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 Shorewell Park were Australian, English and Australian Aboriginal.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Shorewell Park - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Shorewell Park in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Burnie (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Shorewell Park, with comparison markers for Burnie (C).
Australian
2021 count
1,048
% of total
24.5%
Change from 2016
-1.9pp
1,048
24.5%
-1.9pp
English
2021 count
885
% of total
20.7%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
885
20.7%
-0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
241
% of total
5.6%
Change from 2016
+5.3pp
241
5.6%
+5.3pp
Irish
2021 count
190
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
190
4.4%
-0.4pp
Scottish
2021 count
166
% of total
3.9%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
166
3.9%
-0.1pp
German
2021 count
49
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
49
1.1%
-0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
23
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
23
0.5%
-0.3pp
Chinese
2021 count
14
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
14
0.3%
0.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
12
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
12
0.3%
0.0pp
Pakistani
2021 count
11
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
-
11
0.3%
-
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-998
-1.9pp
English
-764
-0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
+216
+5.3pp
Irish
-184
-0.4pp
Scottish
-143
-0.1pp
German
-47
-0.1pp
Dutch
-41
-0.3pp
Chinese
-8
0.0pp
Filipino
-9
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Shorewell Park. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Burnie (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Burnie (C)% | Count | % | Burnie (C)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 1,048 | 24.5% | 23.1% | 2,046 | 26.4% | 24.0% | -998 | -1.9pp |
| English | 885 | 20.7% | 21.5% | 1,649 | 21.3% | 22.5% | -764 | -0.6pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 241 | 5.6% | 3.8% | 25 | 0.3% | 0.2% | +216 | +5.3pp |
| Irish | 190 | 4.4% | 4.7% | 374 | 4.8% | 5.2% | -184 | -0.4pp |
| Scottish | 166 | 3.9% | 4.6% | 309 | 4.0% | 4.4% | -143 | -0.1pp |
| German | 49 | 1.1% | 1.7% | 96 | 1.2% | 1.7% | -47 | -0.1pp |
| Dutch | 23 | 0.5% | 0.8% | 64 | 0.8% | 0.6% | -41 | -0.3pp |
| Chinese | 14 | 0.3% | 0.5% | 22 | 0.3% | 0.4% | -8 | 0.0pp |
| Filipino | 12 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 21 | 0.3% | 0.2% | -9 | 0.0pp |
| Pakistani | 11 | 0.3% | 0.1% | - | - | 0.0% | - | - |
| Total | 4,281 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 7,758 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -3,477 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).