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 Campaspe (S) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Campaspe (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Campaspe (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Vic. and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Campaspe (S), with comparison markers for Regional Vic..
Australian
2021 count
16,889
% of total
21.8%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
16,889
21.8%
-0.6pp
English
2021 count
16,262
% of total
21.0%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
16,262
21.0%
+0.5pp
Irish
2021 count
4,633
% of total
6.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
4,633
6.0%
0.0pp
Scottish
2021 count
4,200
% of total
5.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
4,200
5.4%
0.0pp
German
2021 count
1,542
% of total
2.0%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
1,542
2.0%
+0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
1,301
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
1,301
1.7%
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,102
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
+1.3pp
1,102
1.4%
+1.3pp
Dutch
2021 count
530
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
530
0.7%
+0.1pp
Filipino
2021 count
403
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
403
0.5%
+0.2pp
Chinese
2021 count
237
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
237
0.3%
0.0pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+255
-0.6pp
English
+1,055
+0.5pp
Irish
+189
0.0pp
Scottish
+221
0.0pp
German
+116
+0.1pp
Italian
+68
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
+991
+1.3pp
Dutch
+49
+0.1pp
Filipino
+179
+0.2pp
Chinese
+49
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Campaspe (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Vic..
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Vic.% | Count | % | Regional Vic.% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 16,889 | 21.8% | 19.6% | 16,634 | 22.4% | 20.0% | +255 | -0.6pp |
| English | 16,262 | 21.0% | 20.3% | 15,207 | 20.5% | 20.0% | +1,055 | +0.5pp |
| Irish | 4,633 | 6.0% | 6.4% | 4,444 | 6.0% | 6.5% | +189 | 0.0pp |
| Scottish | 4,200 | 5.4% | 5.8% | 3,979 | 5.4% | 5.7% | +221 | 0.0pp |
| German | 1,542 | 2.0% | 2.3% | 1,426 | 1.9% | 2.3% | +116 | +0.1pp |
| Italian | 1,301 | 1.7% | 1.9% | 1,233 | 1.7% | 1.8% | +68 | 0.0pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,102 | 1.4% | 1.0% | 111 | 0.1% | 0.1% | +991 | +1.3pp |
| Dutch | 530 | 0.7% | 1.1% | 481 | 0.6% | 1.1% | +49 | +0.1pp |
| Filipino | 403 | 0.5% | 0.4% | 224 | 0.3% | 0.3% | +179 | +0.2pp |
| Chinese | 237 | 0.3% | 0.6% | 188 | 0.3% | 0.5% | +49 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 77,452 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 74,097 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +3,355 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).