Tracing Greek migration through Neos Kosmos obituaries
Source: NEOS KOSMOS
The Greek community of Victoria – and generally across the Australia – is mostly an advent of the post-war Southern European mass migration to Australia. Boatloads arrived in the 1950s and 1960s seeking to better their life fortunes. It was a stoic and determined generation that has left its mark over the years.
On the one hand these first generation immigrant arrivals had a level of homogeneity in their origins. Most were rural folk, few had more than a semblance of primary school education. They were however heterogenous in terms of their place of origin. They were from all regions and provinces of Greece, some being more prevalent than others. A share came from many of Greece’s islands, while some were born in territories outside what define the boundaries of modern Greece today.
As a history and geography buff, I have always been interested in where from Greece, or Greek-inhabited lands, did these migrants come from. We all have some idea of the big picture, but I never came across any data or literature that answered this question satisfactorily – or at least to a level of accuracy to quell my curiosity. This question started to intrigue me more when my perceptions got challenged. Where you live matters as those lived experiences shape your opinions in later life.
Peloponnese vs. Macedonia: The demographics of Greek migration
Growing up in the southeastern suburbs, the Prahran-Windsor area in the 1970s, I grew up with the idea that every second Greek was from Kalamata (Messinia). This idea was challenged a few years ago when someone suggested that the biggest cohort of Melbournian Greeks were from Florina, “just go to the northern suburbs and see for yourself” theys said.
I decided that by combining obituary data (age, place of origin even down to the village level) from funeral notices in Neos Kosmos and then using statistical analysis – I might construct a better picture of the jurisdictional origin of these migrants. There are very few first-generation households who are not familiar with Neos Kosmos. For population sizes over one hundred thousand, a sample size of just over 1000 people can be quite accurate up to plus or minus 3 per cent, and gives one a 95 per cent confidence in emerging trends.
So, I surveyed data from around 1200 obituaries from mid-August 2023 to mid-August 2024. This time period – one year – was selected so I could arrive at a result on latest life expectancy. The results were published in Neos Kosmos on August 24, 2024. Around one in eight (12.6 per cent) were from Messinia, while Florina was a distant second with 5.5 per cent, they weren’t even in the race. Overall the data showed that 56 per cent of post-war migrants came from two main regions, Peloponesse (31 per cent) and Macedonia (25 per cent).
Yet, something still troubled me, the question arose, ‘why was that person so adamant about migrants from Florina’? I then came across Professor Anastasios Tamis’s 1994 book, ‘The Immigration and Settlement of Macedonian Greeks in Australia’. In it he points to “the implementation of the assistance scheme” which by the end of 1960 had brought 14,045 Greek immigrants to Australia. Of these 11,218 were from Greece proper and 30 per cent originated from Greek Macedonia. Then, 70 per cent of this portion came from Western Macedonia which comprises the districts (nomoi) of Florina, Kastoria, Kozani and Grevena.
Thus, immigrants from Western Macedonia – which includes Florina – arrived mostly in the 1950s, and fewer in the 1960s, so, the probability is they would have also died earlier. The question arose for me, ‘Are they then under-represented in my 2024 survey?’
What obituaries in Neos Kosmos reveal about Greek migrant origins
To test my hypothesis, I went back a decade and looked at the whole year figures for 2015. It showed that there were slightly more migrants from Macedonia (27.5 per cent) than the Peloponnese (25 per cent). The gap between Messinia (9.9 per cent) and Florina (7.7 per cent) had closed considerably. I extended mysurvey to the last 15 years (2010 to 2024) and yielded details for more than 15,000 obituaries. In population sizes over 100,000 persons, the accuracy then becomes plus or minus 1 per cent with a 99 per cent confidence limit.
Also read: We’re living longer, at least the first generation
The extended survey showed that 28.0 per cent of migrants were from the Peloponnese while 27.2 per cent originated from Macedonia. The years preceding 2015, there are greater number of obituaries of immigrants from Macedonia, while those from the Peloponnese are more prevalent after 2015. The only other region to approach double figures is the Aegean Islands (11.7 per cent), dominated by arrivals from the islands of Lesbos, Limnos and Samos.
TABLE: Regional Origins of Post-War Greek migrants to Victoria based on obituaries ( 2010 – 2024, 15,135 persons )
At the district (nomo) level, the longer time period still favours those from Messinia (11.1 per cent) over second placed Florina (6.6 per cent) but the gap difference has decreased. However, when one considers that there are people in the community from Florina, who are Slavophones, and bilingual speakers who don’t identify as Greek, that gap becomes smaller.
Ιt is quite easy to see why someone growing up in Melbourne’s northern suburbs might have developed the impression that the district of Florina is one of the leading places of origin of those that departed Greek shores. Some of the more popular villages in Messinia were Gargalianoi, Koroni, Messini, Aeto, Meligala and Chrisokellaria, while for Florina we have the villages of Ano Kleines, Kato Kleines, Ammohori, Armenohori, Kratero, Niki, Proti and Tropaiouhos.
Ιn conclusion, statistical analysis is a very powerful tool in making quantitative determinations. The raw data can show you many trends that can help you determine things and defend your arguments but in interpreting the data one should also consider factors beyond the data to get a complete picture. And why study this generation. Well simply because they’re an amazing generation. This generation will be gone in two decades, cherish them while they’re still alive. Engage with them, record their stories.
*Dr Nick Dallas is a PhD candidate in the Department of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies at the University of Macedonia (Thessaloniki) and a member of the Board of Directors of the Greek Community of Melbourne.
The original article: belongs to NEOS KOSMOS .
