In search of ethnic new Zealanders: national naming in the 2006 census.
Kukutai, Tahu ; Didham, Robert
Abstract
In the 2006 census the number of people reporting New Zealander as
their ethnic group increased five-fold, making it the third most
frequent response behind New Zealand European and Maori. The magnitude
of the increase was surprising, but followed similar surges in national
naming in the Canadian and Australian censuses. In this paper we ask:
Who chooses to ethnically identify in the name of the nation and
why.'? In so doing we emphasise the constructed nature of ethnicity
and ethnic groups, and the political context within which ethnic
identification decisions are made. Our analysis suggests the New
Zealander incline was a phenomenon driven primarily by
multi-generational New Zealanders who formerly identified as European.
We discuss some reasons for why the national identifier appears to have
selective appeal as an ethnic label, and reflect on how this may change
in coming years.
INTRODUCTION
Users of ethnic and racial data worldwide have long been inured to
the vagaries of identity reporting in official statistics. Changes to
the census instrument, an increase in multiple-ethnicity reporting and
inconsistencies in how individuals identify themselves have made the
analysis of ethnicity data in New Zealand increasingly tricky (Callister
et al. 2005). Even so, the sharp rise in the number of people recording
a New Zealander-type response (e.g. New Zealander, Kiwi) in the 2006
census was surprising. Between 2001 and 2006 the number increased
five-fold to nearly 430,000, making New Zealander the third most
frequent ethnic group response behind New Zealand European and Maori. As
Table 1 shows, prior to 2006 the number of people rejecting the listed
tick-boxes in favour of a write-in New Zealander response had never
exceeded 90,000. In the absence of obvious demographic (e.g. growth
through migration and fertility) and operational (e.g. changes to the
questionnaire) factors, the vast majority of the increase in New
Zealander responses can be attributed to individuals changing their
ethnic identification. (2)
Most public debates about New Zealander ethnic identification in
the census have focused on whether it should be recognised as a bona
fide ethnic group in official statistics, with the key criticism being
that New Zealander is a national rather than ethnic identifier
(Callister 2004, Johnston 2007, Misa 2006, Middleton 2006). Rather than
adjudicate over whether New Zealander is a nationality or ethnic group,
we ask for whom such a designation resonates and why? Our exploration is
timely. With the next census just two years away, Statistics New Zealand
has recently embarked on a review of the ethnicity classification
standard, and has flagged New Zealander ethnic identification as a
priority issue.
We begin with a select review of the literature, focusing on the
constructed nature of ethnic groups and the dynamics of national naming
in the censuses of other settler states, notably Canada. Using census
data, we describe the key characteristics of those giving a New
Zealander ethnic identification and consider the qualitative literature
for insights on what such a designation may mean. Our interest is in
what national naming in the census may signify with respect to ethnic
inter-group relations, rather than the psychological meanings
individuals assign to such labels. We conclude with some reflections on
what New Zealander ethnic identification may mean for future relations.
THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF ETHNIC GROUPS AND CATEGORIES
Within the social sciences, ethnic groups are generally conceived
of as social constructions. Ethnicity and ethnic groups are neither
primordial nor static, but are created and sustained through inter-group
processes that involve competitive as well as intimate relations. To
state that ethnicity is socially constructed does not deny its
importance in the Jives of individuals, nor does it deny the ubiquity of
ethnic and racial inequality and divisions (Rallu et al. 2006). Rather,
it draws attention to the subjective ways in which cultural markers are
imbued with social significance and used to construct ethnic boundaries
that delineate "us" from "them" (Barth 1969).
The national census is a key forum in which ethnic boundaries are
rendered visible or invisible by the state. Ethnic groups are
constituted in the census by grouping people on the basis of their
identification decisions, usually made in response to a pre-specified
set of options. Though such data may be presented to the public as
objective reflections of the nation's social reality, there are at
least three ways in which ethnic data are political. First, the purpose
for which ethnic data are collected invariably has a political
dimension. Ethnic data have been used at various times and places to
justify and sustain systems of ethnic inequality (e.g. apartheid in
South Africa), although these days it is more common for ethnic data to
be seen as integral to efforts to ameliorate discrimination (Morning and
Sabbagh 2005). In the settler states of Australasia and North America,
data collected on the basis of ethnicity are used in multiple ways for
policy and political purposes. In New Zealand this includes measuring
equity of access to services such as health and education, and
monitoring outcomes for particular ethnic groups and communities
(Callister 2007).
Second, categories with which people identify may be the product of
political processes. An explicit example of identity politics is
lobbying to get a category listed on the census questionnaire. In the
U.S., Mexican-American groups successfully lobbied for the inclusion of
a separate Hispanic Origin category in the 1980 census, while Asian
interest groups pushed for the inclusion of specific race categories in
the 1980 and 1990 censuses (Nobles 2000). A more subtle form of
political action is the strategic use of "identity frames" by
social movements (Snow and Benford 1992) that heighten the appeal of an
ethnic category, often in a way that resonates with a particular
constituency. The motivation may be to maximise the counts associated
with an established category in the pursuit of resources, or to push for
the legitimisation of a category not yet recognised by the state.
