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 Melbourne (C) were Chinese, English and Australian.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Melbourne (C) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Melbourne (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Melbourne and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Melbourne (C), with comparison markers for Greater Melbourne.
Chinese
2021 count
34,459
% of total
11.5%
Change from 2016
-2.5pp
34,459
11.5%
-2.5pp
English
2021 count
29,036
% of total
9.7%
Change from 2016
+1.0pp
29,036
9.7%
+1.0pp
Australian
2021 count
20,728
% of total
6.9%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
20,728
6.9%
+0.9pp
Irish
2021 count
11,862
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
11,862
4.0%
+0.3pp
Indian
2021 count
9,935
% of total
3.3%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
9,935
3.3%
+0.7pp
Scottish
2021 count
9,179
% of total
3.1%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
9,179
3.1%
+0.3pp
Italian
2021 count
5,955
% of total
2.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
5,955
2.0%
+0.2pp
German
2021 count
4,033
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
4,033
1.3%
+0.1pp
Vietnamese
2021 count
3,625
% of total
1.2%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
3,625
1.2%
+0.3pp
Filipino
2021 count
2,888
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
2,888
1.0%
+0.5pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Chinese
-3,735
-2.5pp
English
+5,436
+1.0pp
Australian
+4,366
+0.9pp
Irish
+1,792
+0.3pp
Indian
+2,853
+0.7pp
Scottish
+1,542
+0.3pp
Italian
+990
+0.2pp
German
+749
+0.1pp
Vietnamese
+1,281
+0.3pp
Filipino
+1,547
+0.5pp
Data table
Ancestry for Melbourne (C). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Melbourne.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Melbourne% | Count | % | Greater Melbourne% | Count | pp | |
| Chinese | 34,459 | 11.5% | 4.2% | 38,194 | 14.0% | 4.0% | -3,735 | -2.5pp |
| English | 29,036 | 9.7% | 12.8% | 23,600 | 8.7% | 13.3% | +5,436 | +1.0pp |
| Australian | 20,728 | 6.9% | 11.7% | 16,362 | 6.0% | 12.0% | +4,366 | +0.9pp |
| Irish | 11,862 | 4.0% | 4.2% | 10,070 | 3.7% | 4.6% | +1,792 | +0.3pp |
| Indian | 9,935 | 3.3% | 2.7% | 7,082 | 2.6% | 2.2% | +2,853 | +0.7pp |
| Scottish | 9,179 | 3.1% | 3.6% | 7,637 | 2.8% | 3.7% | +1,542 | +0.3pp |
| Italian | 5,955 | 2.0% | 3.3% | 4,965 | 1.8% | 3.3% | +990 | +0.2pp |
| German | 4,033 | 1.3% | 1.4% | 3,284 | 1.2% | 1.5% | +749 | +0.1pp |
| Vietnamese | 3,625 | 1.2% | 1.2% | 2,344 | 0.9% | 1.2% | +1,281 | +0.3pp |
| Filipino | 2,888 | 1.0% | 0.8% | 1,341 | 0.5% | 0.7% | +1,547 | +0.5pp |
| Total | 299,187 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 271,880 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +27,307 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).