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 Leeton (A) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Leeton (A) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Leeton (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Leeton (A), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Australian
2021 count
4,407
% of total
38.5%
Change from 2016
-3.6pp
4,407
38.5%
-3.6pp
English
2021 count
4,074
% of total
35.6%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
4,074
35.6%
-0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
1,244
% of total
10.9%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
1,244
10.9%
-0.3pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,133
% of total
9.9%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
1,133
9.9%
-0.3pp
Italian
2021 count
1,131
% of total
9.9%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
1,131
9.9%
+0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
768
% of total
6.7%
Change from 2016
+6.2pp
768
6.7%
+6.2pp
German
2021 count
510
% of total
4.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
510
4.5%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
171
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
171
1.5%
+0.8pp
Filipino
2021 count
155
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
155
1.4%
+0.6pp
Punjabi
2021 count
98
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
98
0.9%
+0.6pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-293
-3.6pp
English
+64
-0.3pp
Irish
-4
-0.3pp
Scottish
-3
-0.3pp
Italian
+40
+0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
+710
+6.2pp
German
+5
0.0pp
Chinese
+96
+0.8pp
Filipino
+63
+0.6pp
Punjabi
+65
+0.6pp
Data table
Ancestry for Leeton (A). 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 | |
| Australian | 4,407 | 38.5% | 40.2% | 4,700 | 42.1% | 42.5% | -293 | -3.6pp |
| English | 4,074 | 35.6% | 40.9% | 4,010 | 35.9% | 40.8% | +64 | -0.3pp |
| Irish | 1,244 | 10.9% | 11.8% | 1,248 | 11.2% | 12.3% | -4 | -0.3pp |
| Scottish | 1,133 | 9.9% | 10.7% | 1,136 | 10.2% | 10.5% | -3 | -0.3pp |
| Italian | 1,131 | 9.9% | 2.8% | 1,091 | 9.8% | 2.6% | +40 | +0.1pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 768 | 6.7% | 6.1% | 58 | 0.5% | 0.8% | +710 | +6.2pp |
| German | 510 | 4.5% | 4.2% | 505 | 4.5% | 4.3% | +5 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 171 | 1.5% | 1.0% | 75 | 0.7% | 1.0% | +96 | +0.8pp |
| Filipino | 155 | 1.4% | 0.8% | 92 | 0.8% | 0.6% | +63 | +0.6pp |
| Punjabi | 98 | 0.9% | 0.2% | 33 | 0.3% | 0.0% | +65 | +0.6pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).