Third, the process of statistically constituting ethnic groups is
political in terms of consequences. As Kertzer and Arel note,
"Censuses do more than reflect social realities, they also
participate in the social construction of these realities"
(2002:2). The constitutive aspect of "nominating groups into
existence" extends beyond listing names on a census form to include
the post-censal aggregation of categories for public dissemination. In
New Zealand, the categories "Asian" and "Pacific peoples
/ Pasifika" exemplify how statistical categories are imbued with
ethnic meaning, but are also selectively and strategically employed by
those so categorised to denote a political community.
In recent decades the counting of ethnic groups in the New Zealand
census has undergone dramatic change (see Statistics New Zealand 1993,
2004). The biggest change has been a shift from a system that required
people to report their race or ethnic origins in fractions (e.g.
"3/4 Maori and 1/4 European"), to one based on
self-identification with an ethnic group or groups. The Statistical
Standard for Ethnicity defines an ethnic group as people who have some
or all of the following characteristics:
* a common proper name
* one or more elements of common culture, which need not be
specified, but may include religion, customs or language
* a unique community of interests, feelings and actions
* a shared sense of common origins or ancestry
* a common geographic origin (Didham 2005).
Ethnicity is defined as the "group or groups that people
identify with or feel they belong to" (italics added). The emphasis
on self-identified ethnicity sits somewhat uneasily alongside the
substantive notion of an ethnic group as a community of shared descent
and cultural practice. It also raises an interesting sociological
question germane to our investigation: Is selfidentification with an
ethnic category sufficient for the category to be considered a group?
Posing the question "are ethnic groups real?", Fenton
(2003) argues that what makes a collective of individuals a
"group" is as important as defining what makes a group
"ethnic". In his view, the important distinction between
ethnic groups and categories is too often fudged. To illustrate, people
who recorded "Pakistani" on the British census form might be
described in official statistics as the Pakistani ethnic group. However,
whether in fact such people constitute a corporate group or community,
versus a "diffuse" identity category, is a matter of
sociopolitical investigation rather than census definition.
Although the politics of ethnic counting and classification has
usually been seen as the domain of minorities (Doane 1997, Kertzer and
Arel 2002), there are signs this is changing. In Australia and Canada,
patterns of national naming in the census have focused attention on the
construction and mobilisation of majority group identities. In those
countries Canadian and Australian have become, respectively, the most
commonly reported ethnic origins and ancestry groups in the census (Lee
and Edmonston 2007, Australian Bureau of Statistics 2007, Kurtz and
Costello 2003). In Australia, ethnic self-identification in the name of
the nation has been largely confined to people who previously recorded
English ancestry. In Canada, the pattern has been more complex, divided
between the nation's two charter groups: Anglophones and
Francophones (Boyd 1999, Lee and Edmonston 2007). In seeking to
understand the emergence of national naming in the New Zealand census,
the experiences of other settler societies offer some useful insights.
Given space constraints, we focus our comparison on Canada.
NATIONAL NAMING IN THE SETTLER STATES
As in New Zealand, national naming in the Canadian census is a
relatively recent phenomenon. In the 1986 census just 0.5% of the
Canadian population recorded their ethnic origins as Canadian, very
similar to the proportion recording New Zealander ethnicity in the 1986
New Zealand census. (3) In 1991 the share increased to 4%, prompting
some commentators to ponder whether Canadian was an "evolving
indigenous category" (Pryor et al. 1992). According to Boyd (1999),
several structural changes occurred during the 1980s that heightened the
appeal of affirming Canadian ethnic origins, including an increase in
levels of migration, a shift in the source countries of migrants, and
the increasingly conservative political climate. The catalyst, however,
seemed to be a "Count-me-Canadian" campaign run by the Toronto
Sun newspaper in the lead-up to the 1991 census, urging readers to state
"Canadian" on their census forms. Analysis of
"Canadian" responses suggested the campaign resonated most
with a distinct segment of the Canadian population: people with a
multi-generational presence in Canada residing in areas settled by
British origin groups.
Following the increased reporting of Canadian ethnic origins,
Canadian was listed as the fifth example response to the 1996 ethnic
origin question in the English-language questionnaire, and Canadiene on
the French version. Subsequently, the share reporting Canadian ethnic
origins increased dramatically, from 4% in 1991 to 31% of the population
in 1996. Given the regional selectivity of national naming in 1991,
analysts were surprised to find Canadiene was the most popular ethnic
origin choice (47%) in the Francophone province of Quebec. The finding
was all the more surprising in light of historical demands for the
recognition of Quebec sovereignty and a 1995 referendum on separation
that had narrowly failed. Boyd argued that the pattern of national
naming rested on the different "symbolic representation" of
the terms Canadian and Canadiene. The former invoked location within the
borders of the Canadian nation; the latter was a historical expression
used by Francophones to denote their foundation status and distinguish
them from Anglo politics, language and institutions.
