Croatian Australian

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Croatia has been a source of migrants to Australia, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. In 2006 118,046 persons resident in Australia (0.6%) identified themselves as having Croatian ancestry.

[edit] History

Croats were first noticeable in Australia during the gold rushes of the 1850s in Victoria. At this time Croats were coded as "Austrians" because most of Croatia was a part of the Habsburg Empire. By Australian federation in 1901 there were many Croats - mainly from Dalmatia — in Australia, counted with Czechs, Hungarians, Serbs, Slovaks and others as "Austro-Hungarians". The establishment of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from Austria-Hungary after the First World War — and its replacement Yugoslavia in 1945 — continued to make it difficult to separate out Croats from other ethnicities in Australia. Croats were not recorded separately until the 1996 Census. The Australian Department of Immigration believes many Croats holding old (and now long out of date) Yugoslav passports still record themselves as Yugoslavs in Australian censuses, over a decade after the disintegration of Yugoslavia.

Nevertheless, it is known that Croats formed a large proportion of those Yugoslavs who settled in Australia the 1960s and 1970s under Australian Government migration schemes. The Yugoslavia-born population reached 129,616 by the 1971 Census and 160,479 by the 1991 Census. The greatest number settled in Sydney and Melbourne, though Croats are well represented in every Australian city and region.

In November 1977, an unofficial Croatian embassy was opened in Canberra, causing a legal and diplomatic difficulty for both the Australian and Yugoslav governments. The embassy, aimed at raising awareness of Croatia as a nation and the Croatian people separate from Yugoslavia, remained open for a period of 23 months before closing in 1979. Since the independence of Croatia in the 1990s, an embassy has been opened in Canberra and consulates have been opened in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth.

[edit] Demographics

At the 2006 Census 50,995 persons resident in Australia identified themselves as having been born in Croatia, representing about 0.25% of the Australian population. The Census also noted 118,046 persons identified themselves as having Croatian an ancestry (either alone or in combination with one other ancestry) ^[1].

Croatian Australians are more likely to be resident in Victoria than any other state. 36.6% of Croats live in Victoria (where only 24.7% of the total Australian population reside). A further 35.5% of Croatian Australians reside in New South Wales.

According to census data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2004, Croatian Australians are, by religion, 85.6%Catholic, 0.9% Anglican, 4.5% Other Christian, 1.4% claiming other Religions, and 7.6% claiming no religious affiliation.

In 2001, the Croatian language was spoken at home by 69,900 persons in Australia. Croatian is the tenth most widely spoken language in the country after English, the Chinese languages, Italian, Greek, Arabic, Vietnamese, Spanish, Tagalog, German, and Macedonian.

Croatian Australians have an exceptionally low rate of return migration to Croatia. In December 2001, the Department of Foreign Affairs estimated that there were 1,000 Australian citizens resident in Croatia.

[edit] Notable Croatian Australians

Croats in Australia and their Croatian Australian offspring are notable for their commitment to association football, with numerous clubs established throughout the country (for example, Sydney Croatia and Melbourne Croatia). These clubs nurtured the footballing talents of a large number of Croatian Australians, many of whom now play professionally overseas, including some with the Croatian national team and are also very well represented in the Australian national team. In the 2006 World Cup, there were seven Croats playing for Australia and three Australians playing for Croatia — all were Croatian-Australians. Another highly notable Croatian Australian athlete is basketball player Andrew Bogut, the son of Croatian immigrants who was the top overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks.

Other notable Croatian Australians include:

• Eric Bana - actor
• Mark Bosnich - football (soccer) player, Australia
• Jim Bosnjak - Former owner of Westbus, the biggest bus company in Australia.
• Mark Bresciano - football (soccer) player, Palermo and Australia (Croatian mother)
• Ivan Cleary Rugby league coach and former player
• Ante Čović- football (soccer) player
• Jason Čulina- football (soccer) player
• Ante Dabro - sculptor
• Alan Didak - Australian rules footballer
• Charmaine Dragun - journalist
• Damien Gaspar - Australian rules footballer
• Darren Gaspar - Australian rules footballer
• Brent Grgić - Australian rules footballer
• Allen Jakovich - Australian rules footballer
• Glen Jakovich - Australian rules footballer
• Zeljko Kalac- football (soccer) player
• Simon Katich - Australian Cricket representative
• Robert Luketić - director
• Dean Lukin - Olympic weight lifting gold medalist.
• Ivan Milat - Serial killer responsible for the 7 backpacker murders
• Len Pascoe - Australian Cricket representative
• Mathew Pavlich - Australian rules footballer
• Tony Popović- football (soccer) player
• Jaye Radisich - politician, WA
• Ljiljanna Ravlich - politician, WA
• Steven Salopek- Australian rules footballer
• Tony Santic - Millionaire tuna fisherman, horsebreeder and owner of Makybe Diva
• Ralph Sarich - Inventor of the revolutionary Orbital Engine.
• Josip Skoko-football (soccer) player
• Josip Šimunić - football (soccer) player, Hertha Berlin and Croatia
• Anthony Šerić- football (soccer) player
• Natasha Stott Despoja - federal politician
• Bernard Tomić - Tennis Player
• Mark Viduka - football (soccer) player, Newcastle and Australia
• David Zdrilić- football (soccer) player
• Ned Zelić - football (soccer) player, Newcastle United Jets and Australia

[edit] Links

http://www.cronet.com.au/ - Australian Croatian community portal

[edit] References

1. ^ [Australian Bureau of Statistics http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/2006Census3.nsf/log?openagent&20050%2DXCP%2DAustralia%2Ezip&20010&Main%20Features&A0BA960A2619DC7BCA25734D00805D7A&0&2006&28%2E11%2E2007&Latest]

[edit] Further reading

• Colic-Peisker, Val.(2000) Croatian and Bosnian migration to Australia in the 1990s. Studies in Western Australian history, No.21, (Being Australian women), p.117-136.
• Colic-Peisker, Val.(2004) Split lives : Croatian Australian stories North Fremantle, W. Aust. : Fremantle Arts Centre Press. ISBN 1920731083