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 Esperance (S) were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Esperance (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Esperance (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional WA and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Esperance (S), with comparison markers for Regional WA.
Australian
2021 count
6,063
% of total
21.9%
Change from 2016
-1.3pp
6,063
21.9%
-1.3pp
English
2021 count
5,531
% of total
20.0%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
5,531
20.0%
+0.6pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,396
% of total
5.0%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
1,396
5.0%
+0.5pp
Irish
2021 count
1,184
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
1,184
4.3%
0.0pp
German
2021 count
634
% of total
2.3%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
634
2.3%
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
574
% of total
2.1%
Change from 2016
+1.8pp
574
2.1%
+1.8pp
Italian
2021 count
412
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
412
1.5%
+0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
213
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
213
0.8%
+0.2pp
New Zealander
2021 count
165
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
165
0.6%
-0.1pp
Maori
2021 count
137
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
137
0.5%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-526
-1.3pp
English
+7
+0.6pp
Scottish
+116
+0.5pp
Irish
-27
0.0pp
German
+58
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
+478
+1.8pp
Italian
+43
+0.2pp
Dutch
+37
+0.2pp
New Zealander
-28
-0.1pp
Maori
-5
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Esperance (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional WA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 6,063 | 21.9% | 18.2% | 6,589 | 23.2% | 19.9% | -526 | -1.3pp |
| English | 5,531 | 20.0% | 20.0% | 5,524 | 19.4% | 19.7% | +7 | +0.6pp |
| Scottish | 1,396 | 5.0% | 4.5% | 1,280 | 4.5% | 4.4% | +116 | +0.5pp |
| Irish | 1,184 | 4.3% | 4.3% | 1,211 | 4.3% | 4.3% | -27 | 0.0pp |
| German | 634 | 2.3% | 1.7% | 576 | 2.0% | 1.7% | +58 | +0.3pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 574 | 2.1% | 3.9% | 96 | 0.3% | 1.5% | +478 | +1.8pp |
| Italian | 412 | 1.5% | 1.9% | 369 | 1.3% | 1.8% | +43 | +0.2pp |
| Dutch | 213 | 0.8% | 1.0% | 176 | 0.6% | 0.9% | +37 | +0.2pp |
| New Zealander | 165 | 0.6% | 0.6% | 193 | 0.7% | 0.6% | -28 | -0.1pp |
| Maori | 137 | 0.5% | 0.6% | 142 | 0.5% | 0.6% | -5 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 27,713 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 28,459 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -746 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).