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 Belmont (Qld) were English, Australian and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Belmont (Qld) - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Belmont (Qld) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Brisbane (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Belmont (Qld), with comparison markers for Brisbane (C).

Belmont (Qld)
Brisbane (C)

English

2021 count

1,560

% of total

34.7%

Change from 2016

+0.3pp

Australian

2021 count

1,423

% of total

31.6%

Change from 2016

-2.1pp

Irish

2021 count

576

% of total

12.8%

Change from 2016

-0.1pp

Scottish

2021 count

500

% of total

11.1%

Change from 2016

+1.5pp

Chinese

2021 count

256

% of total

5.7%

Change from 2016

+1.6pp

Italian

2021 count

242

% of total

5.4%

Change from 2016

+0.2pp

German

2021 count

236

% of total

5.2%

Change from 2016

+0.1pp

Indian

2021 count

129

% of total

2.9%

Change from 2016

+0.2pp

Greek

2021 count

110

% of total

2.4%

Change from 2016

-0.2pp

New Zealander

2021 count

76

% of total

1.7%

Change from 2016

-0.4pp

Data table

Ancestry for Belmont (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Brisbane (C).

Ancestry for Belmont (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Brisbane (C).
Ancestry for Belmont (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Brisbane (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Brisbane (C)%Count%Brisbane (C)%Countpp
English1,56034.7%33.3%1,50434.4%33.6%+56+0.3pp
Australian1,42331.6%27.9%1,47633.7%28.1%-53-2.1pp
Irish57612.8%12.3%56312.9%13.4%+13-0.1pp
Scottish50011.1%10.2%4199.6%10.3%+81+1.5pp
Chinese2565.7%7.7%1784.1%7.2%+78+1.6pp
Italian2425.4%3.4%2295.2%3.2%+13+0.2pp
German2365.2%5.2%2235.1%5.3%+13+0.1pp
Indian1292.9%3.7%1192.7%3.5%+10+0.2pp
Greek1102.4%1.1%1152.6%1.1%-5-0.2pp
New Zealander761.7%1.2%922.1%1.3%-16-0.4pp

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