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 MacDonnell (R) were Australian Aboriginal, Australian and English.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
MacDonnell (R) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for MacDonnell (R) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NT and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for MacDonnell (R), with comparison markers for Regional NT.
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
4,292
% of total
74.7%
Change from 2016
+15.9pp
4,292
74.7%
+15.9pp
Australian
2021 count
254
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
-4.6pp
254
4.4%
-4.6pp
English
2021 count
247
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
247
4.3%
-0.7pp
Scottish
2021 count
88
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
88
1.5%
+0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
87
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
87
1.5%
-0.6pp
German
2021 count
55
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
55
1.0%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
23
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
23
0.4%
-0.1pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
17
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
17
0.3%
+0.1pp
Filipino
2021 count
17
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
-
17
0.3%
-
Dutch
2021 count
12
% of total
0.2%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
12
0.2%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian Aboriginal
+749
+15.9pp
Australian
-290
-4.6pp
English
-55
-0.7pp
Scottish
+17
+0.3pp
Irish
-41
-0.6pp
German
+7
+0.2pp
Italian
-6
-0.1pp
Torres Strait Islander
+6
+0.1pp
Dutch
-3
0.0pp
Spanish
+6
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for MacDonnell (R). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NT.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NT% | Count | % | Regional NT% | Count | pp | |
| Australian Aboriginal | 4,292 | 74.7% | 49.1% | 3,543 | 58.8% | 39.6% | +749 | +15.9pp |
| Australian | 254 | 4.4% | 16.8% | 544 | 9.0% | 22.0% | -290 | -4.6pp |
| English | 247 | 4.3% | 16.1% | 302 | 5.0% | 16.9% | -55 | -0.7pp |
| Scottish | 88 | 1.5% | 4.5% | 71 | 1.2% | 4.7% | +17 | +0.3pp |
| Irish | 87 | 1.5% | 5.4% | 128 | 2.1% | 5.6% | -41 | -0.6pp |
| German | 55 | 1.0% | 2.8% | 48 | 0.8% | 2.9% | +7 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 23 | 0.4% | 1.2% | 29 | 0.5% | 1.1% | -6 | -0.1pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 17 | 0.3% | 0.7% | 11 | 0.2% | 0.2% | +6 | +0.1pp |
| Filipino | 17 | 0.3% | 1.5% | - | - | 1.2% | - | - |
| Dutch | 12 | 0.2% | 0.8% | 15 | 0.2% | 0.7% | -3 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).