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 Charters Towers (R) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Charters Towers (R) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Charters Towers (R) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Qld and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Charters Towers (R), with comparison markers for Regional Qld.
Australian
2021 count
4,934
% of total
20.9%
Change from 2016
-4.1pp
4,934
20.9%
-4.1pp
English
2021 count
4,351
% of total
18.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
4,351
18.5%
0.0pp
Irish
2021 count
1,301
% of total
5.5%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
1,301
5.5%
-0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,071
% of total
4.5%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
1,071
4.5%
-0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
972
% of total
4.1%
Change from 2016
+3.5pp
972
4.1%
+3.5pp
German
2021 count
567
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
567
2.4%
-0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
283
% of total
1.2%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
283
1.2%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
140
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
140
0.6%
+0.1pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
133
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
133
0.6%
+0.5pp
Filipino
2021 count
81
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
81
0.3%
0.0pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-999
-4.1pp
English
-40
0.0pp
Irish
-62
-0.2pp
Scottish
-28
-0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
+835
+3.5pp
German
-37
-0.1pp
Italian
+4
0.0pp
Chinese
+20
+0.1pp
Torres Strait Islander
+120
+0.5pp
Filipino
-1
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Charters Towers (R). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Qld.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 4,934 | 20.9% | 17.7% | 5,933 | 25.0% | 18.8% | -999 | -4.1pp |
| English | 4,351 | 18.5% | 19.8% | 4,391 | 18.5% | 19.6% | -40 | 0.0pp |
| Irish | 1,301 | 5.5% | 5.5% | 1,363 | 5.7% | 5.9% | -62 | -0.2pp |
| Scottish | 1,071 | 4.5% | 5.2% | 1,099 | 4.6% | 5.2% | -28 | -0.1pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 972 | 4.1% | 2.6% | 137 | 0.6% | 0.6% | +835 | +3.5pp |
| German | 567 | 2.4% | 3.2% | 604 | 2.5% | 3.3% | -37 | -0.1pp |
| Italian | 283 | 1.2% | 1.6% | 279 | 1.2% | 1.5% | +4 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 140 | 0.6% | 0.8% | 120 | 0.5% | 0.8% | +20 | +0.1pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 133 | 0.6% | 0.6% | 13 | 0.1% | 0.3% | +120 | +0.5pp |
| Filipino | 81 | 0.3% | 0.6% | 82 | 0.3% | 0.5% | -1 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 23,567 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 23,765 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -198 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).