Cultural diversity

Ancestry

About this topic

Ancestry describes a person's cultural association and ethnic background, and Census respondents can report more than one ancestry. It is a broader cultural measure than country of birth because it can reflect family heritage across generations.

This topic helps show the size and diversity of cultural groups in an area, including groups whose members were born in Australia. Because multiple ancestries can be reported, ancestry totals can exceed the total population, so it is best read with birthplace, language used at home, and religion.

Interpretation notes

  • People can report up to two ancestries, so category totals represent responses rather than a single unduplicated person count.
  • ABS advises that ancestry is best used with birthplace and language, because ancestry alone is a broad measure of ethnicity and cultural background.
  • The 2021 form added separate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mark boxes, so those categories need caution in over-time comparison.

Key insight

In 2021, the largest ancestry groups among residents in Collingwood Heights were English, Australian and Scottish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Collingwood Heights - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Collingwood Heights in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Albany (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Collingwood Heights, with comparison markers for Albany (C).

Collingwood Heights
Albany (C)

English

2021 count

368

% of total

53.0%

Change from 2016

+2.6pp

Australian

2021 count

300

% of total

43.2%

Change from 2016

+1.0pp

Scottish

2021 count

77

% of total

11.1%

Change from 2016

+0.3pp

Irish

2021 count

60

% of total

8.6%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

German

2021 count

36

% of total

5.2%

Change from 2016

+1.5pp

Dutch

2021 count

26

% of total

3.7%

Change from 2016

-1.6pp

Italian

2021 count

26

% of total

3.7%

Change from 2016

+0.2pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

22

% of total

3.2%

Change from 2016

+3.2pp

Welsh

2021 count

13

% of total

1.9%

Change from 2016

+0.3pp

Norwegian

2021 count

10

% of total

1.4%

Change from 2016

+1.4pp

Data table

Ancestry for Collingwood Heights. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Albany (C).

Ancestry for Collingwood Heights. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Albany (C).
Ancestry for Collingwood Heights. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Albany (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Albany (C)%Count%Albany (C)%Countpp
English36853.0%47.1%34450.4%47.3%+24+2.6pp
Australian30043.2%39.8%28842.2%39.7%+12+1.0pp
Scottish7711.1%10.1%7410.8%10.0%+3+0.3pp
Irish608.6%8.6%618.9%8.8%-1-0.3pp
German365.2%3.8%253.7%3.7%+11+1.5pp
Dutch263.7%3.7%365.3%3.6%-10-1.6pp
Italian263.7%3.5%243.5%3.2%+2+0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal223.2%3.2%00.0%0.4%+22+3.2pp
Welsh131.9%1.1%111.6%0.9%+2+0.3pp
Norwegian101.4%0.2%00.0%0.1%+10+1.4pp

Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).