Albanian Australians

[8][3][9] Other Orthodox Christians from southern Albania followed; Spiro Jani to Queensland (1908), Kristo Zafiri and Dhimitër Ikonomi to Townsville (1913); these were followed by Jan Konomi (1914), and Vasil and Thomas Kasneci (1920).

[10] After the First World War, concerns rural labour shortages and the readiness of Australia's small population to resist possible invasion made authorities accept European non-British migrants.

[18][19][13] The Australian government's position was they were "required white settlers who were willing to dwell in remote and solitary surroundings and who have the experience in agricultural and pastoral pursuits, such as the Albanian possessed".

[19][14][21] In October 1924, the first five Albanian migrants Bejxhet Emini, Bektash Muharem, Musa Ibrahimi, Rexhep Mustafa and Riza Ali arrived from Korçë region.

[25][26] Albanians arriving in the 1920s left urban centres[25] and settled in rural areas, working in the agriculture industry as horticulturalists, sugarcane workers, tobacco farmers, and market gardeners, mainly at orchards and farms.

[16] As with other Southern European migrants, most Albanians who arrived in Australia in the 1920s were single males between ages 15 and 30,[19][27][25] numbering 1,000, who worked, earned money and returned to Albania to reinvest in their properties.

[19] Unlike the usual two-or-three years Albanian migrants spent in parts of Europe or the Middle East, Australia's distance resulted in decade-long stints and made return trips to Albania difficult.

[3] Despite Albanians being considered "white" the federal government preferred mainly British Christian migrants, and laws to limit the number of visas given to southern Europeans were sought.

[22] On Queensland sugar cane farms, they worked as cutters in an industry subjected to racial tests because British Preference Leagues wanted all workers to be of an Anglo-Celtic background.

[25][3][15] The first Albanian migrants in Northam were Sabri Sali and Ismail Birangi,[3] who later, with their families and friends Fethi Haxhi and Reshit Mehmet, settled in Shepparton.

[49] As Shepparton went from being a town to a significant regional city, Albanians became an important part of its expanding population, and were involved in its economy and growth of the urban centre.

[76] Albanian sentiment about the situation ranged from reluctant cooperation to acceptance, and some considered their internment conditions good while others performed poorly in tasks assigned to them by the Civil Aliens Corps.

[72] Due to labour shortages in the countryside and after Italy's surrender in late 1943, the internment of Albanian Queenslanders ended and an exemption was granted for continued service in the Civil Aliens Corps.

[72] Government policies in Victoria were more lenient; some Albanians were made to report weekly to police and others were involved in road construction under the direction of Manpower authorities or the Allied Works Council.

[60][77] In Shepparton, as a result of Albanian employment in primary production, the whole community was exempted from internment, although restrictions on travel and a firearms ban were enforced upon them due to their status as enemy aliens.

[57] In York, Western Australia, Albanians were the only group employed as market gardeners in the town; they received special treatment regarding internment regulations.

[77] Unlike the Germans or Italians, who were considered a major wartime threat in Australia, government authorities treated Albanians in a fair and mainly even-handed manner regarding internment and later naturalisation.

[79] This was due to demand for Albanian labour, their status as European stock who did not pose a direct threat to the British Empire, and religion did not play a role in their wartime treatment.

[48] Displays of loyalty by Albanians resulted in authorities allowing over 30 Albanian-born men to enlist and serve in the Australian army during the war,[82][83][57] a majority of whom were Muslim.

[35][84] After the war ended in August 1945, previous economic and social difficulties, and their wartime treatment by the government prompted some migrants to leave Australia and return to Albania.

[4] Previous pro-union stances changed as the Cold War affected Albanians in rural areas,[48] who opposed joining unions because they wanted to support individualism and prevent a perceived loss of freedom like the situation in Albania.

[98] Later, with the official implementation of multiculturalism, the term "ethnic" was used to describe groups like Muslim Albanians as being "non-Anglo" or "other" in discourses about the policy by the majority Anglo-Australian population.

[16][87][116] Coming from the same region in Albania, they joined the older Shepparton Albanian community which, as family contacts,[117] sponsored their work visas, and gave them support through social networks and often employment.

[129] As such, the wider Mareeba Albanian community established their own local Muslim Society and built a mosque dedicated to Australian soldiers who had died in wars.

[131] From their arrival, the Albanian Mareeba community has maintained good relations with the local Anglo-Celtic Australian population, even during the Second World War, as both groups share a similar rural lifestyle and interests.

[208] Australian Albanians perceive community as integrated into Australia, tolerant Muslims with relaxed religious practices and a "laid back" outlook on religion.

[100] A lack of commonality and the turbulent Balkan legacy have distanced Albanians from efforts by some non-Albanian Muslim bodies to supersede ethnic and national organisations for a unitary, Muslim-only approach to advocating for community interests.

[221] Some young people and newer Albanian arrivals view the opinions of older generations linking Albania and Islam as a concern and incompatible with contemporary Australia.

[4] In Australia, social networks and relations in the context of a common language, family, migration and cultural practices play a significant role in influencing being Muslim and Albanian, and belonging to a community.

[233] As the geopolitical situation has changed in both the Balkans and Australia, it has become increasingly difficult to identify differences among Albanians from their countries of origin like Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo and Montenegro.