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 Ashtonfield were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Ashtonfield - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Ashtonfield in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Maitland (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Ashtonfield, with comparison markers for Maitland (C).
Australian
2021 count
2,007
% of total
43.7%
Change from 2016
-1.3pp
2,007
43.7%
-1.3pp
English
2021 count
1,958
% of total
42.7%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
1,958
42.7%
-0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
525
% of total
11.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
525
11.4%
0.0pp
Scottish
2021 count
486
% of total
10.6%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
486
10.6%
-0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
211
% of total
4.6%
Change from 2016
+4.4pp
211
4.6%
+4.4pp
German
2021 count
183
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
183
4.0%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
99
% of total
2.2%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
99
2.2%
+0.4pp
Italian
2021 count
82
% of total
1.8%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
82
1.8%
+0.1pp
Indian
2021 count
82
% of total
1.8%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
82
1.8%
0.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
54
% of total
1.2%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
54
1.2%
+0.4pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-83
-1.3pp
English
-39
-0.3pp
Irish
-6
0.0pp
Scottish
-34
-0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
+201
+4.4pp
German
-2
0.0pp
Chinese
+17
+0.4pp
Italian
+2
+0.1pp
Indian
-1
0.0pp
Filipino
+16
+0.4pp
Data table
Ancestry for Ashtonfield. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Maitland (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Maitland (C)% | Count | % | Maitland (C)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 2,007 | 43.7% | 44.3% | 2,090 | 45.0% | 45.6% | -83 | -1.3pp |
| English | 1,958 | 42.7% | 43.1% | 1,997 | 43.0% | 43.9% | -39 | -0.3pp |
| Irish | 525 | 11.4% | 10.7% | 531 | 11.4% | 12.3% | -6 | 0.0pp |
| Scottish | 486 | 10.6% | 10.5% | 520 | 11.2% | 10.8% | -34 | -0.6pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 211 | 4.6% | 7.2% | 10 | 0.2% | 0.5% | +201 | +4.4pp |
| German | 183 | 4.0% | 4.3% | 185 | 4.0% | 4.7% | -2 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 99 | 2.2% | 0.9% | 82 | 1.8% | 0.7% | +17 | +0.4pp |
| Italian | 82 | 1.8% | 1.6% | 80 | 1.7% | 1.5% | +2 | +0.1pp |
| Indian | 82 | 1.8% | 1.1% | 83 | 1.8% | 0.8% | -1 | 0.0pp |
| Filipino | 54 | 1.2% | 1.0% | 38 | 0.8% | 0.7% | +16 | +0.4pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).