Irrespective of the potentially different meanings, the
Canadian/Canadiene identifier surpassed British as the most frequent
ethnic origin response in 1996. As a result, Canadian appeared as the
first-listed example question in the 2001 census. Canadian ethnic origin
responses peaked at 37% of the population, before dropping to 32% in
2006 (see Lee and Edmonston 2007 for a detailed analysis of 1991-2001
data). The Canadian experience underscores a point germane to our
argument: ethnic identification in the census is not merely a matter of
individual psychological processes, but is tied to the structure of
group relations. The emergence of Canadian as the nation's largest
ethnic origin response also points to the ways in which question design
has the potential to dramatically influence ethnic identification
patterns. (4)
Like the 1991 Canadian census, the 2006 New Zealand census was
preceded by heightened public debate around the ethnicity question.
Prior to the 2006 census, Statistics New Zealand decided to discontinue
the practice of coding New Zealander-type responses into the New Zealand
European category and code them as a separate category--a decision that
was picked up by primetime news (TVNZ 2006). (5) In the month preceding
the census a widely circulated "Declare your pride" email
campaign encouraged people to state their ethnicity as New Zealander.
The email rejected the division of people into sub-categories and voiced
objections to being "treated as foreigners in our own country"
(Middleton 2006). It stated that many people had been in New Zealand
long enough to be able to claim New Zealander as "who we are",
regardless of ancestral origins or skin colour. The campaign lacked the
institutional support of the Canadian campaign, but was given a
significant, if varied, hearing through the mainstream media. At the
same time, National party politician Gerry Brownlee added his voice to
the debate, claiming officials were "perpetuating the myth that we
are a country that is ethnically divided" (cited in Middleton
2006).
Similar to the "Count me Canadian" campaign, the
"Declare your pride" campaign seemed to be a catalyst for the
surge in New Zealander identification in the 2006 census. However, the
reasons why the call was answered so readily by some also points to
structural changes occurring throughout the 1990s and the years
immediately preceding the census. In an earlier paper we argued three
changes were especially influential in drawing sharper distinctions
between Maori, immigrants and New Zealanders of European descent during
that period (Kukutai and Didham 2007; see also Pearson 2000, 2002). They
were:
* Maori identity politics and Treaty settlements, as well as their
reactions--the latter included challenges to historical settlements and
so-called "race-based" funding (Brash 2004)
* rising immigration from "non-traditional" source
countries, particularly those within Asia
* the shift to a more permissive system of ethnic
self-identification in official statistics.
These factors, and the experiences of Canada and Australia, suggest
national naming in the New Zealand census is more likely to resonate
with multi-generational New Zealanders of European descent than with
indigenous Maori or recent immigrants. To empirically examine this
proposition, we undertake descriptive analysis using aggregate census
data. Though we are unable to link responses across censuses, we can
extrapolate from findings based on the recent censuses to make some
informed interpretations.
DATA ANALYSIS
We begin our analysis by comparing the distribution of ethnic group
responses for the 2001 and 2006 censuses. To do so we employ level 1
coded data, which collapses more detailed ethnic responses into six
ethnic categories: Maori, European, Asian, Pacific, MELAA (Middle
Eastern / Latin American / African) and Other. The vast majority of
those in the focal European category identified as New Zealand European.
Table 2 shows an obvious relative and absolute decline in the
European grouping, providing support for the view that New Zealander
ethnic identification was largely a European phenomenon. This view is
hardly novel or contentious. Until the 2006 census, it was implied by
the official practice of allocating New Zealander responses to the level
1 European category, rather than to Other. For inter-censal comparisons
to be valid, however, the change in coding practices needs to be taken
into account. If we assume the number of people who reported a combined
New Zealander-European response in 2001 was negligible, and simply
subtract the 85,300 New Zealander responses from the 2001 European
category, we see a more modest, but still significant, decrease of 6.3%
(figure in parentheses). By contrast, all of the other level 1
categories increased between 2001 and 2006, suggesting non-European
groupings were not greatly affected by the large increase in New
Zealander responses.
Additional insights into the characteristics of those recording a
New Zealander response may be gained by considering more detailed level
4 ethnicity data. Table 3 shows the number and percentage constituted by
the 10 most popular New Zealander responses.
