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 Clarence Town were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Clarence Town - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Clarence Town in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Dungog (A) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Clarence Town, with comparison markers for Dungog (A).
Australian
2021 count
1,174
% of total
51.8%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
1,174
51.8%
+0.4pp
English
2021 count
994
% of total
43.9%
Change from 2016
+2.9pp
994
43.9%
+2.9pp
Scottish
2021 count
288
% of total
12.7%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
288
12.7%
-0.5pp
Irish
2021 count
230
% of total
10.2%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
230
10.2%
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
157
% of total
6.9%
Change from 2016
+6.4pp
157
6.9%
+6.4pp
German
2021 count
97
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
97
4.3%
+0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
37
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
37
1.6%
-0.3pp
Italian
2021 count
31
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
31
1.4%
+0.4pp
Polish
2021 count
21
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
21
0.9%
+0.4pp
Welsh
2021 count
15
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
15
0.7%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+149
+0.4pp
English
+177
+2.9pp
Scottish
+25
-0.5pp
Irish
+22
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+147
+6.4pp
German
+15
+0.2pp
Dutch
0
-0.3pp
Italian
+11
+0.4pp
Polish
+12
+0.4pp
Welsh
+1
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Clarence Town. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Dungog (A).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Dungog (A)% | Count | % | Dungog (A)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 1,174 | 51.8% | 48.4% | 1,025 | 51.4% | 48.2% | +149 | +0.4pp |
| English | 994 | 43.9% | 44.7% | 817 | 41.0% | 43.1% | +177 | +2.9pp |
| Scottish | 288 | 12.7% | 10.5% | 263 | 13.2% | 10.3% | +25 | -0.5pp |
| Irish | 230 | 10.2% | 11.6% | 208 | 10.4% | 11.2% | +22 | -0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 157 | 6.9% | 6.2% | 10 | 0.5% | 0.3% | +147 | +6.4pp |
| German | 97 | 4.3% | 4.9% | 82 | 4.1% | 5.1% | +15 | +0.2pp |
| Dutch | 37 | 1.6% | 0.8% | 37 | 1.9% | 0.9% | 0 | -0.3pp |
| Italian | 31 | 1.4% | 1.4% | 20 | 1.0% | 1.0% | +11 | +0.4pp |
| Polish | 21 | 0.9% | 0.6% | 9 | 0.5% | 0.4% | +12 | +0.4pp |
| Welsh | 15 | 0.7% | 0.5% | 14 | 0.7% | 0.6% | +1 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).