Afrikaans
14 speakers
Afrikaans is spoken by 14 of our residents at home, 0.9% of King Island.
We are King Island
4 per cent.
4 in every 100 King Island residents speak a language other than English at home. 60 people, in 12 languages — small enough to be overlooked, large enough to be a community.
- Our population
- 1,588
- Speak another language
- 60
- Languages at home
- 12
- Growth since last census
- +20.0%
Most of us speak English at home. 60 of us do not, across 12 languages, most often Afrikaans, Punjabi and Filipino. Small communities are the ones a mainstream service misses first and notices last — which is the whole reason to count them.
In Tasmania
#10
of 29 Tasmania councils for the share of residents speaking a language other than English at home. #308 of 540 nationally.
What makes our community ours
Punjabi
9 speakers
Punjabi is spoken by 9 of our residents at home, 0.6% of King Island.
Filipino
7 speakers
Filipino is spoken by 7 of our residents at home, 0.4% of King Island.
The languages of King Island
12 languages carry the conversation at home. Every one of them is spoken here.
Each block below is scaled to the number of people who speak that language at home, and tinted by how fast that community has grown since the last census.
- Grew 50%+
- 25%+
- 10%+
- Held
- Slipped
- Declined 10%+
- Not comparable
Every language, in order
Speakers at the 2021 Census, with the change since 2016. Broader ABS categories such as “Chinese, nfd” are counted in our totals but left out of this list, so the percentages can exceed the sum of the languages shown.
- 0114+7.7%
- 029
- 037-36.4%
- 046
- 055
- 064
- 073
- 083-50.0%
- 0930%
- 1030%
Why we publish this
3.8% of us
We share this portrait because a council below the Tasmania average is the one most likely to be planned for as though everybody here reads English. 60 of us do not, at home, and a service that reaches everyone except them has not reached everyone. This almanac exists so that the number is on the record before the decision is made.
Who we are, beyond language
Where we were born
9.3% of us were born overseas, across 18 countries.
- 01England22-29.0%
- 02Philippines210%
- 03New Zealand20-31.0%
- 04India12+140%
- 05Germany9+200%
- 06South Africa6-45.5%
- 07Brazil5
- 08Fiji5
- 09Scotland4-42.9%
- 10United States of America4+33.3%
What we believe
Reported affiliation in King Island at the 2021 Census, with the change since 2016.
- 01No religion or secular beliefs810+21.6%
- 02Christianity570-20.1%
- 03Buddhism16
- 04Islam7+16.7%
- 05Hinduism6
Our suburbs
Our linguistic character changes street by street. Click through to any of our 3 suburbs for its own portrait: the languages spoken there, the communities calling it home.
- CurrieTop language — Punjabi4%44
- Sea ElephantTop language — Sinhalese4%9
- Surprise BayTop language — Afrikaans3%7
- 3 suburbs in King Island. Percentage is residents speaking a language other than English at home; the figure beneath it is how many people that is.
Where we are
King Island shaded by the share of residents speaking a language other than English at home. Boundaries are ABS ASGS 2021. See every council on one map.
In context
- King Island
- 3.8%
- Tasmania
- 7.8%
- Australia
- 21.3%
3.8% of King Island residents speak a language other than English at home, against 7.8% for Tasmania and 21.3% nationally. Drawn from the 2021 Census.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2021, language used at home by Statistical Area Level 2, aggregated to Local Government Area. Growth compares 2021 against the 2016 Census.
How the headline share is counted. 3.8% is 60 residents as a share of all 1,588 of us. A further 180 did not state a language at all, and we do not count them as speaking one — counting every non-response as a non-English speaker would put this figure at 15.1%, which is a larger number and a weaker claim. Measured only across the residents who answered, the share is 4.3%. If you have seen a higher figure quoted for King Island, it is almost certainly one of those two.
Two further caveats we would rather state than bury. Summing suburbs omits residents not allocated to one — no usual address, migratory and unincorporated areas — so national totals sit a little under the ABS published figures; the King Island figures on this page are unaffected. And ranked language lists exclude ABS residual categories such as “Chinese, nfd”, which are not languages anyone can order a translation in; they remain inside the headline total.
Need this community reached in its own languages? Talk to us about translation in King Island.