family mausoleum in
Waikumete Cemetery,
Glen Eden As part of a large scale emigration in the 1840s, numerous Lebanese (mostly
Christians) migrated in great numbers out of
Lebanon to various destinations. Most emigrated to
Brazil and other
Latin American nations, particularly
Argentina,
Venezuela,
Colombia and
Ecuador. Many also went to the
United States,
Canada, the
United Kingdom, or the
United Arab Emirates and others to
Australia and
New Zealand. Thus, New Zealand's Lebanese population is one of the older established non-English speaking minorities in the country (though many Lebanese people now speak English, to a greater or lesser extent). In the 1890s, there were increasing numbers of Lebanese immigrants to New Zealand, part of the mass emigration from the area of the Lebanon that would become the modern Lebanese state, and also from the
Anti-Lebanon Mountains region of the border area with
Syria. Some Lebanese people had settled in
Auckland as early as 1890. The Lebanese blended into the community and attended local churches. Their language ability and entrepreneurial skills, along with a sense of belonging, gave them the confidence to integrate without losing their tradition and culture connection. Early Lebanese settler
Assid Abraham Corban and his family were instrumental in introducing commercial winemaking to New Zealand. The Corban family migrated to
West Auckland from
Dhour El Choueir in 1892, establishing
Corbans Wines at
Henderson in 1902. ==Religious diversity==