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 Emungalan were Australian Aboriginal, Australian and English.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Emungalan - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Emungalan in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Katherine (T) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Emungalan, with comparison markers for Katherine (T).
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
155
% of total
61.0%
Change from 2016
-5.2pp
155
61.0%
-5.2pp
Australian
2021 count
43
% of total
16.9%
Change from 2016
+1.3pp
43
16.9%
+1.3pp
English
2021 count
38
% of total
15.0%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
38
15.0%
+0.8pp
Irish
2021 count
14
% of total
5.5%
Change from 2016
+4.2pp
14
5.5%
+4.2pp
German
2021 count
12
% of total
4.7%
Change from 2016
+2.7pp
12
4.7%
+2.7pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian Aboriginal
-45
-5.2pp
Australian
-4
+1.3pp
English
-5
+0.8pp
Irish
+10
+4.2pp
German
+6
+2.7pp
Data table
Ancestry for Emungalan. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Katherine (T).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Katherine (T)% | Count | % | Katherine (T)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian Aboriginal | 155 | 61.0% | 23.0% | 200 | 66.2% | 8.1% | -45 | -5.2pp |
| Australian | 43 | 16.9% | 29.9% | 47 | 15.6% | 38.2% | -4 | +1.3pp |
| English | 38 | 15.0% | 24.3% | 43 | 14.2% | 24.4% | -5 | +0.8pp |
| Irish | 14 | 5.5% | 7.6% | 4 | 1.3% | 7.4% | +10 | +4.2pp |
| German | 12 | 4.7% | 4.3% | 6 | 2.0% | 4.2% | +6 | +2.7pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).