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 Colac-Otway (S) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Colac-Otway (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Colac-Otway (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Vic. and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Colac-Otway (S), with comparison markers for Regional Vic..
English
2021 count
9,151
% of total
20.4%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
9,151
20.4%
+0.4pp
Australian
2021 count
9,035
% of total
20.1%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
9,035
20.1%
-0.7pp
Irish
2021 count
3,455
% of total
7.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
3,455
7.7%
+0.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
2,887
% of total
6.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
2,887
6.4%
0.0pp
German
2021 count
830
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
830
1.9%
+0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
595
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
595
1.3%
0.0pp
Dutch
2021 count
412
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
412
0.9%
+0.1pp
Chinese
2021 count
357
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
357
0.8%
+0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
318
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
318
0.7%
+0.6pp
Filipino
2021 count
140
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
140
0.3%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+773
+0.4pp
Australian
+311
-0.7pp
Irish
+250
+0.1pp
Scottish
+211
0.0pp
German
+74
+0.1pp
Italian
+62
0.0pp
Dutch
+63
+0.1pp
Chinese
+197
+0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
+295
+0.6pp
Filipino
+62
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Colac-Otway (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 | |
| English | 9,151 | 20.4% | 20.3% | 8,378 | 20.0% | 20.0% | +773 | +0.4pp |
| Australian | 9,035 | 20.1% | 19.6% | 8,724 | 20.8% | 20.0% | +311 | -0.7pp |
| Irish | 3,455 | 7.7% | 6.4% | 3,205 | 7.6% | 6.5% | +250 | +0.1pp |
| Scottish | 2,887 | 6.4% | 5.8% | 2,676 | 6.4% | 5.7% | +211 | 0.0pp |
| German | 830 | 1.9% | 2.3% | 756 | 1.8% | 2.3% | +74 | +0.1pp |
| Italian | 595 | 1.3% | 1.9% | 533 | 1.3% | 1.8% | +62 | 0.0pp |
| Dutch | 412 | 0.9% | 1.1% | 349 | 0.8% | 1.1% | +63 | +0.1pp |
| Chinese | 357 | 0.8% | 0.6% | 160 | 0.4% | 0.5% | +197 | +0.4pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 318 | 0.7% | 1.0% | 23 | 0.1% | 0.1% | +295 | +0.6pp |
| Filipino | 140 | 0.3% | 0.4% | 78 | 0.2% | 0.3% | +62 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 44,862 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 41,927 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,935 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).