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 Kinchant Dam were Australian, English and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Kinchant Dam - Total persons (Usual residence)

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

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Kinchant Dam, with comparison markers for Mackay (R).

Kinchant Dam
Mackay (R)

Australian

2021 count

73

% of total

39.9%

Change from 2016

-16.2pp

English

2021 count

58

% of total

31.7%

Change from 2016

-9.8pp

Irish

2021 count

17

% of total

9.3%

Change from 2016

+2.0pp

Maltese

2021 count

16

% of total

8.7%

Change from 2016

+2.2pp

Scottish

2021 count

15

% of total

8.2%

Change from 2016

-

German

2021 count

11

% of total

6.0%

Change from 2016

+3.6pp

Data table

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

Ancestry for Kinchant Dam. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mackay (R).
Ancestry for Kinchant Dam. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mackay (R).
Category20212016Change
Count%Mackay (R)%Count%Mackay (R)%Countpp
Australian7339.9%38.3%6956.1%41.3%+4-16.2pp
English5831.7%38.0%5141.5%38.0%+7-9.8pp
Irish179.3%10.4%97.3%11.7%+8+2.0pp
Maltese168.7%3.2%86.5%3.1%+8+2.2pp
Scottish158.2%10.3%--10.9%--
German116.0%6.2%32.4%6.6%+8+3.6pp

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