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 Cook (S) were Australian, English and Australian Aboriginal.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Cook (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Cook (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Qld and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Cook (S), with comparison markers for Regional Qld.
Australian
2021 count
1,329
% of total
14.8%
Change from 2016
-3.2pp
1,329
14.8%
-3.2pp
English
2021 count
1,280
% of total
14.3%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
1,280
14.3%
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
865
% of total
9.6%
Change from 2016
+4.5pp
865
9.6%
+4.5pp
Irish
2021 count
398
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
398
4.4%
-0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
324
% of total
3.6%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
324
3.6%
-0.2pp
German
2021 count
213
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
213
2.4%
-0.2pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
100
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
100
1.1%
+0.6pp
Italian
2021 count
78
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
78
0.9%
-0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
53
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
53
0.6%
0.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
47
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
47
0.5%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-186
-3.2pp
English
+59
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+439
+4.5pp
Irish
+7
-0.2pp
Scottish
+8
-0.2pp
German
-8
-0.2pp
Torres Strait Islander
+59
+0.6pp
Italian
-18
-0.2pp
Dutch
+2
0.0pp
Filipino
+4
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Cook (S). 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 | 1,329 | 14.8% | 17.7% | 1,515 | 18.0% | 18.8% | -186 | -3.2pp |
| English | 1,280 | 14.3% | 19.8% | 1,221 | 14.5% | 19.6% | +59 | -0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 865 | 9.6% | 2.6% | 426 | 5.1% | 0.6% | +439 | +4.5pp |
| Irish | 398 | 4.4% | 5.5% | 391 | 4.6% | 5.9% | +7 | -0.2pp |
| Scottish | 324 | 3.6% | 5.2% | 316 | 3.8% | 5.2% | +8 | -0.2pp |
| German | 213 | 2.4% | 3.2% | 221 | 2.6% | 3.3% | -8 | -0.2pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 100 | 1.1% | 0.6% | 41 | 0.5% | 0.3% | +59 | +0.6pp |
| Italian | 78 | 0.9% | 1.6% | 96 | 1.1% | 1.5% | -18 | -0.2pp |
| Dutch | 53 | 0.6% | 0.8% | 51 | 0.6% | 0.7% | +2 | 0.0pp |
| Filipino | 47 | 0.5% | 0.6% | 43 | 0.5% | 0.5% | +4 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 8,982 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 8,422 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +560 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).