Overall, there was a relatively low proportion of hyphenated New
Zealander responses, with just 12.9% of New Zealander responses recorded
as part of a complex ethnic identification. Though this was slightly
higher than the level of multiple-ethnic reporting in the total
population (10.4%), it was far below levels observed in Canada. There,
about 40% of Canadian responses in the 1996 and 2001 censuses were
reported in conjunction with other ethnic origin groups (Lee and
Edmonston 2007). Of the combination New Zealander responses, New Zealand
European was by far the most commonly recorded group--almost five times
larger than the next biggest combination. In addition, more people
reported a multiple-ethnic affiliation of New Zealander, European and
Maori than simply New Zealander and Maori. Comparatively few people
recorded New Zealander in combination with an Asian or Pacific ethnic
group.
The limited appeal of New Zealander as an ethnic option for Maori
(6) is confirmed by considering the pattern of New Zealander responses
by Maori ancestry. Table 4 shows 18.1% of the total population
responding to the ethnic group question in the 2006 census, also
recorded Maori ancestry. The proportion of New Zealander respondents
recording Maori ancestry was significantly lower at 10.7%. Though we do
not show tables for Europeans, we note this was very close to the
proportion of Europeans recording Maori ancestry (11.8%). Age structure
can be dismissed as an explanation because the proportion of New
Zealanders with Maori ancestry, relative to the total population, was
lower at every age group. This comparison suggests Maori were not
strongly represented among New Zealander responses. We note, however,
that only 28% of those who recorded a New Zealander response and
acknowledged Maori descent did so in combination with Maori ethnicity.
(7) This is much lower than the proportion in the overall Maori descent
population that recorded Maori as part of a dual or multiple ethnic
group response. It is likely that some people who identified as Maori in
2001 changed their ethnic identification to New Zealander in 2006, but
the extent of the loss cannot be reliably ascertained here.
One of the most striking aspects of the New Zealander responses
shown in Table 5 is the predominance of the New Zealand-born. A massive
94% of those identifying as New Zealander were born in New Zealand,
compared with just 77% of the total population. Among the 24,000 or so
overseas-born people who identified as New Zealander, more than half
were born in the United Kingdom. Very few were born in Asian countries,
though both regions were equally represented in the total population.
Geographic differences in the claiming of New Zealander identity is
likely to reflect, in part, the different migration histories of groups,
with the vast majority of overseas-born New Zealanders having lived in
New Zealand for 20 years or more (see Allan 2007).
Clearly, nativity is a fundamental--almost universal--element of
New Zealander ethnic identification, but does this extend to
multi-generational ties? One way to assess the influence of generational
attachment is to consider the representation of the first generation
(individuals born overseas), second generation (New Zealand-born
individuals with one or two immigrant parents), and third generation
(New Zealand-born persons with parents who were also New Zealand-born)
among New Zealander responses. Because a question on parental birthplace
is not asked in the census, we limit the following analysis to
"children" (in the familial role, rather than life-cycle
sense) who were living in the same household as their parents in the
2006 census, and for whom country of birth was recorded. (8)
Table 6 shows that of the 82,845 children recorded as New
Zealander, 78% were born in New Zealand to New Zealand-born parents.
This was significantly higher than their representation in the total
population. As expected, very few of the children recorded as New
Zealander were foreign-born children of foreign-born parents. Taken
together, Tables 5 and 6 suggest ethnic identification as a New
Zealander is heavily influenced by nativity and generational ties.
Finally, examination of the age-sex structure and regional
distribution of New Zealander responses provides additional evidence of
the selective nature of national naming (see Figures 1 and 2). The
figures show New Zealander ethnic identification was especially marked
among middle-aged men residing in the South Island. The number of New
Zealanderidentified males exceeded females at nearly every age,
particularly in the middle ages of the lifespan. This is significant
given the excess of women relative to men at these ages in the total
population. Regions noted for their European dominance, notably the West
Coast, Southland and Marlborough, also had a higher proportion of their
populations responding as New Zealanders, in part reflecting the higher
median age in those areas. These demographic features suggest the appeal
of New Zealander ethnic identification does not have generic appeal for
all Europeans, but is more likely to resonate with older people living
in areas that are overwhelmingly European in composition.
[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]
Taken together, our findings suggest people who formerly identified
with a European ethnicity were the dominant force behind the rise in New
Zealander responses. We acknowledge, however, that probabilistic
matching across censuses is desirable to more accurately assess the
flows, including the potential contribution of people formerly recording
Maori or Pacific ethnicities. (9) The patterns observed in our analysis
raise a second and more difficult question: Why does national naming
resonate with some groups and not others? These questions cannot be
answered by census data, but require analysis of a qualitative sort. It
is to this we now turn.
