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Immigration History from Croatia to Victoria

The first group of Croatian immigrants came to Victoria after the discovery of gold in 1851. After working on the goldfields with varying degrees of success, some became seamen, labourers, vignerons and caterers. Around one third eventually settled in Melbourne, and by 1890 there were over 450 Croatians living in Victoria.

During the 1920s, Croatians settled in Mildura and worked in the fruit growing industry. Mildura was soon known as ‘little Medjimurjie’, named after an agricultural region of Croatia where many of the workers had been born. Croatians were also amongst the large numbers of Displaced Persons who arrived following World War II. Older settlers provided these newcomers with a great deal of social and organisational support.

A substantial number of Croatian immigrants came to Victoria in the 1960s and 1970s due to high unemployment, deteriorating economic conditions and anti-Croatian sentiment in Yugoslavia. Immigrants who settled here throughout the following decade primarily arrived under family reunion programs.

A number of Croatian refugees came to Victoria during the 1990s, escaping ethnic conflict in Yugoslavia. Victoria’s Croatian community subsequently took part in celebrations when Croatian independence was recognised in 1992, and when Croatia became a member of the United Nations during that same year.

In 2016, the census recorded 15,489 Croatia-born people in Victoria. Living predominantly in Melbourne and Geelong, most members of this community are Catholic; a large proportion speaks Croatian at home. Many are employed as tradespeople and related workers within the manufacturing and construction industries. Supporting the cultural traditions of the Croatian community in Victoria today, are a range of organisations including the Australian Croatian Association in Footscray.

Immigration History from Croatia (Croatian) to Victoria

Prva skupina hrvatskih doseljenika stigla je u Viktoriju kada je otkriveno zlato 1851. godine. Nakon što su se okušali radeći na nalazištima zlata, s manje ili više uspjeha, neki od njih su postali pomorci, fizički radnici, vinogradari i ugostitelji. Više od jedne trećine ih se nastanilo u Melbourneu, a do 1890. u Viktoriji je živjelo više od 450 Hrvata.

Tijekom 1920tih Hrvati su se naselili u Milduri, gdje su radili u voćarskoj industriji. Mildura je uskoro postala poznata kao “malo Međimurje”, prema poljoprivrednoj regiji Hrvatske iz koje su mnogi od radnika bili rodom. Hrvata je bilo i među velikim brojem raseljenih osoba pristiglih nakon II. svjetskog rata. Stariji doseljenici pružili su novodošlima veliku društvenu i organizacijsku potporu.

Znatan broj hrvatskih doseljenika stigao je u Viktoriju 1960tih i1970tih godina uslijed visoke nezaposlenosti, sve težih ekonomski uvjeta, te protuhrvatskog raspoloženja u Jugoslaviji. Doseljenici koji su se ovdje naselili tijekom slijedećeg desetljeća uglavnom su stizali putem programa obiteljskog ujedinjenja.

Jedan broj hrvatskih izbjeglica stigao je u Viktoriju za vrijeme 1990tih bježeći pred etničkim sukobima u Jugoslaviji. Nedugo zatim, Hrvatska zajednica Viktorije pridružila se proslavama povodom priznavanja nezavisnosti Hrvatske 1992., te njenog učlanjenja u Ujedinjene narode iste godine.

U popisu stanovništva 2011. godine u Viktoriji je registrirano 17.247 osoba rođenih u Hrvatskoj. Većina članova ove zajednice su katolici, pretežno žive u Melbourneu i Geelongu, i veliki ih dio kod kuće govori hrvatski. Mnogi su zaposleni kao obrtnici, te u srodnim zanimanjima u proizvodnji i građevinarstvu. Danas, u održavanju kulturnog nasljeđa hrvatske zajednice u Viktoriji, sudjeluje čitav niz organizacija, što uključuje i Australsko-hrvatsku udrugu u Footscrayu.

Notes

• Croatia, Slovenia and Macedonia (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) seceded from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1991.

• Bosnia-Herzegovina seceded in 1992.

• Serbia and Montenegro remained part of the Yugoslav Federation and established the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1992.

• The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia changed its name to Serbia and Montenegro in 2003.