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 Armstrong Beach were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Armstrong Beach - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Armstrong Beach in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Mackay (R) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Armstrong Beach, with comparison markers for Mackay (R).
Australian
2021 count
420
% of total
46.5%
Change from 2016
+1.3pp
420
46.5%
+1.3pp
English
2021 count
337
% of total
37.3%
Change from 2016
+1.5pp
337
37.3%
+1.5pp
Scottish
2021 count
89
% of total
9.9%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
89
9.9%
-0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
83
% of total
9.2%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
83
9.2%
-0.6pp
German
2021 count
66
% of total
7.3%
Change from 2016
-1.6pp
66
7.3%
-1.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
48
% of total
5.3%
Change from 2016
+4.6pp
48
5.3%
+4.6pp
Italian
2021 count
33
% of total
3.7%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
33
3.7%
+0.5pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
24
% of total
2.7%
Change from 2016
-
24
2.7%
-
Maltese
2021 count
14
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
14
1.6%
+0.6pp
Chinese
2021 count
12
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
12
1.3%
+0.5pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+30
+1.3pp
English
+28
+1.5pp
Scottish
+1
-0.3pp
Irish
-2
-0.6pp
German
-11
-1.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
+42
+4.6pp
Italian
+5
+0.5pp
Maltese
+5
+0.6pp
Chinese
+5
+0.5pp
Data table
Ancestry for Armstrong Beach. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mackay (R).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Mackay (R)% | Count | % | Mackay (R)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 420 | 46.5% | 38.3% | 390 | 45.2% | 41.3% | +30 | +1.3pp |
| English | 337 | 37.3% | 38.0% | 309 | 35.8% | 38.0% | +28 | +1.5pp |
| Scottish | 89 | 9.9% | 10.3% | 88 | 10.2% | 10.9% | +1 | -0.3pp |
| Irish | 83 | 9.2% | 10.4% | 85 | 9.8% | 11.7% | -2 | -0.6pp |
| German | 66 | 7.3% | 6.2% | 77 | 8.9% | 6.6% | -11 | -1.6pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 48 | 5.3% | 4.8% | 6 | 0.7% | 0.5% | +42 | +4.6pp |
| Italian | 33 | 3.7% | 3.2% | 28 | 3.2% | 3.0% | +5 | +0.5pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 24 | 2.7% | 2.0% | - | - | 0.3% | - | - |
| Maltese | 14 | 1.6% | 3.2% | 9 | 1.0% | 3.1% | +5 | +0.6pp |
| Chinese | 12 | 1.3% | 1.0% | 7 | 0.8% | 1.0% | +5 | +0.5pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).