[FIGURE 2 OMITTED]
THE DYNAMICS OF NEW ZEALANDER ETHNIC IDENTIFICATION
Rejection of Ethnicity
In seeking to account for the European dominance of national
naming, one potential interpretation of New Zealander identification is
that it signals the rejection of ethnic labelling. Bonilla-Silva (2003)
has argued that colourblindness--or the denial that ethnicity or race
matters--is an ideology used by many members of the dominant group to
counter the perceived threat posed by ethnic pluralism and minority
group rights. In New Zealand, the refrain "we are all New
Zealanders" was historically deployed at various times to deny
Maori claims to distinctiveness, while glossing over persistent racial
inequality and the institutional dominance of British culture (Pearson
1990). In 2006, a colourblind construction of New Zealander ethnicity
might manifest as a response to the twin threats of Maori politicisation
and growing ethnic diversification through rising Asian immigration. The
reference to ethnic divisions in the New Zealander email campaign would
appear to be consistent with the rejection of ethnic distinctions.
A slightly different interpretation is that the resistance to
ethnic self-ascription reflects a more passive tendency for members of
majority groups to see themselves as being without ethnicity or race. In
the United States context, Doane (1997) has argued the low visibility
and salience of the dominant White identity lies in the group's
dominant status. Because dominant groups have the power to influence
national institutions (e.g. schools, laws, the media), their preferences
and standards come to be seen as natural or objective, rather than tied
to a particular group. As a result, the distinction between national
identity and ethnic identity tends to be less marked.
Similar observations have been made in New Zealand in relation to
White New Zealanders of European descent (Bell 1996, Liu 2005, Wetherell
and Potter 1992). Survey research undertaken by Liu found that 15 to 35%
of people he referred to as "Pakeha/New Zealand Europeans"
refused to report an ethnic label, referring to themselves as New
Zealanders or "just kiwis". Noting the absence of similar
claims among Maori, Pacific or Asian New Zealanders in his samples, Liu
concluded it was "only the majority group that seeks the
prerogative and has the power to go ethnically unmarked" (2005:78).
In the context of national naming patterns, the distinction between
ethnic self-identification (i.e. what I say I am) and ethnic ascription
(i.e. what others say I am) is not trivial. Processes of ascription play
an important role in how individuals experience ethnic labels and the
privileges or disadvantages that attach to them. There is an abundance
of research showing that "ethnic options" are greater for some
groups than for others, with more flexibility tending to be associated
with greater political and social status (Waters 1990).
Ethnicity Reconfigured
Rather than signal the rejection of ethnicity, New Zealander ethnic
identification may denote a process of ethnic reconfiguration or
formation. Pearson (2000, 2002) has written persuasively about how
British-descent New Zealanders have had to renegotiate their identity
within a complex of changing relations that includes the distancing of
ties with England. He argues that for much of New Zealand's
colonial past, settler e1ites and most of the Anglo masses were
"comfortable with a transnational civic and ethnic identity, as
imperial and local British" (2002:1004). In many legal and
political contexts, the distinction between New Zealand-born people of
British descent and British immigrants was minor. (10) However,
weakening economic and political attachments to Britain, coupled with
Maori politicisation and intensified immigration, spawned a search for a
new identity and legitimating myths. Pearson suggests the renegotiation
of settler identity has primarily involved a reassessment of relations
with two "intimate others"-"Britons past (and present)
and Maori" (2000:104).
Over the last two decades multiple frames have been provided for
the renegotiation of dominant group identity. One is through discourses
that have framed multi-generational New Zealanders of European, but
mostly British, descent as the nation's second indigenous peoples.
Initially this re-imagining of indigeneity was invoked in relation to
Pakeha identity. During the height of Maori political activism the term
Pakeha was self-consciously used as "the basis for a nationalist
project seeking a bicultural or bi-national accommodation with
Maori" (Pearson 2002:1005). Pakeha, thus conceived, represented
what Moran (2002) calls "indigenizing settler nationalism",
according indigenous peoples and their claims a central position in
national identity.
The clearest articulation of Pakeha indigeneity can be found in the
work of the late historian Michael King (1985, 1999). According to King,
Pakeha indigeneity has emerged out of a multi-generational presence in
New Zealand, an emotional attachment to the land, and values and culture
that are distinctly New Zealand (italics added). King's formulation
of a second indigenous people has had several detractors, with the key
concern being that it minimises the legacy of colonialism and seems to
appropriate Maori claims to indigeneity (see, for example, Bell 2004).
The notion of majority group indigeneity continues to have considerable
popular and political appeal but is more likely to be expressed in the
nomenclature of New Zealander than Pakeha, for reasons noted below.
