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 Goondiwindi (R) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Goondiwindi (R) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Goondiwindi (R) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Qld and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Goondiwindi (R), with comparison markers for Regional Qld.
Australian
2021 count
4,427
% of total
21.5%
Change from 2016
-1.5pp
4,427
21.5%
-1.5pp
English
2021 count
4,004
% of total
19.4%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
4,004
19.4%
+0.6pp
Irish
2021 count
1,243
% of total
6.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
1,243
6.0%
+0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,109
% of total
5.4%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
1,109
5.4%
+0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
719
% of total
3.5%
Change from 2016
+3.3pp
719
3.5%
+3.3pp
German
2021 count
639
% of total
3.1%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
639
3.1%
-0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
123
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
123
0.6%
0.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
104
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
104
0.5%
+0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
91
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
91
0.4%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
87
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
87
0.4%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-453
-1.5pp
English
+9
+0.6pp
Irish
+7
+0.2pp
Scottish
+38
+0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
+685
+3.3pp
German
-44
-0.1pp
Italian
-11
0.0pp
Filipino
+15
+0.1pp
Dutch
+16
0.0pp
Chinese
+8
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Goondiwindi (R). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Qld.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 4,427 | 21.5% | 17.7% | 4,880 | 23.0% | 18.8% | -453 | -1.5pp |
| English | 4,004 | 19.4% | 19.8% | 3,995 | 18.8% | 19.6% | +9 | +0.6pp |
| Irish | 1,243 | 6.0% | 5.5% | 1,236 | 5.8% | 5.9% | +7 | +0.2pp |
| Scottish | 1,109 | 5.4% | 5.2% | 1,071 | 5.0% | 5.2% | +38 | +0.4pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 719 | 3.5% | 2.6% | 34 | 0.2% | 0.6% | +685 | +3.3pp |
| German | 639 | 3.1% | 3.2% | 683 | 3.2% | 3.3% | -44 | -0.1pp |
| Italian | 123 | 0.6% | 1.6% | 134 | 0.6% | 1.5% | -11 | 0.0pp |
| Filipino | 104 | 0.5% | 0.6% | 89 | 0.4% | 0.5% | +15 | +0.1pp |
| Dutch | 91 | 0.4% | 0.8% | 75 | 0.4% | 0.7% | +16 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 87 | 0.4% | 0.8% | 79 | 0.4% | 0.8% | +8 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 20,621 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 21,242 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -621 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).