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 Light (RegC) were English, Australian and German.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Light (RegC) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Light (RegC) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional SA and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Light (RegC), with comparison markers for Regional SA.
English
2021 count
7,149
% of total
22.6%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
7,149
22.6%
+0.8pp
Australian
2021 count
6,911
% of total
21.9%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
6,911
21.9%
-0.1pp
German
2021 count
2,299
% of total
7.3%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
2,299
7.3%
-0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,405
% of total
4.5%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
1,405
4.5%
+0.5pp
Irish
2021 count
1,267
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
1,267
4.0%
-0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
485
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
485
1.5%
+0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
281
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
281
0.9%
+0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
233
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
233
0.7%
+0.6pp
Welsh
2021 count
115
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
115
0.4%
0.0pp
Polish
2021 count
96
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
96
0.3%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+732
+0.8pp
Australian
+423
-0.1pp
German
+78
-0.2pp
Scottish
+214
+0.5pp
Irish
+38
-0.2pp
Italian
+89
+0.2pp
Dutch
+31
+0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
+216
+0.6pp
Welsh
-10
0.0pp
Polish
0
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Light (RegC). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional SA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | pp | |
| English | 7,149 | 22.6% | 21.0% | 6,417 | 21.8% | 20.5% | +732 | +0.8pp |
| Australian | 6,911 | 21.9% | 20.3% | 6,488 | 22.0% | 21.0% | +423 | -0.1pp |
| German | 2,299 | 7.3% | 5.3% | 2,221 | 7.5% | 5.4% | +78 | -0.2pp |
| Scottish | 1,405 | 4.5% | 4.6% | 1,191 | 4.0% | 4.5% | +214 | +0.5pp |
| Irish | 1,267 | 4.0% | 3.8% | 1,229 | 4.2% | 3.9% | +38 | -0.2pp |
| Italian | 485 | 1.5% | 1.1% | 396 | 1.3% | 1.1% | +89 | +0.2pp |
| Dutch | 281 | 0.9% | 0.8% | 250 | 0.8% | 0.8% | +31 | +0.1pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 233 | 0.7% | 2.2% | 17 | 0.1% | 0.6% | +216 | +0.6pp |
| Welsh | 115 | 0.4% | 0.3% | 125 | 0.4% | 0.3% | -10 | 0.0pp |
| Polish | 96 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 96 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 31,563 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 29,452 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,111 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).