Afghan Australians

Although Afghans without camels are reported to have reached Australia as early as 1838,[1] in the latter part of the 19th century several thousand men from Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Kashmir, Sind, Rajasthan, Egypt, Persia, Turkey, and Punjab, but collectively known as "Afghans", were recruited during initial British development of the outback, especially for the operation of camel trains in desert areas. The first Afghan cameleers arrived in Melbourne in June 1860, when three men arrived with a shipment of 24 camels for the Burke and Wills expedition.[2][3] They continued to work in the arid interior of the continent from the 1860s to the 1930s, until finally being superseded by the development of railways and motorised road transport. The Afghans played an important supportive role in the exploration and economic development of the interior through carting water, food and materials to remote pastoral stations and mining settlements, as well as for the construction of the Overland Telegraph, and the Port Augusta to Alice Springs railway.[2] They also had an important role in establishing the Muslim faith in Australia.

During the 1980s Soviet–Afghan War and the Afghanistan civil wars of the 1990s (1989–1992, 1992–1996, and 1996–2001), over 7,000 Afghans arrived in Australia.

In Sydney, the largest portion of Afghan Australians reside in the LGAs of City of Ryde (North Ryde, Macquarie Park, Marsfield, and Top Ryde), The Hills Shire (Castle Hill, Cherrybrook, and Kellyville), Blacktown (Glenwood, Parklea, Stanhope Gardens and Bella Vista) and Sutherland Shire (Miranda). Ethnic Hazaras are believed to reside in suburbs such as Auburn and Merrylands.

In Sydney there are several mosques at which Afghans gather, one located in North Ryde and another located in Auburn. The largest and most significant mosque is located in Blacktown, where the new mosque was inaugurated on 3 May 2014,[8] after being reconstructed on the site of the old mosque. Across the road from the mosque is a cultural centre that hosts ceremonies such as wakes, community elections, awards etc. Custodianship of both properties belongs to the Afghan Community Support Association, the largest association representing Afghans in Australia.[9]

There are two Saturday schools for Afghan Australian youths:

• Esteqlal Afghan Saturday School located at Castle Hill Library
• Top Ryde Persian Saturday School located at Ryde Public School

In Melbourne the majority of Afghans live in Greater Dandenong and Casey. The recent arrival of Afghan asylum seekers by boat has changed the demography of the Afghan Australian community in a significant way. Once only a tiny minority, Hazaras are now more common among the Afghan Australian community in all major cities and small country towns such as Shepparton, Mildura and Swan Hill in Victoria and Griffith in NSW.

Smaller communities of Afghans are also found in Brisbane and Perth. Australian residents at the time of the 2006 Census who were born in Afghanistan arrived mostly in the 1990s (7,707) and since 2000 (8,554). Very few had arrived before 1979 (149). At that time, 9,356 (56%) had acquired Australian citizenship.[10]