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 Chapel Hill (Qld) were English, Australian and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Chapel Hill (Qld) - Total persons (Usual residence)

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

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

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

Chapel Hill (Qld)
Brisbane (C)

English

2021 count

3,821

% of total

36.4%

Change from 2016

-2.4pp

Australian

2021 count

3,007

% of total

28.6%

Change from 2016

+0.1pp

Irish

2021 count

1,301

% of total

12.4%

Change from 2016

-1.8pp

Scottish

2021 count

1,180

% of total

11.2%

Change from 2016

-1.1pp

Chinese

2021 count

1,022

% of total

9.7%

Change from 2016

+2.1pp

German

2021 count

704

% of total

6.7%

Change from 2016

0.0pp

Indian

2021 count

322

% of total

3.1%

Change from 2016

+0.7pp

South African

2021 count

238

% of total

2.3%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Italian

2021 count

225

% of total

2.1%

Change from 2016

-0.1pp

Dutch

2021 count

213

% of total

2.0%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

Data table

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

Ancestry for Chapel Hill (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Brisbane (C).
Ancestry for Chapel Hill (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Brisbane (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Brisbane (C)%Count%Brisbane (C)%Countpp
English3,82136.4%33.3%3,92638.8%33.6%-105-2.4pp
Australian3,00728.6%27.9%2,88728.5%28.1%+120+0.1pp
Irish1,30112.4%12.3%1,43414.2%13.4%-133-1.8pp
Scottish1,18011.2%10.2%1,24212.3%10.3%-62-1.1pp
Chinese1,0229.7%7.7%7647.6%7.2%+258+2.1pp
German7046.7%5.2%6806.7%5.3%+240.0pp
Indian3223.1%3.7%2432.4%3.5%+79+0.7pp
South African2382.3%0.8%1821.8%0.7%+56+0.5pp
Italian2252.1%3.4%2212.2%3.2%+4-0.1pp
Dutch2132.0%1.5%2292.3%1.4%-16-0.3pp

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