To be staggered that >95% of the population of Wales is White?

[ColeHawlings]

Or, I should say, that it was at the time of the 2011 census (almost 94% White British and Irish combined).

I had absolutely no idea that it was so high.

I vaguely thought that, like Liverpool, parts of Wales had been at the vanguard of multiculturalism, for seafaring reasons.

Am I just thinking too much of Cardiff?

The 2001 census figure was 97.9% (all white groups), so there has been recent movement from an even more staggering statistic.

The middle bit of Wales is pretty much empty. So it's 90 odd percent of not that many people.

I am a little surprised. I live in the second city and went to senior school here in the 1990s. Back then my school was 100% white. It seems very different now, looking at the diversity in my DCs classes.

Isn't that like being surprised that 95% of the population of India are Indian? Or 95% of the population of Australia are Australian? Even though mate Dave from Portsmouth lives there?

(Entirely made up statistics btw)

There are some very diverse cities in Britain but the very rural bits are far less diverse. Like in Australia, when my mate Dave moved to Sydney, where the work and the other expats/immigrants live.

The middle bit of Wales is pretty much empty. So it's 90 odd percent of not that many people

Ha. The figure for Powys is even higher - more than 99% ( )

It must be a polarisation between the cities and everywhere else Temp

My city is probably the same. Rare to see a non white face. I can go 20 miles away and it's rare to see a white face in certain parts of that much bigger city.

I think that immigration to certain cities and the fact people "like to stay in places they feel comfortable" would account for that.

People who live in large multi cultural cities might not appreciate that many parts of the UK do not have such a diverse population.

Isn't that like being surprised that 95% of the population of India are Indian? Or 95% of the population of Australia are Australian?

Erm.

When I lived in London, I was always vaguely taken aback at how tiny a percentage of the entire UK population was non-White. Now that I've moved out of London to the country, I realise how ethnic diversity is really concentrated in relatively few urban areas.

My village is close to a big, very ethnically diverse city, but go even five mikes out of the city centre and you're abruptly in 100% white territory. And it's particularly noticeable that even free places (parks, open farm days etc) and very cheap activities which are barely outside the outer suburbs and easily accessible on public transport, attract almost no ethnic minorities, despite those groups in fact being almost 50% of the nearby urban population.

People who live in large multi cultural cities might not appreciate that many parts of the UK do not have such a diverse population.

Well, maybe, but I have relatives in Cornwall and on Dartmoor so I don't expect everywhere to look like Harlesden.

I think it's the 'whole country' part that has floored me Orlando.

I used to live in rural North Yorkshire. My first experience of different cultures was when I moved to London. The 2 places couldn't be more different.

That's true about the fact you rarely see non white people engaging in activities say in the National Parks. I know there have been schemes to try to attract more people from different backgrounds to the National Parks.

Try rural Scotland. I can think of 2 non whites in a huge geographical area, although population is sparser in these parts.

In Northern Ireland I think it's over 99% of the population are white.

Have you ever been to Wales? Aside from Cardiff?

North Wales, central Wales - lots of people but not very diverse.

Isn't that like being surprised that 95% of the population of India are Indian? Or 95% of the population of Australia are Australian? Even though mate Dave from Portsmouth lives there?

More like surprise that 95% of the population of Dheli are Indian or 95% of the population of Malawi are Malawanese ditto practically everywhere....

"Now that I've moved out of London to the country, I realise how ethnic diversity is really concentrated in relatively few urban areas."

Agree.

Why are you surprised? Genuine question. The figures are what they are. Are you making assumptions about the reasons behind these figures? Are you comparing with other parts of the world with different historical and economical backgrounds?

Yes Orlando - plenty - but I imagined it would average out at something

Someone who was a lecturer at University made a comment to me about this - she wanted a more diverse student population but she made the point "Would you want to move to a place where you were the only person like that?"

I think it's also interesting if you look at cities and the ethnic mix.

I suspect London is split as well - with some areas being 90% non white, some areas being 95% white. As are other major cities.

Are you making assumptions about the reasons behind these figures? Are you comparing with other parts of the world with different historical and economical backgrounds?

Oh here we go.

No I'm not. I'm still just sitting here surprised. I really haven't progressed much beyond that.

Apart from, as I said upthread, the seafaring, early multicultural communities around Tiger Bay etc giving me a vague background notion that SOME parts of Wales had a headstart on multiculturalism, and an almost subconscious idea that that would have had some ongoing effect.

Yes! People do it and have done it since literally the dawn of time Orlando

Why the obsession with the colour of skin? Some of those 'white' people may also be poets, adulterers, great cooks, worried parents, widely traveled, suffering a life-threatening disease, thieves or amazingly funny.

I genuinely don't understand this English (metropolitan? not been abroad much?) desire to comment with surprise (and not always positively) on the whiteness of their fellow man.

I think if there were constant exclamations about other ethnicities, words would be had.

Personally, I can think of many ways to view people that have nothing at all to do with skin colour, but then I spent all my life in other countries, particularly schooling and frankly it never once mattered.

whats your point cole, do you want more multi cultural diversity in wales?

Cardiff is very diverse as is newport. I live by the Severn bridge and its very'white' here, in fact all the people that run the ethnic takeaways all live in newport/Cardiff! I work in an Indian resturant and my bosses, all the kitchen staff and the Indian waiters all travel from Cardiff!
In my kids school there are only 2 families that aren't white British, one set of siblings are fostered by a white Family and the others parents are a GP and a surgeon.
It's sad in a way as they aren't exposed to as much multi culture as I would like.

Not at all surprising. 82% of the UK population are white, with most ethnic groups congregating in larger cities.

I grew up in Derbyshire and the only non-White children at my secondary school owned the Chinese take away. In fact, I live in South Birmingham now (so theoretically a very culturally diverse area) and on my street of approx 120 houses there are around 5 or 6 houses with someone living in them who is not white.