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 Ooralea were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Ooralea - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Ooralea in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Mackay (R) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Ooralea, with comparison markers for Mackay (R).
Australian
2021 count
1,431
% of total
38.8%
Change from 2016
-1.7pp
1,431
38.8%
-1.7pp
English
2021 count
1,316
% of total
35.7%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
1,316
35.7%
+0.9pp
Irish
2021 count
392
% of total
10.6%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
392
10.6%
-0.6pp
Scottish
2021 count
390
% of total
10.6%
Change from 2016
-0.8pp
390
10.6%
-0.8pp
German
2021 count
216
% of total
5.9%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
216
5.9%
+0.4pp
Italian
2021 count
164
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
164
4.4%
+0.2pp
Maltese
2021 count
154
% of total
4.2%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
154
4.2%
+0.4pp
Indian
2021 count
112
% of total
3.0%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
112
3.0%
+1.1pp
Filipino
2021 count
111
% of total
3.0%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
111
3.0%
+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
89
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
+2.1pp
89
2.4%
+2.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+69
-1.7pp
English
+143
+0.9pp
Irish
+16
-0.6pp
Scottish
+6
-0.8pp
German
+31
+0.4pp
Italian
+23
+0.2pp
Maltese
+25
+0.4pp
Indian
+47
+1.1pp
Filipino
+27
+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
+78
+2.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Ooralea. 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 | 1,431 | 38.8% | 38.3% | 1,362 | 40.5% | 41.3% | +69 | -1.7pp |
| English | 1,316 | 35.7% | 38.0% | 1,173 | 34.8% | 38.0% | +143 | +0.9pp |
| Irish | 392 | 10.6% | 10.4% | 376 | 11.2% | 11.7% | +16 | -0.6pp |
| Scottish | 390 | 10.6% | 10.3% | 384 | 11.4% | 10.9% | +6 | -0.8pp |
| German | 216 | 5.9% | 6.2% | 185 | 5.5% | 6.6% | +31 | +0.4pp |
| Italian | 164 | 4.4% | 3.2% | 141 | 4.2% | 3.0% | +23 | +0.2pp |
| Maltese | 154 | 4.2% | 3.2% | 129 | 3.8% | 3.1% | +25 | +0.4pp |
| Indian | 112 | 3.0% | 0.8% | 65 | 1.9% | 0.8% | +47 | +1.1pp |
| Filipino | 111 | 3.0% | 2.0% | 84 | 2.5% | 1.7% | +27 | +0.5pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 89 | 2.4% | 4.8% | 11 | 0.3% | 0.5% | +78 | +2.1pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).