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 Bookaar were English, Australian and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Bookaar - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Bookaar in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Corangamite (S) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Bookaar, with comparison markers for Corangamite (S).

Bookaar
Corangamite (S)

English

2021 count

72

% of total

23.5%

Change from 2016

+12.0pp

Australian

2021 count

56

% of total

18.2%

Change from 2016

-1.0pp

Irish

2021 count

35

% of total

11.4%

Change from 2016

-

Scottish

2021 count

18

% of total

5.9%

Change from 2016

-

Data table

Ancestry for Bookaar. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Corangamite (S).

Ancestry for Bookaar. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Corangamite (S).
Ancestry for Bookaar. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Corangamite (S).
Category20212016Change
Count%Corangamite (S)%Count%Corangamite (S)%Countpp
English7223.5%20.1%311.5%19.8%+69+12.0pp
Australian5618.2%22.2%519.2%22.2%+51-1.0pp
Irish3511.4%7.5%--7.4%--
Scottish185.9%6.5%--6.2%--
Total307100.0%100.0%26100.0%100.0%+2810.0pp

Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).