Swedish Australian
Encyclopedia
Swedish Australians are Australians with Swedish heritage, most often related to the large groups of immigrants from Sweden
in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. The 2006 census showed 30,375 who claimed Swedish ancestry. Most Swedish Australians are Lutherans affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church
.
King Gustaf III authorized the founding of a Swedish settlement in Western Australia in November 1786, but the outbreak of war with Russia the following year prevented this from taking place.
The first known Swedish arrivals settled in the Swan River area of Western Australia in 1831. More came with the gold rush in Australia and by 1871, there were a total of 885 Swedes in Victoria.
The first organised immigration from Sweden took place during the years 1871-1900, when Queensland and Tasmania invited immigrants to take up farming leases. Numbers were small compared to the hundreds of thousands of Swedes who emigrated to the USA. In more modern times, Australia's Swedish-descent population has been made up of farers.
New South Wales now has the largest Swedish community, followed by Victoria and Queensland. The total of Swedes in Australia has remained stable in recent years at about 7,000. Many take great delight in recreating some of the homeland's more obscure traditions, mostly centred on fish, edible crustaceans and the popular alcoholic beverage, Snaps.
The Swedish immigrants that arrived in recent decades settled mostly in the suburbs of Sydney
, Melbourne
and Brisbane
.
Swedish Australians usually came through Sydney
and a few of them actually settled in Brisbane
as well. Most were Lutheran
and belonged to synods now associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church
, including the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
, although a few others in the Queensland converted to Catholicism. Theologically, they were pietistic; politically, they supported progressive causes, and prohibition.
A Swedish-Australian fraternal organization, was founded to help immigrants, who often lacked an adequate network of social services.
Many others settled in Perth
in particular as well as Canberra
, Newcastle
and South Australia
. In the west, Perth became a destination for many skilled industrial workers and Swedish centers developed in these areas.
Christoffer Eriksson,
Per Thoresson,
Petter "The God Father" Carlweitz
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. The 2006 census showed 30,375 who claimed Swedish ancestry. Most Swedish Australians are Lutherans affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
.
History
A Swede may have been the first European to land in some spots on the Australian coast. Swedish botanist Daniel Solander and Britain's Sir Joseph Banks documented the flora and fauna of Australia on Captain James Cook's 1770 expedition to Australia.King Gustaf III authorized the founding of a Swedish settlement in Western Australia in November 1786, but the outbreak of war with Russia the following year prevented this from taking place.
The first known Swedish arrivals settled in the Swan River area of Western Australia in 1831. More came with the gold rush in Australia and by 1871, there were a total of 885 Swedes in Victoria.
The first organised immigration from Sweden took place during the years 1871-1900, when Queensland and Tasmania invited immigrants to take up farming leases. Numbers were small compared to the hundreds of thousands of Swedes who emigrated to the USA. In more modern times, Australia's Swedish-descent population has been made up of farers.
New South Wales now has the largest Swedish community, followed by Victoria and Queensland. The total of Swedes in Australia has remained stable in recent years at about 7,000. Many take great delight in recreating some of the homeland's more obscure traditions, mostly centred on fish, edible crustaceans and the popular alcoholic beverage, Snaps.
The Swedish immigrants that arrived in recent decades settled mostly in the suburbs of Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
.
Swedish Australians usually came through Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and a few of them actually settled in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
as well. Most were Lutheran
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
and belonged to synods now associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
, including the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church was a Lutheran church body in the United States that was one of the churches that merged into the Lutheran Church in America in 1962...
, although a few others in the Queensland converted to Catholicism. Theologically, they were pietistic; politically, they supported progressive causes, and prohibition.
A Swedish-Australian fraternal organization, was founded to help immigrants, who often lacked an adequate network of social services.
Many others settled in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
in particular as well as Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, Newcastle
Newcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
and South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. In the west, Perth became a destination for many skilled industrial workers and Swedish centers developed in these areas.
Swedish Australians by state
NSW:Christoffer Eriksson,
Per Thoresson,
Petter "The God Father" Carlweitz
List of famous Swedish Australians
- Daniel AmalmDaniel AmalmDaniel Amalm is an Australian actor and musician.-Early life:Daniel's mother is Maltese and his father is Swedish. Daniel's Father introduced Daniel to Guitar from an early age...
