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 Devonport (C) were English, Australian and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Devonport (C) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Devonport (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Tas. and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Devonport (C), with comparison markers for Regional Tas..
English
2021 count
11,743
% of total
22.5%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
11,743
22.5%
-0.4pp
Australian
2021 count
11,533
% of total
22.1%
Change from 2016
-1.5pp
11,533
22.1%
-1.5pp
Scottish
2021 count
2,385
% of total
4.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
2,385
4.6%
+0.1pp
Irish
2021 count
2,372
% of total
4.5%
Change from 2016
-0.8pp
2,372
4.5%
-0.8pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,743
% of total
3.3%
Change from 2016
+3.1pp
1,743
3.3%
+3.1pp
German
2021 count
797
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
797
1.5%
-0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
421
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
421
0.8%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
286
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
286
0.5%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
234
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
234
0.4%
0.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
227
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
227
0.4%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+452
-0.4pp
Australian
-114
-1.5pp
Scottish
+145
+0.1pp
Irish
-241
-0.8pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,653
+3.1pp
German
+10
-0.1pp
Dutch
+48
0.0pp
Chinese
+132
+0.2pp
Italian
+18
0.0pp
Filipino
+101
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Devonport (C). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Tas..
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Tas.% | Count | % | Regional Tas.% | Count | pp | |
| English | 11,743 | 22.5% | 22.3% | 11,291 | 22.9% | 22.3% | +452 | -0.4pp |
| Australian | 11,533 | 22.1% | 21.3% | 11,647 | 23.6% | 22.5% | -114 | -1.5pp |
| Scottish | 2,385 | 4.6% | 4.7% | 2,240 | 4.5% | 4.6% | +145 | +0.1pp |
| Irish | 2,372 | 4.5% | 4.9% | 2,613 | 5.3% | 5.1% | -241 | -0.8pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,743 | 3.3% | 2.7% | 90 | 0.2% | 0.2% | +1,653 | +3.1pp |
| German | 797 | 1.5% | 1.7% | 787 | 1.6% | 1.7% | +10 | -0.1pp |
| Dutch | 421 | 0.8% | 1.1% | 373 | 0.8% | 1.0% | +48 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 286 | 0.5% | 0.5% | 154 | 0.3% | 0.4% | +132 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 234 | 0.4% | 0.6% | 216 | 0.4% | 0.6% | +18 | 0.0pp |
| Filipino | 227 | 0.4% | 0.3% | 126 | 0.3% | 0.2% | +101 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 52,294 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 49,374 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,920 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).