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 Lithgow (C) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Lithgow (C) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Lithgow (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Lithgow (C), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
English
2021 count
8,652
% of total
20.8%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
8,652
20.8%
+0.8pp
Australian
2021 count
8,633
% of total
20.7%
Change from 2016
-0.9pp
8,633
20.7%
-0.9pp
Irish
2021 count
2,483
% of total
6.0%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
2,483
6.0%
+0.4pp
Scottish
2021 count
2,356
% of total
5.7%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
2,356
5.7%
+0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,359
% of total
3.3%
Change from 2016
+3.0pp
1,359
3.3%
+3.0pp
German
2021 count
716
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
716
1.7%
+0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
388
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
388
0.9%
+0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
229
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
229
0.5%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
181
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
181
0.4%
+0.1pp
Welsh
2021 count
172
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
172
0.4%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+229
+0.8pp
Australian
-476
-0.9pp
Irish
+122
+0.4pp
Scottish
+23
+0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,240
+3.0pp
German
+40
+0.1pp
Italian
+30
+0.1pp
Dutch
+9
0.0pp
Chinese
+40
+0.1pp
Welsh
+27
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Lithgow (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 | 8,652 | 20.8% | 20.5% | 8,423 | 20.0% | 20.4% | +229 | +0.8pp |
| Australian | 8,633 | 20.7% | 20.1% | 9,109 | 21.6% | 21.3% | -476 | -0.9pp |
| Irish | 2,483 | 6.0% | 5.9% | 2,361 | 5.6% | 6.1% | +122 | +0.4pp |
| Scottish | 2,356 | 5.7% | 5.4% | 2,333 | 5.5% | 5.3% | +23 | +0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,359 | 3.3% | 3.1% | 119 | 0.3% | 0.4% | +1,240 | +3.0pp |
| German | 716 | 1.7% | 2.1% | 676 | 1.6% | 2.1% | +40 | +0.1pp |
| Italian | 388 | 0.9% | 1.4% | 358 | 0.8% | 1.3% | +30 | +0.1pp |
| Dutch | 229 | 0.5% | 0.7% | 220 | 0.5% | 0.6% | +9 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 181 | 0.4% | 0.5% | 141 | 0.3% | 0.5% | +40 | +0.1pp |
| Welsh | 172 | 0.4% | 0.3% | 145 | 0.3% | 0.3% | +27 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 41,652 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 42,157 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -505 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).