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 Coonamble (A) were Australian, English and Australian Aboriginal.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Coonamble (A) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Coonamble (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Coonamble (A), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Australian
2021 count
1,511
% of total
40.5%
Change from 2016
-11.5pp
1,511
40.5%
-11.5pp
English
2021 count
1,125
% of total
30.1%
Change from 2016
-2.8pp
1,125
30.1%
-2.8pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,074
% of total
28.8%
Change from 2016
+27.4pp
1,074
28.8%
+27.4pp
Irish
2021 count
320
% of total
8.6%
Change from 2016
-1.0pp
320
8.6%
-1.0pp
Scottish
2021 count
279
% of total
7.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
279
7.5%
+0.1pp
German
2021 count
107
% of total
2.9%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
107
2.9%
-0.2pp
Indian
2021 count
32
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
32
0.9%
+0.5pp
Italian
2021 count
23
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
23
0.6%
-0.4pp
Chinese
2021 count
20
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
20
0.5%
0.0pp
Dutch
2021 count
18
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
18
0.5%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-528
-11.5pp
English
-165
-2.8pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,020
+27.4pp
Irish
-57
-1.0pp
Scottish
-9
+0.1pp
German
-13
-0.2pp
Indian
+15
+0.5pp
Italian
-15
-0.4pp
Chinese
-1
0.0pp
Dutch
-1
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Coonamble (A). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NSW.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 1,511 | 40.5% | 40.2% | 2,039 | 52.0% | 42.5% | -528 | -11.5pp |
| English | 1,125 | 30.1% | 40.9% | 1,290 | 32.9% | 40.8% | -165 | -2.8pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,074 | 28.8% | 6.1% | 54 | 1.4% | 0.8% | +1,020 | +27.4pp |
| Irish | 320 | 8.6% | 11.8% | 377 | 9.6% | 12.3% | -57 | -1.0pp |
| Scottish | 279 | 7.5% | 10.7% | 288 | 7.4% | 10.5% | -9 | +0.1pp |
| German | 107 | 2.9% | 4.2% | 120 | 3.1% | 4.3% | -13 | -0.2pp |
| Indian | 32 | 0.9% | 0.8% | 17 | 0.4% | 0.7% | +15 | +0.5pp |
| Italian | 23 | 0.6% | 2.8% | 38 | 1.0% | 2.6% | -15 | -0.4pp |
| Chinese | 20 | 0.5% | 1.0% | 21 | 0.5% | 1.0% | -1 | 0.0pp |
| Dutch | 18 | 0.5% | 1.4% | 19 | 0.5% | 1.3% | -1 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).