Cultural diversity
Ancestry
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.
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 counts represent responses rather than a single unduplicated person count, while percentages are shown against the total population.
- 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 Lake Macquarie (C) were English, Australian and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Lake Macquarie (C) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Lake Macquarie (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Lake Macquarie (C), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
English
Australian
Scottish
Irish
Australian Aboriginal
German
Italian
Dutch
Chinese
Welsh
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+6,296
-0.5pp
Australian
+4,131
-1.4pp
Scottish
+1,648
-0.2pp
Irish
+417
-0.7pp
Australian Aboriginal
+10,437
+4.8pp
German
+457
-0.1pp
Italian
+761
+0.2pp
Dutch
+546
+0.1pp
Chinese
+481
+0.1pp
Welsh
+140
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Lake Macquarie (C). 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 | |
| English | 93,852 | 43.9% | 40.9% | 87,556 | 44.4% | 40.8% | +6,296 | -0.5pp |
| Australian | 91,266 | 42.7% | 40.2% | 87,135 | 44.1% | 42.5% | +4,131 | -1.4pp |
| Scottish | 25,276 | 11.8% | 10.7% | 23,628 | 12.0% | 10.5% | +1,648 | -0.2pp |
| Irish | 23,237 | 10.9% | 11.8% | 22,820 | 11.6% | 12.3% | +417 | -0.7pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 11,367 | 5.3% | 6.1% | 930 | 0.5% | 0.8% | +10,437 | +4.8pp |
| German | 8,929 | 4.2% | 4.2% | 8,472 | 4.3% | 4.3% | +457 | -0.1pp |
| Italian | 4,746 | 2.2% | 2.8% | 3,985 | 2.0% | 2.6% | +761 | +0.2pp |
| Dutch | 3,085 | 1.4% | 1.4% | 2,539 | 1.3% | 1.3% | +546 | +0.1pp |
| Chinese | 2,411 | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1,930 | 1.0% | 1.0% | +481 | +0.1pp |
| Welsh | 2,267 | 1.1% | 0.7% | 2,127 | 1.1% | 0.7% | +140 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).