Demographics
The population of Norfolk Island in the 2011 census was 2,302, which has declined since a high of 2,601 in 2001. 1,220 of the 2001 census night population were female, and 1,082 male. 78% of the population on census night were residents, with the remaining 22% visitors. 16% of the population were 14 years and under, 54% were 15 to 64 years and 24% were 65 years and over. The figures show an ageing population, with many people aged 20–34 having moved away from the island.
Most islanders are of either European-only (mostly British) or combined European-Tahitian ancestry, being descendants of the Bounty mutineers as well as more recent arrivals from Australia and New Zealand. About half of the islanders can trace their roots back to Pitcairn Island.
This common heritage has led to a limited number of surnames among the islanders — a limit constraining enough that the island's telephone directory also includes nicknames for many subscribers, such as Cane Toad, Dar Bizziebee, Lettuce Leaf, Goof, Paw Paw, Diddles, Rubber Duck, Carrots and Tarzan.
62% of islanders are Christians. After the death of the first chaplain Rev G.H.Nobbs in 1884, a Methodist church was formed and in 1891 a Seventh-day Adventist led by one of Nobbs' sons. Some unhappiness with G.H.Nobbs, the more organised and formal ritual of the Church of England service arising from the influence of the Melanesian Mission, decline in spirituality, the influence of visiting American whalers, literature sent by Christians overseas impressed by the Pitcairn story, and the adoption of Seventh-day Adventism by the descendants of the mutineers still on Pitcairn, all contributed to these developments. The Roman Catholic Church began work in 1957 and in the late 1990s a group left the former Methodist (then Uniting Church) and formed a charismatic fellowship. In 2011, 34% of the ordinary residents identified as Anglican, 13% as Uniting Church, 12% as Roman Catholic and 3% as Seventh-day Adventist. 9% were from other religions. 24% had no religion, and 7% did not state their religion. Typical ordinary congregations in any church do not exceed 30 local residents as of 2010. The three older denominations have good facilities. Ministers are usually short-term visitors.
Literacy is not recorded officially, but it can be assumed to be roughly at a par with Australia's literacy rate, as islanders attend a school which uses a New South Wales curriculum, before traditionally moving to the mainland for further study.
Islanders speak both English and a creole language known as Norfuk, a blend of 1700s English and Tahitian. The Norfuk language is decreasing in popularity as more tourists travel to the island and more young people leave for work and study reasons; however, there are efforts to keep it alive via dictionaries and the renaming of some tourist attractions to their Norfuk equivalents. In April 2005 it was declared a co-official language of the island. 32% of the total population reported speaking a language other than English in the 2011 census, and just under three-quarters of the ordinarily resident population could speak Norfuk.
Emigration is growing as many islanders take advantage of the close ties between Norfolk and Australia and New Zealand. The sole school on the island provides education to Australian Year 12; therefore, any student seeking to complete tertiary study must travel overseas. Additionally, the small economy of the island causes many skilled workers to emigrate as well.
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