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 Chapman Valley (S) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Chapman Valley (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Chapman Valley (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional WA and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Chapman Valley (S), with comparison markers for Regional WA.
Australian
2021 count
650
% of total
21.1%
Change from 2016
-2.0pp
650
21.1%
-2.0pp
English
2021 count
646
% of total
21.0%
Change from 2016
+1.0pp
646
21.0%
+1.0pp
Irish
2021 count
135
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
135
4.4%
-0.3pp
Scottish
2021 count
134
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
134
4.3%
+0.7pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
75
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
+2.1pp
75
2.4%
+2.1pp
German
2021 count
73
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
73
2.4%
+0.6pp
Italian
2021 count
43
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
43
1.4%
+0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
24
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
24
0.8%
+0.3pp
South African
2021 count
13
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
13
0.4%
0.0pp
Maori
2021 count
12
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
12
0.4%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-2
-2.0pp
English
+82
+1.0pp
Irish
+2
-0.3pp
Scottish
+33
+0.7pp
Australian Aboriginal
+66
+2.1pp
German
+21
+0.6pp
Italian
+8
+0.2pp
Dutch
+10
+0.3pp
South African
+3
0.0pp
Maori
+2
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Chapman Valley (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional WA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 650 | 21.1% | 18.2% | 652 | 23.1% | 19.9% | -2 | -2.0pp |
| English | 646 | 21.0% | 20.0% | 564 | 20.0% | 19.7% | +82 | +1.0pp |
| Irish | 135 | 4.4% | 4.3% | 133 | 4.7% | 4.3% | +2 | -0.3pp |
| Scottish | 134 | 4.3% | 4.5% | 101 | 3.6% | 4.4% | +33 | +0.7pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 75 | 2.4% | 3.9% | 9 | 0.3% | 1.5% | +66 | +2.1pp |
| German | 73 | 2.4% | 1.7% | 52 | 1.8% | 1.7% | +21 | +0.6pp |
| Italian | 43 | 1.4% | 1.9% | 35 | 1.2% | 1.8% | +8 | +0.2pp |
| Dutch | 24 | 0.8% | 1.0% | 14 | 0.5% | 0.9% | +10 | +0.3pp |
| South African | 13 | 0.4% | 0.4% | 10 | 0.4% | 0.4% | +3 | 0.0pp |
| Maori | 12 | 0.4% | 0.6% | 10 | 0.4% | 0.6% | +2 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 3,083 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2,821 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +262 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).