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 Cobden were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Cobden - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Cobden in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Corangamite (S) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Cobden, with comparison markers for Corangamite (S).
Australian
2021 count
855
% of total
23.8%
Change from 2016
+2.1pp
855
23.8%
+2.1pp
English
2021 count
767
% of total
21.4%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
767
21.4%
-0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
221
% of total
6.2%
Change from 2016
+2.9pp
221
6.2%
+2.9pp
Scottish
2021 count
183
% of total
5.1%
Change from 2016
-
183
5.1%
-
Dutch
2021 count
46
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
-
46
1.3%
-
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
37
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
-
37
1.0%
-
German
2021 count
32
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
-
32
0.9%
-
New Zealander
2021 count
14
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
-
14
0.4%
-
Italian
2021 count
14
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
-
14
0.4%
-
Greek
2021 count
10
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
-
10
0.3%
-
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+835
+2.1pp
English
+747
-0.3pp
Irish
+218
+2.9pp
Data table
Ancestry for Cobden. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Corangamite (S).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Corangamite (S)% | Count | % | Corangamite (S)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 855 | 23.8% | 22.2% | 20 | 21.7% | 22.2% | +835 | +2.1pp |
| English | 767 | 21.4% | 20.1% | 20 | 21.7% | 19.8% | +747 | -0.3pp |
| Irish | 221 | 6.2% | 7.5% | 3 | 3.3% | 7.4% | +218 | +2.9pp |
| Scottish | 183 | 5.1% | 6.5% | - | - | 6.2% | - | - |
| Dutch | 46 | 1.3% | 1.3% | - | - | 1.2% | - | - |
| Australian Aboriginal | 37 | 1.0% | 0.5% | - | - | 0.0% | - | - |
| German | 32 | 0.9% | 1.5% | - | - | 1.5% | - | - |
| New Zealander | 14 | 0.4% | 0.4% | - | - | 0.3% | - | - |
| Italian | 14 | 0.4% | 0.6% | - | - | 0.6% | - | - |
| Greek | 10 | 0.3% | 0.1% | - | - | 0.1% | - | - |
| Total | 3,589 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 92 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +3,497 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).