The Default Ethnic Option
A third perspective is that New Zealander ethnic identification
represents the default ethnic option. Research and public opinion have
shown a lack of consensus among members of the majority group about the
most appropriate label for their group (see, for example, Liu 2005,
Statistics New Zealand 1993, 2004). This is not a new phenomenon: the
problem of defining the ethnicity of the majority group was flagged as
an issue for ethnic classification and statistics as part of a review
undertaken in 1993 (Statistics New Zealand 1993). Given discontent with
the terms Pakeha, European and New Zealand European, New Zealander might
simply be seen as the most appropriate and comfortable option. But why
did labels that were once seen as acceptable in colloquial usage become
unacceptable or inappropriate statistical categories? The historical and
statistical record is replete with examples of Pakeha and European used
as descriptors of self and other. (11) However, from the late 1980s the
meaning of Pakeha seems to have changed, in part due to its usage in
political discourses setting out Maori grievances. Interestingly, Pakeha
as a social category is still popular among Maori, with Liu's
research showing Maori-identified New Zealanders prefer the label
Pakeha. for New Zealanders of European descent much more than those so
labelled.
Like Pakeha, the New Zealand European identifier has also been
subject to criticism, not because of negative connotations but because
it lacks a meaningful point of reference (King 1999, Statistics New
Zealand 2004). As a statistical term, New Zealand European first
appeared in the 1991 census, then as NZ European or Pakeha. in the 1996
census, reverting to NZ European in 2001. Despite European being the
only ethnic group in official statistics to be preceded by the New
Zealand identifier, critics have argued that it is too generic to serve
as a meaningful ethnic label, and/or is irrelevant for those with only
distant ties to the European continent. For now, many more people
continue to check the New Zealand European tick-box than write in a New
Zealander response, which suggests the former label resonates on some
level. However, the Canadian and Australian experiences suggest this may
change if a New Zealander tick-box is introduced in future.
CONCLUSION
In the settler states of North America and Australasia,
census-based enquiries into ethnicity are an integral tool of policy
makers. As the flagship of official statistics in many countries, the
census is also a site of inclusion and exclusion, where ethnicity and
ethnic groups are constructed, reconfigured or rendered invisible
(Kertzer and Arel 2002). As such, the emergence of national naming in
the censuses of Australia, Canada and New Zealand otters intriguing
insights into the socially constructed bases of ethnicity and ethnic
groups, and the ways in which shifting group relations at the
macro-level are implicated in shifting identification patterns at the
individual level. How individuals choose to identify themselves on a
census form may seem a deeply personal or perhaps a relatively
inconsequential matter, depending on how the form filler sees the
exercise. However, Bell (1996) reminds us that naming is never
"innocent". Rather, she argues, "what is at stake here is
more than personal preferences for this term or that, but significant
discursive struggles that both represent and constitute part of wider
political struggles being waged in our society on the basis of claims of
cultural identity."
By combining the theoretical literature with qualitative insights
from Canada and New Zealand we have sought to bring sociological
perspectives to bear on the questions: For whom does the New Zealander
ethnic designation resonate, and why? In so doing we have emphasised the
importance of the political context within which identification
decisions are made. As in Canada, the trend towards national naming in
New Zealand appears to be linked to processes that have drawn sharper
distinctions between indigenes, immigrants and settlers. To that end,
national naming seems to resonate most among people with
multi-generational ties to New Zealand but who are not of Maori descent,
and who live in areas where Europeans predominate. We note, however,
that for the majority of self-identified New Zealanders, it is unlikely
at this time that processes of attribution would lead them to be
designated New Zealander by others. More likely, European or Pakeha,
would be the signifier that springs to mind because the term New
Zealander is not yet (and might never be) bedded into the vernacular as
an ethnic descriptor of white New Zealanders. We have suggested that
national naming by majority group members may signal a rejection of
ethnicity, its configuration in the form of dominant group indigeneity,
a default ethnic option, a combination of these elements, or some other
trend. The answer cannot be discerned from census data, but hopefully
future research using more qualitative methods will provide
illumination.
One of the key substantive concerns to emerge from our analysis is
the selectivity of New Zealander ethnic identification. In Canada there
have been ongoing debates about whether or not ethnic data should be
collected and the potential for national naming in the census to be a
force for social division or cohesion (Howard-Hassman 1999, Jedwab
2003). In theory, if not in practice, national identity (as distinct
from legal citizenship) is an affiliation that everyone within the
nation can lay claim to, irrespective of symbolic or concrete ties to
communities of difference. Moreover, an ethnic group derives its meaning
vis-a-vis other groups, which necessitates boundary making, even if
those boundaries are porous and changeable. If the meaning of New
Zealander evolves to become an ethnic dimension of difference,
particularly one that is predominantly claimed by New Zealanders of
European descent, where does that leave those who do not lay claim to
New Zealander ethnicity? Do they become the outsiders? Should we be
concerned about that prospect? If the New Zealand census follows the
path of Australia and Canada, the prospect of a New Zealander tick-box
in future is not improbable. The statistical and substantive
implications of such a move are manifold, but are unfortunately beyond
the scope of this paper.
