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 McKinlay (S) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
McKinlay (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for McKinlay (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Qld and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for McKinlay (S), with comparison markers for Regional Qld.
Australian
2021 count
340
% of total
20.5%
Change from 2016
-2.8pp
340
20.5%
-2.8pp
English
2021 count
273
% of total
16.4%
Change from 2016
-2.8pp
273
16.4%
-2.8pp
Irish
2021 count
104
% of total
6.3%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
104
6.3%
+1.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
85
% of total
5.1%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
85
5.1%
+0.6pp
German
2021 count
45
% of total
2.7%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
45
2.7%
-0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
32
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
-
32
1.9%
-
Italian
2021 count
21
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
21
1.3%
-0.4pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
10
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-
10
0.6%
-
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-36
-2.8pp
English
-37
-2.8pp
Irish
+20
+1.1pp
Scottish
+13
+0.6pp
German
-3
-0.3pp
Italian
-6
-0.4pp
Data table
Ancestry for McKinlay (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Qld.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 340 | 20.5% | 17.7% | 376 | 23.3% | 18.8% | -36 | -2.8pp |
| English | 273 | 16.4% | 19.8% | 310 | 19.2% | 19.6% | -37 | -2.8pp |
| Irish | 104 | 6.3% | 5.5% | 84 | 5.2% | 5.9% | +20 | +1.1pp |
| Scottish | 85 | 5.1% | 5.2% | 72 | 4.5% | 5.2% | +13 | +0.6pp |
| German | 45 | 2.7% | 3.2% | 48 | 3.0% | 3.3% | -3 | -0.3pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 32 | 1.9% | 2.6% | - | - | 0.6% | - | - |
| Italian | 21 | 1.3% | 1.6% | 27 | 1.7% | 1.5% | -6 | -0.4pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 10 | 0.6% | 0.6% | - | - | 0.3% | - | - |
| Total | 1,661 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 1,612 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +49 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).