The Cambodians in Sydney

Main Article Content

Ashley Carruthers
Sarithya Tuy

Abstract

Cambodians began coming to Australian in the mid to late 1970s, predominantly after the fall of the country's genocidal Khmer Rouge regime to invading Vietnamese forces in 1978. The majority fled to Thailand, either overland or by sea, where they waited in refugee camps for resettlement. A large part of the existing community arrived in the 1980s, either as refugees or as family reunion migrants. Today in Sydney there are 8,900 people of Khmer ancestry, and 4,507 of Chinese Cambodian ancestry (out of a national population of 25,553 of Khmer ancestry and 9,667 of Chinese Cambodian background). Over 60 per cent of those of Cambodian background who live in Sydney reside in the Fairfield local government area. Community life centres on the Khmer temples of Fairfield and Liverpool and the commercial and cultural centre of Cabramatta.

Article Details

Section
Sydney's People
Author Biography

Sarithya Tuy

Emma is the full time Editorial Coordinator for the Dictionary of Sydney. She holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from University of Technology, Sydney. She was senior researcher and an editor of Australian Feminism A Companion (OUP, 1998), and has extensive experience in print and online editing and writing.