Maltese Australian
Encyclopedia
Maltese Australians are residents or citizens of Australia
who are of Maltese
ancestry or Maltese
citizens. While most of them emigrated to Australia
from Malta
, a number emigrated from the United Kingdom
where they had settled after having been expelled from Egypt
, as holders of British passports, during the Suez Crisis
.
who arrived in 1838. Many attempts were made at organised mass migration throughout the 19th century but it was only in 1883 the first group of 70 laboureres (and nine stowaways) arrived.
Group and mass migration gradually picked up, first, to Queensland
and, after World War I
, to Sydney
whose automobile industry drew many. Immigration was not without difficulty as Maltese workers tended to be looked down upon and restrictions and quotas were applied. A significant percentage of the Maltese immigrants had intended to stay only temporarily for work but many settled in Australia permanently. Maltese immigration to Australia reached its peak during the 1960s. The majority of Maltese immigrants reside in Melbourne's western suburbs of Sunshine
(especially on Glengala Rd) and St Albans, and in Sydney's western suburbs of Greystanes
and Horsley Park
. The Maltese, as in their home country, are predominately Roman Catholic.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
who are of Maltese
Maltese people
The Maltese are an ethnic group indigenous to the Southern European nation of Malta, and identified with the Maltese language. Malta is an island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea...
ancestry or Maltese
Maltese people
The Maltese are an ethnic group indigenous to the Southern European nation of Malta, and identified with the Maltese language. Malta is an island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea...
citizens. While most of them emigrated to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
from Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, a number emigrated from the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
where they had settled after having been expelled from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, as holders of British passports, during the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
.
History
The first Maltese arrivals to Australia were convicts who arrived around 1810. The first Maltese immigrant (as opposed to convict or bonded servant) is thought to have been Antonio AzzopardiAntonio Azzopardi
Antonio Azzopardi was the first Maltese free settler in AustraliaHe was born in Zejtun, Malta to Angelo Azzopardi and Euphemia Cachia and emigrated to Victoria on board the Mary Hay in 1839. He was a seaman for the first few years after his arrival...
who arrived in 1838. Many attempts were made at organised mass migration throughout the 19th century but it was only in 1883 the first group of 70 laboureres (and nine stowaways) arrived.
Group and mass migration gradually picked up, first, to Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
and, after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
whose automobile industry drew many. Immigration was not without difficulty as Maltese workers tended to be looked down upon and restrictions and quotas were applied. A significant percentage of the Maltese immigrants had intended to stay only temporarily for work but many settled in Australia permanently. Maltese immigration to Australia reached its peak during the 1960s. The majority of Maltese immigrants reside in Melbourne's western suburbs of Sunshine
Sunshine, Victoria
Sunshine is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia lying 11 to 13 km west of the CBD. Its Local Government Area is the City of Brimbank. At the 2006 Census, Sunshine had a population of 8,070.-History:...
(especially on Glengala Rd) and St Albans, and in Sydney's western suburbs of Greystanes
Greystanes, New South Wales
Greystanes is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Greystanes is located 29 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Holroyd.-History:...
and Horsley Park
Horsley Park, New South Wales
Horsley Park is a suburb of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Horsley Park is located 39 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Fairfield. Horsley Park is part of the Greater Western Sydney region...
. The Maltese, as in their home country, are predominately Roman Catholic.
Demographics
According to the 2006 Australian Census, 43,701 Australians were born in Malta. Maltese ancestry was claimed by 92,332 either alone or with another ancestry. The 2001 Australian Census reported that Maltese was the 14th most common self-reported ancestry.Notable individuals
- Jayden AttardJayden AttardJayden Attard was an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League. He is of Maltese descent.He was recruited as the number 50 draft pick in the 2004 AFL Draft from Chelsea and Dandenong Stingrays. He made his debut for Brisbane in Round 4, 2005 against Hawthorn.Attard was delisted...
- Monica AttardMonica AttardMonica Ann Attard OAM is an award-winning Australian journalist. She is of Maltese descent.-Education:Attard was educated at Bethlehem College in Sydney. She attended Sydney University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts...
- Nicky BombaNicky BombaNicholas Caruana aka Nicky Bomba is an Australian musician and singer. He is the frontman of his band Bomba as well as the drummer and percussionist of John Butler Trio and has also performed with several other artists. He is also a solo artist.-Biography:Bomba's family migrated to Australia late...
- Joe CamilleriJoe CamilleriJoseph Vincent "Joe" Camilleri, aka Jo Jo Zep or Joey Vincent, is an Australian vocalist, songwriter and saxophonist. Camilleri has recorded as a solo artist and as a member of Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons and The Black Sorrows...