Finally, although we have emphasised the selective nature of
national naming, it may be that some, or even many, of the people who
identify as New Zealander conceive of their affiliation in inclusive
terms. Because processes of ethnic labelling and classification are
inherently political, the meanings associated with such categories are
unlikely to remain stable or uncontested. The New Zealander signifier,
once used by colonists as a synonym for Maori, but now apparently in
transition to denote homegrown New Zealanders of European/British
origins, exemplifies this process. However, patterns of New Zealander
identification, and their meanings, may yet expand to include more
diverse ancestries. Only the passage of time and generational distance
will tell if a more inclusive rendering will emerge.
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Tahu Kukutai (1)
Stanford University
Robert Didham
Institute of Policy Studies
Victoria University of Wellington
(1) An earlier version of this paper was presented at the
Conference on Social Statistics and Ethnic Diversity in Montreal in
December 2007. We would like to thank David Pearson and Eric Guimond for
their insightful comments on the conference paper, as well as two
anonymous reviewers for this journal. Any omissions or errors of fact
are ours alone. All correspondence can be directed to Tabu Kukutai at
tkukutaiatahatu.co.nz
(2) Based on historical patterns, the expected number of New
Zealander responses in 2006 was about 135,000, which was 300,000 lower
than the actual number recorded. People recording a New Zealander
response in 2006 were predominantly people in New Zealand at the time of
the 2001 census. The proportion of non-response to the ethnicity
question in 2006 (4.2%) was comparable with 2001 (4.0%).
(3) Prior to 1981 the ethnic origin question in the Canadian census
was specifically asked in relation to paternal ancestors and, from 1986
to 2001, in relation to ancestors generally (Statistics Canada 2002).
The New Zealand census help notes specifically state that the ethnic
group question concerns cultural identification, not ancestry. Response
patterns to the Maori ancestry and ethnic group questions suggest that
recognition of Maori descent is a determinant of Maori ethnic
self-identification, but not vice versa (Kukutai 2004).
(4) In the Australian context, Kunz and Costello (2003) describe
the potential effects of form design and question sequencing on ancestry
responses. In 2001 a number of ancestry tick-boxes, including Australian
and English, were listed on the census form. In that census the number
of people recording Australian ancestry surpassed English for the first
time. The questionnaire design also appeared to influence the ancestry
responses within the Aboriginal / Torres Strait Islander population. Of
those who responded to the ancestry question on the standard census
form, a mere 7% recorded Aboriginal ancestry, compared to 67% recording
Australian ancestry. Aboriginal origin peoples living in indigenous,
usually remote, areas completed a different census form, which did not
include an Australian tick-box. Among those people, 99% recorded
Aboriginal ancestry.
(5) The decision to separately code New Zealander responses was one
of the recommendations in the 2004 Review of the Measurement of
Ethnicity, which received more than 120 submissions (Statistics New
Zealand 2004). From 1991 through to 2001 New Zealander-type responses
were coded as European at level I of the ethnic classification and New
Zealand European at level 4, the most detailed listing. In 2006. New
Zealander responses were coded as a separately named category at level 4
of the classification, and included with the Other ethnic grouping at
level I (Statistics New Zealand 2005).
(6) This does not mean Maori lack an attachment to New Zealander as
a non-ethnic identity; e.g. national identity. When forced to choose
between New Zealander and Maori identity, several surveys have shown
that a significant number of Maori choose the former. In wave 1
(1995-1997) of Te Hoe Nuku Roa, the longitudinal study of Maori
households, respondents were asked "If you had to choose one of
these options that best describes you. which would you
choose'?". The majority (51%) selected "a Maori",
but a sizeable share (25%), opted for "a New Zealander" or
"'a Kiwi" (Te Hoe Nuku Roa Research Team 1999).
Similarly, a 2008 Marae Digipoll survey of 400 in the Maori electorate
of Hauraki-Waikato asked respondents to self-prioritise an identity. The
question asked: "'Do you think of yourself as....", with
response options including "'Maori first" (70.6%),
"New Zealander first" (17.2%), "'Both" (11.9%),
and "Don't know" (0.2%) (see TVNZ 2008). The non-specific
nature of the identity question in both surveys means we do not know on
what basis people responded. In both cases, respondents were defined as
Maori by descent rather than ethnic affiliation.
(7) In the 2006 census, 41,819 people who recorded a New Zealander
response also recorded Maori descent. Of those, only 11,854 also
reported Maori ethnicity.
(8) There is a strong age bias in this approach because most
children in families are young people. There may also be bias because of
our choice to restrict this comparison to two-parent families, when a
significant proportion of families in New Zealand have one co-residing
parent.
(9) Studies of shifts in ethnic identification (Coope and Piesse
1997) have shown significant inflows and outflows across the boundaries
of the Maori and Pacific ethnic groups. Our analysis is unable to
account for these sorts of flows; for example, an outflow of Maori to
New Zealander ma}' have been masked by an inflow to Maori from
other groups.
