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 Hepburn (S) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Hepburn (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Hepburn (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Vic. and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Hepburn (S), with comparison markers for Regional Vic..
English
2021 count
7,053
% of total
21.2%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
7,053
21.2%
+0.9pp
Australian
2021 count
5,721
% of total
17.2%
Change from 2016
-0.9pp
5,721
17.2%
-0.9pp
Irish
2021 count
2,718
% of total
8.2%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
2,718
8.2%
+0.6pp
Scottish
2021 count
2,377
% of total
7.2%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
2,377
7.2%
+0.8pp
German
2021 count
800
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
800
2.4%
-0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
709
% of total
2.1%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
709
2.1%
+0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
480
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
480
1.4%
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
180
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
180
0.5%
+0.4pp
Chinese
2021 count
174
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
174
0.5%
+0.1pp
Maltese
2021 count
167
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
167
0.5%
+0.1pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+833
+0.9pp
Australian
+172
-0.9pp
Irish
+387
+0.6pp
Scottish
+422
+0.8pp
German
+42
-0.1pp
Italian
+94
+0.1pp
Dutch
+64
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
+163
+0.4pp
Chinese
+60
+0.1pp
Maltese
+52
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Hepburn (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Vic..
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Vic.% | Count | % | Regional Vic.% | Count | pp | |
| English | 7,053 | 21.2% | 20.3% | 6,220 | 20.3% | 20.0% | +833 | +0.9pp |
| Australian | 5,721 | 17.2% | 19.6% | 5,549 | 18.1% | 20.0% | +172 | -0.9pp |
| Irish | 2,718 | 8.2% | 6.4% | 2,331 | 7.6% | 6.5% | +387 | +0.6pp |
| Scottish | 2,377 | 7.2% | 5.8% | 1,955 | 6.4% | 5.7% | +422 | +0.8pp |
| German | 800 | 2.4% | 2.3% | 758 | 2.5% | 2.3% | +42 | -0.1pp |
| Italian | 709 | 2.1% | 1.9% | 615 | 2.0% | 1.8% | +94 | +0.1pp |
| Dutch | 480 | 1.4% | 1.1% | 416 | 1.4% | 1.1% | +64 | 0.0pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 180 | 0.5% | 1.0% | 17 | 0.1% | 0.1% | +163 | +0.4pp |
| Chinese | 174 | 0.5% | 0.6% | 114 | 0.4% | 0.5% | +60 | +0.1pp |
| Maltese | 167 | 0.5% | 0.3% | 115 | 0.4% | 0.3% | +52 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 33,209 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 30,597 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,612 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).