Pacific Islander migration to Britain

The migration of Pacific Islanders to Britain normally refers to people originating from the Caroline Islands, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, and Western Samoa. It does not normally refer to people from islands in the Pacific who are considered Oriental and/ or Asian (such as Filipinos, for example). People with Pacific Islander ancestry constitute one of the UK's smallest ethnic groups.

Background

Many of the Pacific islands are former British Colonies (and the Pitcairn Islands remain a British overseas territory) and now have English as an official language, hence the UK is a popular destination for Pacific Islander migrants. Outside of the large cities, the Pacific Islander communities are largely situated around British Army Infantry bases, where they have been recruited to work for the country for many years (Catterick and Salisbury being the best examples).

Demographics

As of the 2001 UK Census 0.10% of the British population was born on a Pacific Island (roughly 6,000 people). A slightly larger amount are of Oceanic origin, and the Pacific Islander community is surprisingly widespread. The British Pacific Islander ethnic group is a fastly growing group, as in 1991, there were no records of Pacific Islanders residing in the UK, even thought there was likely to be a small community (probarbly in London and the Army bases). By the 2011 census there could be up to 30,000 people of Pacific/ Oceanic descent (excluding Austarlian/ NZ).

These may seem Small number but it is in fact extremely high in relation to the number of people who actually migrate from the Pacific. The UK has one of the world's largest Pacific Islander communities along with Oceania itself and the United States.

The most popular cities for Pacific Islanders in the UK are as follows:

• Belgrave, East Midlands - 104 Pacific Islanders
• Southampton, South East England - 56 Pacific Islanders
• Cricklewood, London - 52
• Heston, London - 52
• Greenhill, London - 50

The most popular regions for Pacific Islanders are:

• London - 1,662
• South East England - 1,054
• East Midlands - 493
• East of England - 448
• South West England - 440
• West Midlands - 411

• Please note that the above data is only based on 2001 statistics of people born in the Pacific, and in 2008 including ancestry is likely to stand at double to triple the above amounts

See also

• Ethnic groups of the United Kingdom
• Pacific Islanders
• Pacific Islander American
• Australian British