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 Gumdale were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Gumdale - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Gumdale in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Brisbane (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Gumdale, with comparison markers for Brisbane (C).
English
2021 count
876
% of total
38.1%
Change from 2016
-1.7pp
876
38.1%
-1.7pp
Australian
2021 count
805
% of total
35.0%
Change from 2016
-2.7pp
805
35.0%
-2.7pp
Irish
2021 count
273
% of total
11.9%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
273
11.9%
-0.3pp
Scottish
2021 count
258
% of total
11.2%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
258
11.2%
-0.5pp
German
2021 count
133
% of total
5.8%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
133
5.8%
-0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
125
% of total
5.4%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
125
5.4%
+0.5pp
Chinese
2021 count
79
% of total
3.4%
Change from 2016
+1.5pp
79
3.4%
+1.5pp
Indian
2021 count
67
% of total
2.9%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
67
2.9%
+0.9pp
Dutch
2021 count
65
% of total
2.8%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
65
2.8%
+0.3pp
South African
2021 count
51
% of total
2.2%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
51
2.2%
+0.7pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+34
-1.7pp
Australian
+7
-2.7pp
Irish
+14
-0.3pp
Scottish
+10
-0.5pp
German
+7
-0.1pp
Italian
+21
+0.5pp
Chinese
+39
+1.5pp
Indian
+25
+0.9pp
Dutch
+13
+0.3pp
South African
+20
+0.7pp
Data table
Ancestry for Gumdale. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Brisbane (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Brisbane (C)% | Count | % | Brisbane (C)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 876 | 38.1% | 33.3% | 842 | 39.8% | 33.6% | +34 | -1.7pp |
| Australian | 805 | 35.0% | 27.9% | 798 | 37.7% | 28.1% | +7 | -2.7pp |
| Irish | 273 | 11.9% | 12.3% | 259 | 12.2% | 13.4% | +14 | -0.3pp |
| Scottish | 258 | 11.2% | 10.2% | 248 | 11.7% | 10.3% | +10 | -0.5pp |
| German | 133 | 5.8% | 5.2% | 126 | 5.9% | 5.3% | +7 | -0.1pp |
| Italian | 125 | 5.4% | 3.4% | 104 | 4.9% | 3.2% | +21 | +0.5pp |
| Chinese | 79 | 3.4% | 7.7% | 40 | 1.9% | 7.2% | +39 | +1.5pp |
| Indian | 67 | 2.9% | 3.7% | 42 | 2.0% | 3.5% | +25 | +0.9pp |
| Dutch | 65 | 2.8% | 1.5% | 52 | 2.5% | 1.4% | +13 | +0.3pp |
| South African | 51 | 2.2% | 0.8% | 31 | 1.5% | 0.7% | +20 | +0.7pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).