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 West Leederville were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
West Leederville - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for West Leederville in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Cambridge (T) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for West Leederville, with comparison markers for Cambridge (T).
English
2021 count
1,581
% of total
36.4%
Change from 2016
+1.4pp
1,581
36.4%
+1.4pp
Australian
2021 count
1,225
% of total
28.2%
Change from 2016
+1.0pp
1,225
28.2%
+1.0pp
Irish
2021 count
561
% of total
12.9%
Change from 2016
+1.2pp
561
12.9%
+1.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
495
% of total
11.4%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
495
11.4%
+0.3pp
Italian
2021 count
282
% of total
6.5%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
282
6.5%
-0.4pp
Chinese
2021 count
223
% of total
5.1%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
223
5.1%
+0.6pp
Indian
2021 count
148
% of total
3.4%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
148
3.4%
-0.3pp
German
2021 count
135
% of total
3.1%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
135
3.1%
-0.5pp
Dutch
2021 count
110
% of total
2.5%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
110
2.5%
+0.7pp
Greek
2021 count
84
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
84
1.9%
+0.3pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+208
+1.4pp
Australian
+157
+1.0pp
Irish
+101
+1.2pp
Scottish
+60
+0.3pp
Italian
+13
-0.4pp
Chinese
+48
+0.6pp
Indian
+4
-0.3pp
German
-7
-0.5pp
Dutch
+39
+0.7pp
Greek
+21
+0.3pp
Data table
Ancestry for West Leederville. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Cambridge (T).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Cambridge (T)% | Count | % | Cambridge (T)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 1,581 | 36.4% | 39.3% | 1,373 | 35.0% | 38.7% | +208 | +1.4pp |
| Australian | 1,225 | 28.2% | 31.9% | 1,068 | 27.2% | 32.1% | +157 | +1.0pp |
| Irish | 561 | 12.9% | 13.1% | 460 | 11.7% | 13.0% | +101 | +1.2pp |
| Scottish | 495 | 11.4% | 10.6% | 435 | 11.1% | 10.5% | +60 | +0.3pp |
| Italian | 282 | 6.5% | 6.2% | 269 | 6.9% | 6.1% | +13 | -0.4pp |
| Chinese | 223 | 5.1% | 6.3% | 175 | 4.5% | 4.8% | +48 | +0.6pp |
| Indian | 148 | 3.4% | 2.7% | 144 | 3.7% | 2.3% | +4 | -0.3pp |
| German | 135 | 3.1% | 3.5% | 142 | 3.6% | 3.5% | -7 | -0.5pp |
| Dutch | 110 | 2.5% | 2.3% | 71 | 1.8% | 1.9% | +39 | +0.7pp |
| Greek | 84 | 1.9% | 2.0% | 63 | 1.6% | 1.9% | +21 | +0.3pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).