Community

The Spanish-Speaking Community in Australia 
 

Arrival

Some researchers claim it was a Spanish explorer who gave Australia its name.The explorer was Pedro Fernandez de Quiros who claimed the landmass of Austrialia del Espiritu Santo for Spain in 1606.


Official Australian history, however, only recognises Captain Cook's possession of Terra Australis, or the Great South Land, in 1770.


Official records also note the first Spanish immigrant arrived in Sydney in 1821 and by 1891 the population had grown to about 500.


Settlement


The 1950s saw real growth in the Spanish migrant population under an assisted program. The program reached its peak in the early 1960s and since the 1970s the population of migrants from Spain has remained stable. The 1996 Australian census put the figure for this group at just over 9,000.


However, from the 1970s on an influx of people from Central and South America has boosted Australia's Spanish-speaking population to more than 90,000, according to the last census.


Enduring evidence of the Spanish contribution to Australia is the religious settlement of New Norcia in Western Australia. Founded by a Spanish Benedictine monk, the monastery, still operating today, was set up on land north of Perth.


Another important milestone for the Spanish-speaking community was the establishment of Sydney's Spanish Club in 1962.


Australia's Spanish-speaking community is now made up of people from many Latin American countries and Spain. Some people from the Philippines also speak Spanish.


The establishment of clubs catering for different sections of the Spanish community has been fundamental to successful settlement. And so has the media. At present four weekly Spanish language newspapers are published in Sydney and are distributed nationally.


Spanish is a popular language choice for senior students at New South Wales, Victoria and ACT high schools and many universities have well-established Spanish language schools. There are also academic cooperation agreements in place.


The Australian government has a close relationship with several Spanish-speaking countries and some have developed bilateral agreements.