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 Hampden (Qld) were Australian, English and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Hampden (Qld) - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Hampden (Qld) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Mackay (R) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Hampden (Qld), with comparison markers for Mackay (R).

Hampden (Qld)
Mackay (R)

Australian

2021 count

270

% of total

45.2%

Change from 2016

+3.5pp

English

2021 count

222

% of total

37.1%

Change from 2016

-6.2pp

Irish

2021 count

72

% of total

12.0%

Change from 2016

+1.9pp

German

2021 count

62

% of total

10.4%

Change from 2016

+3.3pp

Scottish

2021 count

61

% of total

10.2%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Italian

2021 count

27

% of total

4.5%

Change from 2016

-0.6pp

Maltese

2021 count

23

% of total

3.8%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

13

% of total

2.2%

Change from 2016

+1.7pp

Dutch

2021 count

10

% of total

1.7%

Change from 2016

+1.0pp

Data table

Ancestry for Hampden (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mackay (R).

Ancestry for Hampden (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mackay (R).
Ancestry for Hampden (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mackay (R).
Category20212016Change
Count%Mackay (R)%Count%Mackay (R)%Countpp
Australian27045.2%38.3%23641.7%41.3%+34+3.5pp
English22237.1%38.0%24543.3%38.0%-23-6.2pp
Irish7212.0%10.4%5710.1%11.7%+15+1.9pp
German6210.4%6.2%407.1%6.6%+22+3.3pp
Scottish6110.2%10.3%559.7%10.9%+6+0.5pp
Italian274.5%3.2%295.1%3.0%-2-0.6pp
Maltese233.8%3.2%193.4%3.1%+4+0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal132.2%4.8%30.5%0.5%+10+1.7pp
Dutch101.7%1.4%40.7%1.3%+6+1.0pp

Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).