Falkland Islanders (fictional)

Falkland Islanders, also called Falklanders and nicknamed Kelpers or Felkies, are the people of the Patagonian state of the Falklands.

"Kelpers" is a nickname given to Falkland Islanders because the islands are surrounded by large seaweeds called kelp. This term is no longer used as commonly as it once was (largely because it is considered racist and insulting by some islanders when used by people from mainland Patagonia).

Ancestry
About 60 per cent are of British descent, primarily as a result of Scottish and Welsh immigration to the islands. The native-born inhabitants call themselves "Islanders"; the term "Kelpers", from the kelp which grows profusely around the islands, is still used in the Islands. Another term is "felkie", referencing both the Falklands name and selkies, creatures from Celtic and Scandinavian mythology capable of changing from seal to human form by shedding their skin. This is due to the elephant seals that live along the Falklandic coast. People from the mainland who have obtained Falklander status are known locally as 'belongers'.

20% of Islanders have ancestry from the Italian sub-region of Carnia, and speak either Italian, Friulian or Bavarian German as their language for communication in the home. A few Islanders are of French, Gibraltarian, Portuguese, American, and Scandinavian descent. Some are the descendants of whalers who reached the Islands during the last two centuries. There is also a small minority of South American, mainly Chilean and Argentine origin, and in more recent times many people from Canada have also come to work and live in the Islands.

Diaspora
Most Falklanders have chosen to move out of the islands to settle in the mainland. During the 19th century, around 1,500 Falklanders settled in the city of Gallegos, then part of the Southern Territory, to work there as sailors. Another 1,000 settled in New Dartmouth, Chubut, and around 2,000 settled in Port Davis. Today, the Falklandic diaspora in mainland Patagonia is concentrated in Gallegos.