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 Dungog were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Dungog - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Dungog in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Dungog (A) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Dungog, with comparison markers for Dungog (A).
Australian
2021 count
940
% of total
47.4%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
940
47.4%
+0.2pp
English
2021 count
902
% of total
45.5%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
902
45.5%
+0.6pp
Irish
2021 count
251
% of total
12.7%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
251
12.7%
+0.8pp
Scottish
2021 count
183
% of total
9.2%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
183
9.2%
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
181
% of total
9.1%
Change from 2016
+8.6pp
181
9.1%
+8.6pp
German
2021 count
88
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
88
4.4%
-0.5pp
Italian
2021 count
22
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
22
1.1%
+0.6pp
Welsh
2021 count
13
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
13
0.7%
+0.3pp
Dutch
2021 count
13
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
13
0.7%
+0.5pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
12
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-
12
0.6%
-
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-15
+0.2pp
English
-7
+0.6pp
Irish
+11
+0.8pp
Scottish
-11
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
+171
+8.6pp
German
-11
-0.5pp
Italian
+12
+0.6pp
Welsh
+4
+0.3pp
Dutch
+9
+0.5pp
Polish
0
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Dungog. 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 | 940 | 47.4% | 48.4% | 955 | 47.2% | 48.2% | -15 | +0.2pp |
| English | 902 | 45.5% | 44.7% | 909 | 44.9% | 43.1% | -7 | +0.6pp |
| Irish | 251 | 12.7% | 11.6% | 240 | 11.9% | 11.2% | +11 | +0.8pp |
| Scottish | 183 | 9.2% | 10.5% | 194 | 9.6% | 10.3% | -11 | -0.4pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 181 | 9.1% | 6.2% | 10 | 0.5% | 0.3% | +171 | +8.6pp |
| German | 88 | 4.4% | 4.9% | 99 | 4.9% | 5.1% | -11 | -0.5pp |
| Italian | 22 | 1.1% | 1.4% | 10 | 0.5% | 1.0% | +12 | +0.6pp |
| Welsh | 13 | 0.7% | 0.5% | 9 | 0.4% | 0.6% | +4 | +0.3pp |
| Dutch | 13 | 0.7% | 0.8% | 4 | 0.2% | 0.9% | +9 | +0.5pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 12 | 0.6% | 0.4% | - | - | - | - | - |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).