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 Rutherford were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Rutherford - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Rutherford in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Maitland (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Rutherford, with comparison markers for Maitland (C).
Australian
2021 count
5,735
% of total
43.8%
Change from 2016
-2.3pp
5,735
43.8%
-2.3pp
English
2021 count
5,441
% of total
41.6%
Change from 2016
-2.2pp
5,441
41.6%
-2.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,289
% of total
9.8%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
1,289
9.8%
+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,286
% of total
9.8%
Change from 2016
+9.0pp
1,286
9.8%
+9.0pp
Irish
2021 count
1,181
% of total
9.0%
Change from 2016
-2.0pp
1,181
9.0%
-2.0pp
German
2021 count
544
% of total
4.2%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
544
4.2%
-0.7pp
Italian
2021 count
190
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
190
1.5%
0.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
171
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
171
1.3%
+0.6pp
Dutch
2021 count
138
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
138
1.1%
+0.1pp
Polish
2021 count
126
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
126
1.0%
0.0pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+258
-2.3pp
English
+238
-2.2pp
Scottish
+182
+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,195
+9.0pp
Irish
-124
-2.0pp
German
-35
-0.7pp
Italian
+9
0.0pp
Filipino
+84
+0.6pp
Dutch
+19
+0.1pp
Polish
+9
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Rutherford. 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 | 5,735 | 43.8% | 44.3% | 5,477 | 46.1% | 45.6% | +258 | -2.3pp |
| English | 5,441 | 41.6% | 43.1% | 5,203 | 43.8% | 43.9% | +238 | -2.2pp |
| Scottish | 1,289 | 9.8% | 10.5% | 1,107 | 9.3% | 10.8% | +182 | +0.5pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,286 | 9.8% | 7.2% | 91 | 0.8% | 0.5% | +1,195 | +9.0pp |
| Irish | 1,181 | 9.0% | 10.7% | 1,305 | 11.0% | 12.3% | -124 | -2.0pp |
| German | 544 | 4.2% | 4.3% | 579 | 4.9% | 4.7% | -35 | -0.7pp |
| Italian | 190 | 1.5% | 1.6% | 181 | 1.5% | 1.5% | +9 | 0.0pp |
| Filipino | 171 | 1.3% | 1.0% | 87 | 0.7% | 0.7% | +84 | +0.6pp |
| Dutch | 138 | 1.1% | 1.3% | 119 | 1.0% | 1.2% | +19 | +0.1pp |
| Polish | 126 | 1.0% | 1.0% | 117 | 1.0% | 1.0% | +9 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).