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 Darwin (C) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Darwin (C) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Darwin (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Darwin and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Darwin (C), with comparison markers for Greater Darwin.
English
2021 count
20,247
% of total
12.6%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
20,247
12.6%
-0.5pp
Australian
2021 count
19,447
% of total
12.1%
Change from 2016
-1.9pp
19,447
12.1%
-1.9pp
Irish
2021 count
6,989
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
6,989
4.3%
-0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
6,377
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
+3.2pp
6,377
4.0%
+3.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
5,716
% of total
3.5%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
5,716
3.5%
-0.2pp
Chinese
2021 count
4,633
% of total
2.9%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
4,633
2.9%
+0.2pp
Filipino
2021 count
4,182
% of total
2.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
4,182
2.6%
+0.1pp
Greek
2021 count
3,216
% of total
2.0%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
3,216
2.0%
-0.1pp
German
2021 count
3,052
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
3,052
1.9%
-0.1pp
Indian
2021 count
3,022
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
3,022
1.9%
+0.2pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
-456
-0.5pp
Australian
-2,640
-1.9pp
Irish
-699
-0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
+5,097
+3.2pp
Scottish
-86
-0.2pp
Chinese
+312
+0.2pp
Filipino
+266
+0.1pp
Greek
-63
-0.1pp
German
-139
-0.1pp
Indian
+356
+0.2pp
Data table
Ancestry for Darwin (C). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Darwin.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Darwin% | Count | % | Greater Darwin% | Count | pp | |
| English | 20,247 | 12.6% | 13.8% | 20,703 | 13.1% | 14.3% | -456 | -0.5pp |
| Australian | 19,447 | 12.1% | 14.4% | 22,087 | 14.0% | 16.4% | -2,640 | -1.9pp |
| Irish | 6,989 | 4.3% | 4.3% | 7,688 | 4.9% | 4.9% | -699 | -0.6pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 6,377 | 4.0% | 4.5% | 1,280 | 0.8% | 0.8% | +5,097 | +3.2pp |
| Scottish | 5,716 | 3.5% | 3.7% | 5,802 | 3.7% | 3.9% | -86 | -0.2pp |
| Chinese | 4,633 | 2.9% | 2.1% | 4,321 | 2.7% | 2.0% | +312 | +0.2pp |
| Filipino | 4,182 | 2.6% | 2.5% | 3,916 | 2.5% | 2.1% | +266 | +0.1pp |
| Greek | 3,216 | 2.0% | 1.4% | 3,279 | 2.1% | 1.4% | -63 | -0.1pp |
| German | 3,052 | 1.9% | 2.1% | 3,191 | 2.0% | 2.2% | -139 | -0.1pp |
| Indian | 3,022 | 1.9% | 1.4% | 2,666 | 1.7% | 1.2% | +356 | +0.2pp |
| Total | 161,044 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 157,568 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +3,476 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).