Volume 17, Issue 1 (2009)

Intermarriage between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians

Intermarriage between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is increasing as cultural and socioeconomic divisions are broken down. For the first time at the 2006 census, a majority of both male and female Indigenous persons were partnered with non-Indigenous persons. This analysis shows that location is more important than education or income in determining rates of intermarriage. In metropolitan areas the overwhelming majority of partnered Indigenous people live with, or are married to, non-Indigenous people; in non-metropolitan areas this is true only of those who are highly educated and/or on high incomes.

Authors: Genevieve Heard, Bob Birrell and Siew-Ean Khoo

Filesize: 688kb

Pages: 14