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 Rooty Hill were Filipino, Australian and English.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Rooty Hill - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Rooty Hill in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Blacktown (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Rooty Hill, with comparison markers for Blacktown (C).

Rooty Hill
Blacktown (C)

Filipino

2021 count

3,395

% of total

10.5%

Change from 2016

+9.5pp

Australian

2021 count

2,418

% of total

7.5%

Change from 2016

-9.2pp

English

2021 count

2,095

% of total

6.5%

Change from 2016

-8.6pp

Indian

2021 count

1,341

% of total

4.2%

Change from 2016

+2.7pp

Pakistani

2021 count

642

% of total

2.0%

Change from 2016

+1.8pp

Chinese

2021 count

518

% of total

1.6%

Change from 2016

+0.7pp

Samoan

2021 count

499

% of total

1.5%

Change from 2016

+0.1pp

Irish

2021 count

417

% of total

1.3%

Change from 2016

-2.4pp

Nepalese

2021 count

413

% of total

1.3%

Change from 2016

+1.3pp

Maltese

2021 count

389

% of total

1.2%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Data table

Ancestry for Rooty Hill. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Blacktown (C).

Ancestry for Rooty Hill. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Blacktown (C).
Ancestry for Rooty Hill. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Blacktown (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Blacktown (C)%Count%Blacktown (C)%Countpp
Filipino3,39510.5%4.5%1541.0%4.4%+3,241+9.5pp
Australian2,4187.5%9.5%2,62216.7%11.4%-204-9.2pp
English2,0956.5%8.4%2,36415.1%10.3%-269-8.6pp
Indian1,3414.2%6.8%2401.5%5.6%+1,101+2.7pp
Pakistani6422.0%0.9%390.2%0.7%+603+1.8pp
Chinese5181.6%2.2%1480.9%2.1%+370+0.7pp
Samoan4991.5%0.9%2121.4%0.9%+287+0.1pp
Irish4171.3%2.1%5763.7%2.8%-159-2.4pp
Nepalese4131.3%0.6%30.0%0.3%+410+1.3pp
Maltese3891.2%1.1%1110.7%1.3%+278+0.5pp
Total32,284100.0%100.0%15,690100.0%100.0%+16,5940.0pp

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