- Terry CamilleriTerry CamilleriTerry Camilleri is an Australian actor.Camilleri was born in Malta and made his feature film debut in Peter Weir's 1974 film The Cars That Ate Paris. Terry appreaed in the 1983 hit sequel film Superman III. He portrayed the Emperor Napoleon I in the 1989 film Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure...
- Jeff FenechJeff FenechJeff Fenech is a retired Australian boxer and a three-time world champion who is now a boxing trainer.-Boxing career:...
- Mario FenechMario FenechMario Fenech is a Maltese-Australian rugby league personality. He is a former player of the game for New South Wales, and is a regular guest on The Footy Show. His favoured position was as Hooker, where he represented NSW. In his later career he became a Prop-forward...
- Paul FenechPaul FenechPaul Fenech is a film maker, television and film actor and writer from Sydney, Australia, best known for his role in Pizza and Swift and Shift Couriers .-Career:...
- Ben GaleaBen GaleaBen Galea is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for Hull Kingston Rovers in the European Super League. He previously played for the Balmain Tigers and Wests Tigers...
- Mark Mallia
- Shaun MicallefShaun MicallefShaun Patrick Micallef is an Australian actor, comedian and writer. After ten years of working in insurance law as a solicitor in Adelaide, Micallef moved to Melbourne to pursue a full-time comedy career in 1993...
- Kevin MuscatKevin MuscatKevin Muscat is an Australian football player who currently plays for Victorian State League Division 1 side Sunshine George Cross and is assistant coach of Melbourne Victory...
- Shane ShackletonShane ShackletonShane Shackleton is an Australian professional rugby league player in the National Rugby League . He currently plays for the Parramatta Eels and previously played for the Sydney Roosters from 2005–2009. His position of choice is at second row....
- Jason SinghJason SinghJason Singh was the lead singer of the Australian band Taxiride. Born in Melbourne, Australia, to his Fiji Indian father and his mother of Maltese origin, he was actively playing in the live scene at Melbourne for several years, before auditioning and joining the new outfit Taxiride which came to...
- Sister2SisterSister2SisterSister2Sister are multi-platinum selling Australian singers, songwriters and television presenters, who are sisters.-Background:The Muscat sisters, Christine and Sharon , are the duo that make up Sister2Sister. Their career started young when they grew up in the Sydney suburb of St...
- Gerald Strickland, 1st Baron StricklandGerald Strickland, 1st Baron StricklandGerald Strickland, 1st Baron Strickland, 6th Count of Catena, GCMG was a Maltese and British politician and peer, who served as Prime Minister of Malta, Governor of the Leeward Islands, Governor of Tasmania, Governor of Western Australia and Governor of New South Wales.-Early...
- Melissa TkautzMelissa TkautzMelissa Natalie Tkautz is an Australian-Maltese actress, singer, songwriter and model of Austrian and Maltese heritage. Tkautz was married on Friday 6 February 2009 to her partner of 5 years, Kwesi Nicholas.- Early career :...
- Kym ValentineKym ValentineKym Valentine is a Maltese Australian actress best known for her portrayal of Libby Kennedy in the soap opera Neighbours.-Early and personal life:...
- Adam Vella (sport shooter)
- Adam Vella (boxer)Adam Vella (boxer)Adam Vella is a middleweight boxer from Sydney, Australia. His professional record is 19 wins , 2 losses and no draws. Vella is of Maltese descent and his father is Alex Vella, the national president of the notorious Rebels motorcycle gang.-References:...
- Alex VellaAlex VellaAlessio Emmanuel "Alex" Vella , or The Maltese Falcon, is a Maltese-Australian businessman, former boxer and National President of the Rebels Motorcycle Club. Despite having lived in Australia since the 1960s, he is not a citizen of the country...
- Michael VellaMichael VellaMichael Vella is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently captains English Super League club Hull Kingston Rovers. A New South Wales State of Origin and Australian international representative forward, he previously played in the NRL for the Parramatta Eels club...
- Adrian ZahraAdrian ZahraAdrian Zahra is an Australian football player who plays for Melbourne Heart in the A-League. He started his senior career with Melbourne Knights in the Victorian Premier League, before signing with the Heart in 2010 – one of many Heart players to come through the Victorian leagues up to the top...
- Christian ZahraChristian ZahraChristian John Zahra , Australian politician, was an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives from October 1998 to October 2004, representing the seat of McMillan, Victoria. He was born in Malta, and was educated at La Trobe University...
- Natalie Zahra
- Jarrod SammutJarrod SammutJarrod Sammut is an Australian born Maltese rugby league player who plays for Bradford Bulls in the Super League. He previously played for the Penrith Panthers in the National Rugby League...