| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 100,000+ (Membership, 2017)[1] 36,532 (by country of birth, 2011)[2] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Sydney,Melbourne,Perth,Canberra,Adelaide,Newcastle,Brisbane | |
| Languages | |
| Australian English,Egyptian Arabic,Coptic,Nobiin,Sa'idi Arabic | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity (Majority)Islam,Baháʼí,Judaism (Minority). | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Egyptians,Copts,Coptic AustraliansEgyptian diaspora,Arab Australians,Egyptian Americans,Egyptian Canadians |
Egyptian Australians (Arabic:مصريون أستراليون) areAustralian citizens and Australian permanent residents ofEgyptian descent. According to the Australian 2011 Census, 36,532 Australian citizens and permanent residents declared that they were born inEgypt,[2] while based on the 2006 Census, at least an additional 31,786 declared that they were of full or partial Egyptian ancestry and born in a country other than Egypt (including most numerously Australian-born persons of full or partial Egyptian ancestry).[3] The 2021 Census shows that the majority of Egypt-born Australians are located inSydney (19,680) andMelbourne (13,312).[4][5]
The majority of Egyptian Australians areChristians, which is in contrast to the religious affiliation toIslam of the majority of the population of ethnic Egyptians within modern Egypt. Some 19,928 Australian citizens and residents declared membership of theCoptic Orthodox Church at the 2006 Census.[6] Most Egyptian Christians, however, may simply have declared themselves "Christian" without specifying the Coptic denomination, while other Egyptian Christians may belong to various other denominations, either born into or converted. In 2003, however, it was claimed in theNew South Wales Parliament that there were in fact 70,000 Copts in New South Wales alone.[7] An additional 1,890 persons in the 2006 Census reported themselves as being of "Coptic" ancestry. The term Coptic ordinarily refers to adherents of Coptic Christianity, but when used as a term referring to ethnicity means "Egyptian" (almost always in the context of Coptic Christian Egyptians). The 1,890 persons who described their ancestry as "Coptic" are thus most likely Egyptian Australians.[3] Copt as anethnonym is etymologically derived from theGreek "Aiguptious," literally meaning "Egyptian," from theLate Egyptian word "Gyptios", via theClassical Arabic "Qubt", into the English "Copt". The word ordinarily refers to Coptic Christian Egyptians, though there have been instances of Muslim Egyptians referring to themselves as "Copts" to emphasise the non-Arabian ancestral origin of Egyptians in general.
First history of short term Egyptians migrants in Australia dates back to 1860s to 1900 period when small groups of mainly Muslimcameleers were shipped in and out of Australia at three-year intervals, to serviceSouth Australia's inland pastoral industry by carting goods and transportingwool bales bycamel trains, who were commonly referred to as "Afghans" or "Ghans", despite their origin often being mainly fromBritish India, and some even fromAfghanistan andEgypt andTurkey.[8][9]: 88
Permanent emigration from Egypt began in the late 1940s and 1950s, disproportionately so for non-ethnicEgyptian minorities escaping the growing Arab nationalist movement in Egypt which saw the overthrow of the Egyptian monarchy and the subsequentSuez Crisis.[10]
In total numbers,Egyptian Christians were the largest contingent of emigrants to leave Egypt for other countries, including to Australia. Christians were the second largest in terms of proportion to their original community size in Egypt.Egyptian Jews, as a proportion of their original community size in Egypt, were thelargest emigrant community to leave Egypt (they were the second largest in total numbers). The number of Jews in Egypt numbered around 75,000 in 1948; following the establishment of the State of Israel that same year, most of the population left, startingthe Jewish exodus from Arab lands, and settling largely in Israel, USA, Europe, Latin America, with around 2,000 settling in Australia.[11] The Egyptian Jewish population in Australia is concentrated particularly inAdelaide,South Australia.[12] Officially, only 6 Jews remain in Egypt today.[13]
| Religious group | 2021[14][a] | 2016[15][b] | 2011[16][c] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
| Coptic Orthodox | 16,259 | 37.63% | 15,208 | 38.23% | 13,213 | 36.17% |
| Catholic | 6,197 | 14.34% | 7,128 | 17.92% | 7,984 | 21.85% |
| Eastern Orthodox | 3,833 | 8.87% | 4,274 | 10.74% | 5,392 | 14.76% |
| Non-denominational Christian | 5,384 | 12.46% | 1,509 | 3.79% | 4,243 | 11.61% |
| (Total Christian) | 31,673 | 73.3% | 28,119 | 70.69% | 30,832 | 84.4% |
| Islam | 9,711 | 22.47% | 6,192 | 15.57% | 4,715 | 12.91% |
| Irreligion | 1,829 | 4.23% | 5,469 | 13.75% | 985 | 2.7% |
| Total Egyptian Australian population | 43,213 | 100% | 39,780 | 100% | 36,532 | 100% |
