Story: Biculturalism

Diwali festival, Wellington, 2010

Diwali festival, Wellington, 2010

Since 2002 the Wellington City Council has supported celebrations for the festival of Diwali, the start of the Hindu new year. Here Governor-General Sir Anand Satyanand (who is a Catholic) opens the 2010 festival by lighting a diya (earthenware oil lamp) at the altar of the elephant-headed god Ganesh. The frequency and prominence of events such as Diwali are a sign of New Zealand's increasingly multicultural society. However, this multiculturalism exists alongside – and is sometimes combined with – a developing biculturalism.

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How to cite this page:

Janine Hayward, 'Biculturalism - Continuing debates', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/32154/diwali-festival-wellington-2010 (accessed 20 April 2024)

Story by Janine Hayward, published 20 Jun 2012, reviewed & revised 10 Jan 2023 with assistance from Janine Hayward