Western Australia 4,397 New South Wales 2,764 | Victoria 2,850 Queensland 2,062 | |
Kenyan Australians are Australian citizens and residents of Kenyan origin and descent. They may be of indigenous African, European, or Indian heritage.
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Background
Uncertainties about the future of colonial-run Kenya prompted many Kenyan-born settlers of both European and Indian backgrounds to migrate to other countries, including Australia. There are also many Swahili-speaking Kenyans of indigenous African ancestry. The majority of such migrants had no difficulty getting work and settling into the Australian community.
The majority of Kenyan Australians are skilled and educated, with 72.5% of the Kenyan-born aged 15 years and over possessing higher non-school qualifications, compared to 55.9% of the Australian population.
Population
The 2011 Census noted there are 13,832 Kenya-born people in Australia. About one in five Australians who claim Kenyan ancestry live in Sydney.
Languages
The languages most commonly spoken at home by Kenyan-born Australians are English and Swahili, however Gujurati, Dinka and other languages are not uncommon. Kikuyu is a Kenyan language spoken by over one hundred Australians at home, and Luo is also spoken by about one hundred Australians.
About 5,000 Kenyan-born Australians speak a language indigenous to Africa at home. Some of the over 10,700 Australian-born who speak an African language may also speak a language of Kenya.
The 74 languages the Special Broadcasting Service broadcasts in includes Swahili and Dinka, both languages spoken by many Kenyan-born Australians.