Little Australia

Little Australia is a name for any of the various communities where Australians congregate upon emigrating to other countries, examples can be found in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The concept of "Little Australia" holds many different aspects of the Australian culture. Common features include shops selling Australasian goods and restaurants lining the streets. A "Little Australia" strives essentially to have a sample of the culture of Australia transplanted to the midst of a large non-Australian city.[1][2][3]

Little Australia may also refer to the Little Australia Project blog written by Nathan McNeill for Nathan William Media, which focuses on creating stories, images and videos showing life in Australia.

Mulberry Street and Mott Street, Manhattan
See also: New York City, Manhattan, List of Manhattan neighborhoods, and Australian Americans

Since 2010, the world's largest Little Australia has emerged and is growing in Nolita, Manhattan, New York City.[4][5] Mulberry Street and Mott Street in Lower Manhattan are commonly referred to by Australian expats as "Little Australia" due to the influence of Australian and New Zealand cafe culture in the neighborhood, which includes establishments such as Ruby's, Two Hands, Bluestone Lane, Bluestone Lane Bowery Cafe, T2, Charley St, Cafe Grumpy, Egg Shop, Musket Room and Happy Bones. Little Australia is adjacent to Little Italy and Chinatown in Manhattan.[6] Avocado on toast or colloquially referred to in Australia as "Avo on toast" and "Smashed Avo"[7] is a uniquely Australian breakfast staple that many New Yorkers mistake for being an invention of their own. In 2011, there were an estimated 20,000 Australian residents of New York City, nearly quadruple the 5,537 in 2005.[8][9]

Earl's Court, London

Earl's Court in London had the nickname Kangaroo Valley or Roo Valley, although many Australasian visitors now go to cheaper districts to the north or west.

When Barry Humphries went (by sea) to London in 1959, he and Ros lived in Ladbroke Grove in Kensington. He made an impromptu visit to an Earl's Court pub, smack in the middle of Kangaroo Valley, as it was sometimes called. He fell physically ill and frightened by what he saw. The packs of loutish Australian youths swilling beer and swearing revived painful memories of the bullies at Melbourne Grammar. [10]

In 1962, Clive James went (also by sea; only one friend could afford to fly) to London with a weeks accommodation booked in Earl's Court, which in those days was still nicknamed "Kangaroo Valley". He said that there was no mistaking the Earl's Court Australians ... with jug ears, short haircuts .... and open, freckled, eyeless faces despite their navy-blue English duffle-coats; though they had not yet taken to carrying twelve-packs of Foster's Lager, and the broad-brimmed Akubra hat with corks dangling from the brim was never to be more than a myth. After he moved, he vowed never to enter Earl's Court again.[11]

See also


References
  1. Dena Silver (2015-10-02). "New York's So-Called 'Little Australia' Gets a New Clothing Shop". Observer. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
  2. "Whistler, Canada | Australian ski workers | Welcome to Little Australia". Traveller.com.au. 2011-05-05. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
  3. "Nocookies". The Australian. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
  4. Shaun Busuttil (November 3, 2016). "G-day! Welcome to Little Australia in New York City". KarryOn. Retrieved May 24, 2019. In Little Australia, Australian-owned cafes are popping up all over the place (such as Two Hands), joining other Australian-owned businesses (such as nightclubs and art galleries) as part of a growing green and gold contingent in NYC. Indeed, walking in this neighbourhood, the odds of your hearing a fellow Aussie ordering a coffee or just kicking back and chatting are high – very high – so much so that if you’re keen to meet other Aussies whilst taking your own bite out of the Big Apple, then this is the place to throw that Australian accent around like it’s going out of fashion!
  5. Accessed June 1, 2019.
  6. "Australian expat community living in New York City". News.com.au. 2016-02-22. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  7. Tovey, Josephine (2017-05-18). "Why the smashed avo meme refuses to die". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  8. Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine Accessed June 1, 2019.
  9. Accessed June 1, 2019.
  10. Pender, Anne (2010). One Man Show: The Stages of Barry Humphries. Sydney: ABC Books. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-7333-2591-5.
  11. James, Clive (1985). Falling Towards England: Unreliable Memoirs II. London: Jonathan Cape. pp. 17, 18, 23, 30. ISBN 0-224-02822-7.
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