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NZ's ethnic make-up continues to change

Statistics New Zealand, National

QuickStats About Culture and Identity looks at New Zealand's increasingly diverse population. These statistics cover how people have identified themselves in terms of their ethnic group(s), where people were born, what languages they speak, and their religious affiliations. Some comparisons with previous censuses are included.

Information in this QuickStats is based on New Zealand's 2006 Census of Population and Dwellings, held on 7 March 2006.

• New Zealand's ethnic make-up has continued to change, according to 2006 Census results.
• European remained the largest of the major ethnic groups, with 2,609,592 people (67.6 percent of the population) in 2006. The Māori ethnic group is the second largest, with 565,329 people (or 14.6 percent).
• Of the major ethnic groups, the Asian ethnic group grew the fastest between 2001 and 2006, increasing from 238,176 people in 2001 to reach 354,552 people in 2006 (an increase of almost 50 percent).
• Those identifying with the Pacific peoples ethnic group had the second-largest increase from the 2001 Census, up 14.7 percent to total 265,974 people.
• Auckland was the most ethnically diverse region in New Zealand, with 56.5 percent of its population identifying with the European ethnic group, 18.9 percent with the Asian ethnic group, 14.4 percent with the Pacific peoples ethnic group, and 11.1 percent with the Māori ethnic group.
• Around 1 in 10, or 10.4 percent of people, identified with more than one ethnic group in 2006, compared with 9.0 percent in 2001.
• People aged 0 to 14 years were more likely than people aged 15 years and over to belong to more than one ethnic group. The differences between the youngest and oldest age groups are the most pronounced. In 2006, 19.7 percent of children were reported as belonging to two or more ethnic groups, compared with 3.5 percent of people 65 years of age and over.

Note: People can choose to identify with more than one ethnic group, therefore figures may not sum to totals.

The full report is available at: QuickStats About Culture and Identity.

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