According to the 2016 Australian census, 85,000 people reported their Russian roots. According to unofficial data, more than 100 thousand Russian-speaking people live in Australia. These are immigrants from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan.
The vast majority lives in the largest Australian cities – Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. There are many Russian-speaking people in Perth, Adelaide and Canberra.
Here is some unofficial data:
- Sydney – 20,000
- Melbourne – 20,000
- Brisbane – 15,000-20,000
- Adelaide – 10,000-15,000.
The first immigrant from the Russian Empire, John Pototsky, arrived in Australia in 1804. The British authorities sentenced him to hard labour and sent him to Tasmania. He was subsequently pardoned and lived in Hobart.
The contemporary Russian-speaking community in Australia can be characterised by three large groups.
- The oldest are those who moved from the newly formed USSR through Chinese Harbin and after the Second World War. They laid the foundation for the first “Russian districts”, for example, Bondi in Sydney or Balaclava and St Kilda districts.
- The second wave – those who moved in the mid-90s-2000s by professional immigration, who have already settled throughout Australia.
- The third is mainly students who have come to study over the past 3-5 years. They quickly integrated into the Australian community.
These groups have their own preferences. The older generation likes to gather in clubs, students, prefer communication through social networks. Despite this, “Russian events” are held annually in large cities, for example, the Russian Maslenitsa, which gathers hundreds of people. Barbecues, fishing trips or camping trips are often held.
Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have Russian shops, Russian and Eastern European restaurants. In Australia, Russians provide services in the field of real estate, legal services and transportation, and Russian girls are perhaps the best hairdressers and makeup artists in Australia.
For legal advice and registration of official Russian documents, you should contact the Embassy in Canberra or the Consulate General in Sydney, which periodically conducts field sessions in Australian cities.
The most popular resources in Australia are Facebook groups:
- Australia
- Australia News and Tips
- Russians in Australia – Communication without Borders
- Property search: Real Estate Savvy (ENG)
- There is also a useful group for moms: Babies: Russian Moms in Australia
- Group of the news newspaper “Edinenie”.
In addition, there are many more Facebook groups in cities and towns in Australia.
Australian media company SBS has a Russian page on its news website.
Our dream is a large and friendly Russian-speaking community with representative offices in all large and medium-sized cities in Australia for communication, exchange of experience of moving and assimilation in Australia.
We hope this article is helpful to you!
