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 Heidelberg were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Heidelberg - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Heidelberg in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Banyule (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Heidelberg, with comparison markers for Banyule (C).
English
2021 count
2,079
% of total
28.2%
Change from 2016
-0.8pp
2,079
28.2%
-0.8pp
Australian
2021 count
2,033
% of total
27.6%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
2,033
27.6%
+0.5pp
Irish
2021 count
888
% of total
12.1%
Change from 2016
-1.4pp
888
12.1%
-1.4pp
Italian
2021 count
807
% of total
11.0%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
807
11.0%
+0.7pp
Scottish
2021 count
669
% of total
9.1%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
669
9.1%
-0.1pp
Chinese
2021 count
506
% of total
6.9%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
506
6.9%
+0.6pp
Greek
2021 count
296
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
296
4.0%
+0.5pp
Indian
2021 count
260
% of total
3.5%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
260
3.5%
-0.6pp
German
2021 count
230
% of total
3.1%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
230
3.1%
-0.4pp
Filipino
2021 count
154
% of total
2.1%
Change from 2016
+1.0pp
154
2.1%
+1.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+271
-0.8pp
Australian
+347
+0.5pp
Irish
+47
-1.4pp
Italian
+166
+0.7pp
Scottish
+98
-0.1pp
Chinese
+114
+0.6pp
Greek
+81
+0.5pp
Indian
+4
-0.6pp
German
+11
-0.4pp
Filipino
+86
+1.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Heidelberg. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Banyule (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Banyule (C)% | Count | % | Banyule (C)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 2,079 | 28.2% | 31.3% | 1,808 | 29.0% | 31.6% | +271 | -0.8pp |
| Australian | 2,033 | 27.6% | 29.1% | 1,686 | 27.1% | 29.0% | +347 | +0.5pp |
| Irish | 888 | 12.1% | 12.2% | 841 | 13.5% | 13.2% | +47 | -1.4pp |
| Italian | 807 | 11.0% | 10.5% | 641 | 10.3% | 10.1% | +166 | +0.7pp |
| Scottish | 669 | 9.1% | 9.6% | 571 | 9.2% | 9.4% | +98 | -0.1pp |
| Chinese | 506 | 6.9% | 7.0% | 392 | 6.3% | 6.0% | +114 | +0.6pp |
| Greek | 296 | 4.0% | 4.1% | 215 | 3.5% | 3.8% | +81 | +0.5pp |
| Indian | 260 | 3.5% | 2.6% | 256 | 4.1% | 2.4% | +4 | -0.6pp |
| German | 230 | 3.1% | 3.3% | 219 | 3.5% | 3.5% | +11 | -0.4pp |
| Filipino | 154 | 2.1% | 0.9% | 68 | 1.1% | 0.7% | +86 | +1.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).