Italian community of Melbourne

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Italian community of Melbourne
Mark Bresciano.jpg
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Total population
(Italian
68,823 (by birth, 2011)[1]
279,112 (by ancestry, 2011)[1])
Languages
Religion
Predominantly Roman Catholic
Related ethnic groups
Italian American, part of Italian Australian, Italian Canadian, Italian Scottish, Italian Welsh, Mediterraneans

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The Italian community of Melbourne is the second largest ethnic group in Greater Melbourne, Australia, second to the Anglo-Celtic Australians ethnic group.[2] The 2011 Census counted that of the 185,402 residents that were born in Italy who live in Australia, 68,823 lived in Melbourne, which was the highest percentage of the country at 37.1%. The same could be said for the total Australian population of Italian ancestry, with 279,112 of the 916,121 (30.4%) listed as Melbournian residents, which is the highest Italian population in Australia and the Oceanic continent per city.[1]

One dot signifies an approximate area of Melbourne where 100 residents were born in Italy

History

Gold Rush Era

Inaugural records of the Italian community of Melbourne are debated as official records are obscured. It is known that the Victorian gold rush of the 1850s attracted thousands of Italians and Swiss Italians to Australia. The drain on the labour supply occasioned by the gold rush caused Australia to also seek workmen from Europe for land use and the development of cultivation. It is the approximate number of Italians who joined the Victorian gold mines is obscure, and until 1871 Italians did not receive a special place in any Australian census figures. By 1881, the first year of census figures on Italian migrants in all Australian states, not just in Victoria, there were 947 (0.10%) in Victoria, of whom one-third were in Melbourne.

The World Wars' Influence

Following Italy's involvement in world war I, many Italians particularly from the southern regions of Calabria and Sicily and descended into both, the south eastern and northern suburbs of Melbourne. Following World War II, Australia saw a huge influx of Italian migrants settling all through out Melbourne. The inner-suburbs of Brunswick and Carlton saw the highest population densities of Italian migration between the 1940's-60's. The higher concentration in Carlton saw the eventual establishment of Melbourne's current Little Italy, on Lygon Street, between the intersections of Elgin & Queensberry streets.

Post Global Financial Crisis

In the recent years, Australia has been witnessing a new wave of migration from Italy in numbers not seen in half a century, as thousands flee the economic hardship in Europe, with the Financial crisis of 2007–08 playing a large role, many Italians migrated from Italy to Australia in large numbers. The explosion of numbers saw more than 20,000 Italians arrive in Australia in 2012-13 on temporary visas, exceeding the number of Italians that arrived in 1950-51 during the previous migration boom following World War Two.[3] Melbourne is currently a sister city to Milan, Italy,[4] with the city's population consisting of 68,823 residents by birth, and 279,112 residents by heritage, as of 2011.[1]

Sport

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In Melbourne, there are numerous social and sports clubs founded by and/or have a strong Italian following, or have official Italian recognitions.

Association Football (Soccer) clubs

Club Founded Suburb League
Avondale FC 1984 Avondale Heights NPL
Box Hill United SC 1925 Box Hill NPL 1 East
Brimbank Stallions FC 1986 Sunshine VSL 4 West
Brunswick Zebras FC 1948 Brunswick VSL 3 North-West
Essendon Royals SC 1959 Essendon VSL 3 North-West
Fawkner SC 1965 Fawkner VSL 4 North
FC Bulleen Lions 1974 Bulleen NPL 1 East
Manningham United FC 1965 Templestowe VSL 1 North-West
Moreland Zebras FC 1948 Fawkner NPL 1 West
Werribee City FC 1969 Werribee NPL 1 West
Whittlesea Ranges FC 1971 Epping NPL 1 West

Australian Rules Football clubs

Club Founded Suburb League
Sandringham Football Club 1929 Sandringham VFL
Northern Saints Football Club 2007 Fawkner EDFL

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In June 2007 the Victorian Football League-Australian Football League announced a (VFL/AFL) Italian Team of the Century, in recognition of the role of Italian Australian players have had in the sport.[5] The vast majority of the official players were born &/or raised in Melbourne. These players consist of:

Player Position Club(s)
Alan Martello Half Forward Hawthorn (1970-1980)
Richmond (1981-1983)
Anthony Koutoufides Half Back Carlton (1992-2007)
Brendan Fevola Full Forward Carlton (1999-2009)
Brisbane Lions (2010)
Frank Curcio Full Back Fitzroy (1932-1948)
John Kennedy, Jr. Half Back Hawthorn (1979-1991)
Mark Mercuri Half Forward Essendon (1992-2004)
Len Incigneri Full Back South Melbourne (1903, 1905)
Richmond (1907-1911)
Melbourne (1913-1914)
Robert Di Pierdomenico Center Hawthorn (1975-1991)
Ron Barassi Coach
Full Forward
Melbourne (1953-1964)
Carlton (1965-1969)
Sav Rocca Forward Collingwood (1992-2000)
Kangaroos (1958-1971)
Sergio Silvagni Interchange
Center
Carlton (1985-2001)
Stephen Silvagni Full Back Carlton (1985-2001)
Steven Alessio Follower Essendon (1992-2003)
Tony Liberatore Interchange
Center
Western Bulldogs (1986-2002)

Notable people

For a full list of Italian Australians, see List of Italian Australians

The following list contains notable Italian Australians who were born and/or raised in Melbourne. The list is structured in alphabetical order by surname, and the resident's listed occupation is what he/she was known for. (Incomplete List)

See also

References