- Johan AndersonJohan Anderson----Johan Anderson is a former Australian tennis player.In 1988, Anderson won the boy's singles title at the Australian Open. He also partnered Todd Woodbridge to win the Australian Open and Roland Garros junior boys doubles in 1989...
- Elise ArcherElise ArcherElise Nicole Archer is an Australian lawyer and politician. She was born in Launceston and educated in Hobart, Tasmania at Fahan School and the University of Tasmania.She was elected to the Hobart City Council in October 2007....
- Mikael BorglundMikael BorglundMikael Borglund is a Swedish film producer in the successful Australian film and television series industry. He is also the managing director of Beyond International, Australia's leading television production and distribution companies.-References:...
- Anita HeghAnita HeghAnita Hegh is an Australian actor, known for starring as Ellen 'Mac' Mackenzie in the television seriesStingers.- Life :...
(Estonian of Swedish origin Mother) - Caroline JohanssonCaroline JohanssonCaroline Johansson is an Australian actress. Johansson is of Swedish descent. She is probably best known for her role of Donna Manning in Australian soap opera A Country Practice.-External links:...
- Jack LindwallJack LindwallJack Lindwall was an Australian rugby league footballer of the 1930s and 40s. He is also the older brother of Australian Cricket Hall of Fame inaugural inductee and fellow rugby league player, Ray Lindwall....
- Ray LindwallRay LindwallRaymond Russell Lindwall MBE was a cricketer who represented Australia in 61 Tests from 1946 to 1960. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time. He also played top-flight rugby league football with St...
- Kris MassieKris MassieKris Massie is an Australian rules footballer who played for Carlton and Adelaide in the Australian Football League....
(Australian rules footballer) - Dave NilssonDave NilssonDavid Wayne Nilsson is a retired Australian professional baseball player who played as catcher for Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewers from to . He was an All-Star in 1999, becoming the only Australian player to appear in an All-Star game...
- Kjell NilssonKjell NilssonKjell Nilsson is a Swedish olympic-class weight lifter and actor. His best known role is his 1981 portrayal of biker gang leader Lord Humungus in Mad Max 2.-Career:...
- George PetersenGeorge Petersen (Australian politician)Wilfred George Petersen was an Australian politician, affiliated with the Australian Labor Party and elected as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly....
- Kerryn PhelpsKerryn PhelpsKerryn Lyndel Phelps AM is an Australian medical practitioner and public commentator. She is current President of the Australasian Integrative Medicine Association and Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, School of Public Health at the University of Sydney...
- Peter PhelpsPeter PhelpsPeter Phelps is an Australian actor, singer and writer. He is notable for his role of Peter Church in the television drama, Stingers and Trevor Cole, in Baywatch...
- Charles RosenthalCharles RosenthalMajor General Sir Charles Rosenthal KCB, CMG, DSO, VD was an Australian Major General of World War I, and later a politician elected as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.- Early life :...
- Daniel SolanderDaniel SolanderDaniel Carlsson Solander or Daniel Charles Solander was a Swedish naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus. Solander was the first university educated scientist to set foot on Australian soil.-Biography:...
- Mai ZetterlingMai Zetterling-Early life:Zetterling was born in Västerås, Västmanland, Sweden to a working class family. She started her career as an actress by the age of seventeen at Dramaten, the Swedish national theater, and appeared in war-era film starting in her teens.-Career:...
- Lawrence Ranson
- Jan Arnebark
- Malikeh Michels-Greens politician-Auburn.Grandfather was a Swedish speaking Finn.
- Katarina Glarin
See also
- Australia–Sweden relationsAustralia–Sweden relationsAustralia–Sweden relations are foreign relations between Australia and Sweden. Australia has an embassy in Stockholm. Sweden has an embassy in Canberra as well as a Consulate-General in Sydney...
- Swedish AmericanSwedish AmericanSwedish Americans are Americans of Swedish descent, especially the descendants of about 1.2 million immigrants from Sweden during 1885-1915. Most were Lutherans who affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ; some were Methodists...
- Swedish-CanadianSwedish-CanadianThe term Swedish Kanuck refers to a naturalized Canadian citizen hailing from Sweden or professing Swedish descent. The 'Swedish-Canadian' community in Canada is 330,000 strong. The vast majority of them reside west of Lake Superior, primarily in Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. Toronto...
- Swedish people