Ethnic identity
In the New Zealand census, people were asked to indicate the ethnic group or groups with which they identified. The numbers include those who indicated more than one group.
- Arab: 2,607 (2006); 2,916 (2013); 2,994 (2018)
- Assyrian: 1,683 (2006); 1,497 (2013); 1,293 (2018)
- Iranian/Persian: 2,895 (2006); 3,198 (2013); 4,425 (2018)
- Iraqi: 3,222 (2006); 2,586 (2013); 2,688 (2018)
- Lebanese: 999 (2006); 1,044 (2013); 1,278 (2018)
Country of birth
The New Zealand census figures listed here show the number of residents born in countries of the Middle East.
Arabia
- 1881 census: 1
- 1921 census: 4
Saudi Arabia
- 2001 census: 258
- 2006 census: 630
- 2013 census: 1,881
- 2018 census: 1,848
Persia
- 1881 census: 2
- 1921 census: 8
- 1951 census: 20
Iran
- 2001 census: 1,980
- 2006 census: 2,793
- 2013 census: 3,081
- 2018 census: 4,563
Syria
- 1921 census: 338
- 1951 census: 48
- 2001 census: 243
- 2006 census: 354
- 2013 census: 393
- 2018 census: 1,329
Turkey
- 1921 census: 21
- 1951 census: 28
- 1976 census: 201
- 2001 census: 396
- 2006 census: 603
- 2013 census: 810
- 2018 census: 1,134
Lebanon
- 1951 census: 204
- 1976 census: 211
- 2001 census: 408
- 2006 census: 411
- 2013 census: 423
- 2018 census: 561
Jordan
- 1951 census: 2
- 2001 census: 216
- 2006 census: 348
- 2013 census: 462
- 2018 census: 744
Bahrain
- 2001 census: 192
- 2006 census: 291
- 2013 census: 255
- 2018 census: 345
Iraq
- 2001 census: 4,848
- 2006 census: 6,024
- 2013 census: 5,481
- 2018 census: 5,757
Kuwait
- 2001 census: 456
- 2006 census: 606
- 2013 census: 600
- 2018 census: 759
Oman
- 2001 census: 78
- 2006 census: 285
- 2013 census: 294
- 2018 census: 402
Palestine
- 2001 census: 123
- 2006 census: 108
- 2013 census: 162
- 2018 census: 234
Qatar
- 2001 census: 48
- 2006 census: 72
- 2013 census: 99
- 2018 census: 213
United Arab Emirates
- 2001 census: 411
- 2006 census: 747
- 2013 census: 918
- 2018 census: 1,626
Yemen
- 2001 census: 66
- 2006 census: 81
- 2013 census: 84
- 2018 census: 144