnicities, and cultures, which causes a divide between people.
The chart to the left displays the diverse religions in Australia.