South Australia’s 47th Premier Peter Malinauskas is the first with a non-Anglo surname so it’s no surprise he’s always questioned about his heritage.
One assumption which always pops up is that Malinauskas has Greek roots. But does it?
Malinauskas’ paternal grandmother Eta was actually Hungarian. She survived World War II and escaped the post-war communist Hungarian state when she emigrated to Bathurst in New South Wales.
She married Peter Malinauskas Senior, a Lithuanian refugee, and the couple moved to Adelaide, later opening a fish and chip shop. Malinauskas’ mother’s forebears were middle-class Irish.
With this in mind, The Sydney Morning Herald reporter Stephen Brook asked Malinauskas how he felt about constant assumptions he is Greek and the SA Premier had to laugh.
“I’m pretty happy about it. Right. Particularly given that I’ve got quite a substantial Greek community with my electorate,” Malinauskas answered.
READ MORE: South Australia’s Premier welcomes Greece’s Deputy Defence Minister.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald.
