South African Australians

South African Australians (Afrikaans: Suid-Afrikaanse Australiërs) are citizens or residents of Australia who are of South African descent.

New South Wales39,548

Queensland35,226

Western Australia33,310

Victoria26,082

Quick facts Suid-Afrikaanse Australiërs, Total population ...

South African Australians

Suid-Afrikaanse Australiërs
South Africa (green) and Australia (orange)
Total population
144,666 (by ancestry, 2021)[1] (0.6% of the Australian population)[1] 214,790 (by birth, 2022)[2]
Regions with significant populations
New South Wales	39,548
Queensland	35,226
Western Australia	33,310
Victoria	26,082
South Australia	6,288
Languages
South African English, Australian English, Afrikaans and other South African languages
Religion
Majority: Reformed Christianity Minority: Anglicanism, other Protestantism, Catholicism, Judaism, Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
Afrikaners Dutch Australians South African New Zealanders White South Africans Zulu people

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According to the 2021 Australian census, 189,207 Australian residents were born in South Africa, making up 0.7% of the country's population. In addition, 144,666 people born in Australia claim South African ancestry, making up 0.6% of the total population. A strong majority of South African Australians are Australian citizens, with 76% possessing Australian citizenship. In the same 2021 census, 144,666 Australian residents claimed "South African" ancestry while another 6,153 stated their ancestry as "Afrikaner" and 501 as "Zulu".^[7]

Immigration from South Africa to Australia consists overwhelmingly of people with white ancestry (including many Jews), particularly professionals, and had accelerated during the 1990s following the end of apartheid. More than half of all South African Australians arrived after the 1994 general election, which saw the victory of Nelson Mandela's African National Congress (ANC).^[8] A behaviour stigmatised by white South Africans who remained in their homeland as "Packing for Perth" ("PFP") was also a humorous dig and reference to supporters of the Progressive Federal Party – a political party formed in 1977 that drew support mainly from liberal English-speaking whites.^[9] As per 2021 census, 60% of Australians who are born in South Africa, claimed English, Dutch, German and Scottish ancestry, while only 40% claimed "South African" as an ancestry.