(10) Women who were British subjects and married a so-called
"race alien" (i.e. non-Maori. non-European) were exceptions to
this general rule and automatically lost their British status (Census
and Statistics Office 1925:111. Didham 2009).
(11) The term European was widely used as a racial descriptor for
individuals who were neither Maori nor "'race alien" in
the Census from 1874 through to the 1980s. Pakeha was largely absent
from official statistics but was often used and understood in workaday
and public life as a neutral descriptor for White New Zealanders. See.
for example, its usage in the National Party's election campaign
(McIntyre and Gardner 1971:412).
Table 1 New Zealander Responses1 to Census Ethnic Group Question,
1986-2006 censuses
% of total
Census year N population (2) % change
1986 20,313 0.6 --
1991 20,800 0.6 2.4
1996 58,600 1.7 181.7
2001 85,300 2.4 45.6
2006 429,429 11.1 403.4
(1) Respondents who reported a New Zealander-type response (e.g.
"New Zealander", "Kiwi") alone, or in combination with some other
ethnic group (e.g. "New Zealander" and "New Zealand European").
(2) Population specifying their ethnicity (N = 3,860,163).
Table 2 Level 1 Ethnic Categories, 2001 and 2006 Census
Level 1 category 2001 (1) 2006 (1) % change
European 2,871,429 (2) 2,609,589 -9.2
-2,786,129 (-6.3)
Maori 565,281 565,329 +7.4
Pacific peoples 231,801 265,974 +14.4
Asian 238,176 354,552 +49.3
MELAA 24,084 34,743 +44.3
Other 802 4,308,813 (3) --
(1) Based on total responses, which includes all responses given
for each ethnic category (e.g. a Maori and European response is
counted in both categories).
(2) Includes the 85,300 New Zealander responses.
(3) Includes the 429,429 New Zealander responses.
Table 3 Top 10 New Zealander Responses, Level 4, 2006 Census
% of New % of total
New Zealander responses (1) N Zealander population
(2)
New Zealander only 374,061 87.1 9.7
New Zealander / NZ European 27,897 6.5 0.7
New Zealander / NZ European / Maori 5,685 1.3 0.1
New Zealander / Maori 5,613 1.3 0.1
New Zealander / Chinese 1,500 0.3 0.0
New Zealander/ Indian 897 0.2 0.0
New Zealander / Samoan 879 0.2 0.0
New Zealander / Dutch 654 0.2 0.0
New Zealander / English 609 0.1 0.0
New Zealander / Cook Island Maori 465 0.1 0.0
Total New Zealander 429,429 99.1 10.6
(1) Level 4 ethnic group responses with New Zealander
(2) Population indicating their ethnicity (N = 3,860,163).
Table 4 Maori Ancestry by Age Group, New Zealander Responses and Total
Population, 2006 Census
Age group (years) % of New Zealander % of total population
0-4 17.5 30.4
5-9 18.1 29.3
10-14 17.0 27.7
15-19 14.6 24.8
20-24 13.2 20.4
25-29 13.1 20.1
30-34 12.0 18.4
35-39 11.1 16.5
40-44 10.2 15.3
45-49 8.4 14.0
50-54 7.2 12.6
55-59 6.2 10.7
60-64 5.1 9.5
65-69 5.2 9.2
70-74 4.7 7.6
75-79 4.0 5.4
80-84 3.4 3.9
85+ 2.1 3.4
All aces combined 10.7 18.1
Table 5 Geographic Region of Birth, New Zealander Responses and Total
Population, 2006 Census
New Zealander Total population
Geographic region of birth N % N %
New Zealand 401,142 94.4 2,960,217 77.1
United Kingdom 11,004 2.6 251,688 6.6
Europe 2,097 0.5 68,067 1.8
Pacific 4,386 1.0 198,594 3.5
Asia (1) 2,475 0.6 251,130 6.5
Other 3,915 0.9 110,064 2.2
Total (2) 425,002 100.0 3,839,760 100.00
(1) Includes South-East, North-East, and Southern and Central Asia.
(2) Limited to those who specified country of birth.
Table 6 Migrant Generation for Children in Two-Parent Families,
New Zealander Responses and Total Population, 2006 Census
New Zealander Total population
N % N %
1st generation
Child and parents born
overseas 888 1.1 96,336 12.3
2nd generation
Child born in NZ, both
parents born overseas 3,321 4.0 87,195 11.1
Child born in NZ, one
parent born in NZ 13,863 16.7 118,395 15.1
3rd generation
Child born in NZ, both
parents NZ born 64,773 78.2 481,494 61.5
Total * 82,845 100.0 783,420 100.0
* Only includes families where country of birth was recorded for
child and both parents.
