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 Mira Mar were English, Australian and Scottish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Mira Mar - Total persons (Usual residence)

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

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Mira Mar, with comparison markers for Albany (C).

Mira Mar
Albany (C)

English

2021 count

872

% of total

46.1%

Change from 2016

-0.7pp

Australian

2021 count

691

% of total

36.6%

Change from 2016

-2.5pp

Scottish

2021 count

205

% of total

10.8%

Change from 2016

-0.1pp

Irish

2021 count

199

% of total

10.5%

Change from 2016

-0.1pp

Italian

2021 count

81

% of total

4.3%

Change from 2016

+1.1pp

German

2021 count

80

% of total

4.2%

Change from 2016

-0.2pp

Dutch

2021 count

63

% of total

3.3%

Change from 2016

+0.9pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

55

% of total

2.9%

Change from 2016

-

Filipino

2021 count

31

% of total

1.6%

Change from 2016

-1.8pp

Chinese

2021 count

30

% of total

1.6%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Data table

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

Ancestry for Mira Mar. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Albany (C).
Ancestry for Mira Mar. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Albany (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Albany (C)%Count%Albany (C)%Countpp
English87246.1%47.1%82346.8%47.3%+49-0.7pp
Australian69136.6%39.8%68739.1%39.7%+4-2.5pp
Scottish20510.8%10.1%19110.9%10.0%+14-0.1pp
Irish19910.5%8.6%18610.6%8.8%+13-0.1pp
Italian814.3%3.5%563.2%3.2%+25+1.1pp
German804.2%3.8%774.4%3.7%+3-0.2pp
Dutch633.3%3.7%432.4%3.6%+20+0.9pp
Australian Aboriginal552.9%3.2%--0.4%--
Filipino311.6%1.9%603.4%1.6%-29-1.8pp
Chinese301.6%0.8%211.2%0.7%+9+0.4pp

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