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 Barney Point were English, Australian and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Barney Point - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Barney Point in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Gladstone (R) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Barney Point, with comparison markers for Gladstone (R).

Barney Point
Gladstone (R)

English

2021 count

415

% of total

19.6%

Change from 2016

-4.5pp

Australian

2021 count

341

% of total

16.1%

Change from 2016

-9.8pp

Irish

2021 count

111

% of total

5.2%

Change from 2016

-3.4pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

94

% of total

4.4%

Change from 2016

-

Scottish

2021 count

86

% of total

4.1%

Change from 2016

-4.5pp

German

2021 count

71

% of total

3.4%

Change from 2016

-

Filipino

2021 count

21

% of total

1.0%

Change from 2016

-

Italian

2021 count

19

% of total

0.9%

Change from 2016

-

Torres Strait Islander

2021 count

18

% of total

0.9%

Change from 2016

-

Indian

2021 count

16

% of total

0.8%

Change from 2016

-

Data table

Ancestry for Barney Point. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Gladstone (R).

Ancestry for Barney Point. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Gladstone (R).
Ancestry for Barney Point. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Gladstone (R).
Category20212016Change
Count%Gladstone (R)%Count%Gladstone (R)%Countpp
English41519.6%20.0%1424.1%19.3%+401-4.5pp
Australian34116.1%20.7%1525.9%21.6%+326-9.8pp
Irish1115.2%4.9%58.6%5.3%+106-3.4pp
Australian Aboriginal944.4%2.9%--0.2%--
Scottish864.1%5.0%58.6%5.0%+81-4.5pp
German713.4%3.4%--3.3%--
Filipino211.0%0.9%--0.8%--
Italian190.9%1.0%--0.9%--
Torres Strait Islander180.9%0.4%--0.0%--
Indian160.8%0.4%--0.5%--
Total2,115100.0%100.0%58100.0%100.0%+2,0570.0pp

Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).