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 Forbes (A) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Forbes (A) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Forbes (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Forbes (A), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Australian
2021 count
4,187
% of total
22.5%
Change from 2016
-2.4pp
4,187
22.5%
-2.4pp
English
2021 count
3,721
% of total
20.0%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
3,721
20.0%
-0.2pp
Irish
2021 count
1,141
% of total
6.1%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
1,141
6.1%
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,119
% of total
6.0%
Change from 2016
+5.7pp
1,119
6.0%
+5.7pp
Scottish
2021 count
809
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
809
4.3%
+0.3pp
German
2021 count
378
% of total
2.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
378
2.0%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
137
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
137
0.7%
+0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
64
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
64
0.3%
-0.1pp
Filipino
2021 count
50
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
50
0.3%
+0.1pp
French
2021 count
49
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
49
0.3%
+0.1pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-582
-2.4pp
English
-148
-0.2pp
Irish
-65
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,053
+5.7pp
Scottish
+37
+0.3pp
German
+37
+0.2pp
Italian
+28
+0.1pp
Dutch
-15
-0.1pp
Filipino
+14
+0.1pp
French
+3
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Forbes (A). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NSW.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 4,187 | 22.5% | 20.1% | 4,769 | 24.9% | 21.3% | -582 | -2.4pp |
| English | 3,721 | 20.0% | 20.5% | 3,869 | 20.2% | 20.4% | -148 | -0.2pp |
| Irish | 1,141 | 6.1% | 5.9% | 1,206 | 6.3% | 6.1% | -65 | -0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,119 | 6.0% | 3.1% | 66 | 0.3% | 0.4% | +1,053 | +5.7pp |
| Scottish | 809 | 4.3% | 5.4% | 772 | 4.0% | 5.3% | +37 | +0.3pp |
| German | 378 | 2.0% | 2.1% | 341 | 1.8% | 2.1% | +37 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 137 | 0.7% | 1.4% | 109 | 0.6% | 1.3% | +28 | +0.1pp |
| Dutch | 64 | 0.3% | 0.7% | 79 | 0.4% | 0.6% | -15 | -0.1pp |
| Filipino | 50 | 0.3% | 0.4% | 36 | 0.2% | 0.3% | +14 | +0.1pp |
| French | 49 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 46 | 0.2% | 0.2% | +3 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 18,625 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 19,157 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -532 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).