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 West Ballina were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
West Ballina - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for West Ballina in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Ballina (A) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for West Ballina, with comparison markers for Ballina (A).
English
2021 count
1,403
% of total
43.4%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
1,403
43.4%
+1.1pp
Australian
2021 count
1,306
% of total
40.4%
Change from 2016
-1.7pp
1,306
40.4%
-1.7pp
Irish
2021 count
356
% of total
11.0%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
356
11.0%
-0.7pp
Scottish
2021 count
346
% of total
10.7%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
346
10.7%
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
235
% of total
7.3%
Change from 2016
+6.6pp
235
7.3%
+6.6pp
German
2021 count
129
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
129
4.0%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
80
% of total
2.5%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
80
2.5%
+0.4pp
Dutch
2021 count
36
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
36
1.1%
0.0pp
New Zealander
2021 count
35
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
35
1.1%
+0.3pp
Filipino
2021 count
19
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
19
0.6%
+0.5pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+124
+1.1pp
Australian
+33
-1.7pp
Irish
+1
-0.7pp
Scottish
+32
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
+213
+6.6pp
German
+13
+0.2pp
Italian
+18
+0.4pp
Dutch
+3
0.0pp
New Zealander
+10
+0.3pp
Filipino
+15
+0.5pp
Data table
Ancestry for West Ballina. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Ballina (A).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Ballina (A)% | Count | % | Ballina (A)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 1,403 | 43.4% | 44.4% | 1,279 | 42.3% | 43.9% | +124 | +1.1pp |
| Australian | 1,306 | 40.4% | 39.3% | 1,273 | 42.1% | 40.1% | +33 | -1.7pp |
| Irish | 356 | 11.0% | 14.4% | 355 | 11.7% | 14.6% | +1 | -0.7pp |
| Scottish | 346 | 10.7% | 12.6% | 314 | 10.4% | 12.1% | +32 | +0.3pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 235 | 7.3% | 3.7% | 22 | 0.7% | 0.6% | +213 | +6.6pp |
| German | 129 | 4.0% | 4.6% | 116 | 3.8% | 4.4% | +13 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 80 | 2.5% | 3.3% | 62 | 2.1% | 2.9% | +18 | +0.4pp |
| Dutch | 36 | 1.1% | 1.5% | 33 | 1.1% | 1.4% | +3 | 0.0pp |
| New Zealander | 35 | 1.1% | 0.9% | 25 | 0.8% | 0.8% | +10 | +0.3pp |
| Filipino | 19 | 0.6% | 0.6% | 4 | 0.1% | 0.4% | +15 | +0.5pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).