About communication

About communication

Communication diversity

Australia is a very diverse nation when it comes to language choice. The first languages of this nation were the many sovereign Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages. Today, Australians speak around 300 different languages.

The 2021 census showed that 5.5 million Australians speak a language other than English at home. The most common are Mandarin, Arabic, Cantonese, Vietnamese and Italian. This includes traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages, as well as dialects such as Aboriginal English or Home Language.

The language a person speaks is an important part of culture, identity, and wellbeing. Respect for people speaking their home language reinforces their culture and helps keep communities strong.

Valuing diversity in language, culture, and the way we all communicate is an important part of Australian society.

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Bronte

Wakka Wakka woman and speech pathologist

‘Obviously, First Nations people ... had so many diverse languages and different ways to speak with each other. All of our history is passed down through oral language ... all of our hunting tracks are passed down through symbols and stories, even our artwork for us is a way of communicating. So communication, especially for me as an Indigenous person, is so wide and varied.’

Traditional First Languages

Before colonisation, more than 250 languages were spoken by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Traditional First Languages were stolen and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples were forced to speak English. Today, approximately 120 first languages are still spoken. Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to preserve and revitalise First Languages. Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are multi-lingual and may speak Traditional First Languages and/or dialects of First Languages as well as Aboriginal English.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people describe First Languages as central to identity, culture, knowledge, and wellbeing. First Languages are more than just communication, and more than just words. The sovereign right to access First Languages is essential for cultural empowerment, knowledge sharing, a sense of strength and belonging.

Ensuring the revival and preservation of First Languages is an essential part of Australia's reconciliation journey. Australian communities can support and encourage use of First Languages by being open to different communication experiences and curious about shared meanings. Respecting languages in this way encourages diversity and strengthens communities.

The Communication Hub pays respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and acknowledges the power and importance of communication through First Languages, their dialects, and through Aboriginal English.

Aboriginal mother with very young baby

Learn more

Multicultural access and equity policy Produced by the Australian Government, Department of Home Affairs.

New South Wales Aboriginal Education Consultative Group Languages App

Map of Indigenous Australia from Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Studies (AIATSIS). The AIATSIS map serves as a visual reminder of the richness and diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australia. It was created in 1996 as part of the Encyclopaedia of Aboriginal Australia project and attempts to show language, social or nation groups based on published sources available up to 1994.