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 Merredin (S) were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Merredin (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Merredin (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional WA and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Merredin (S), with comparison markers for Regional WA.
Australian
2021 count
1,297
% of total
20.9%
Change from 2016
-2.4pp
1,297
20.9%
-2.4pp
English
2021 count
1,297
% of total
20.9%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
1,297
20.9%
+0.9pp
Scottish
2021 count
283
% of total
4.6%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
283
4.6%
+0.4pp
Irish
2021 count
228
% of total
3.7%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
228
3.7%
-0.4pp
Italian
2021 count
167
% of total
2.7%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
167
2.7%
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
144
% of total
2.3%
Change from 2016
+1.9pp
144
2.3%
+1.9pp
German
2021 count
98
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
98
1.6%
0.0pp
Dutch
2021 count
46
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
46
0.7%
-0.1pp
New Zealander
2021 count
33
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
33
0.5%
-0.2pp
Indian
2021 count
29
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
29
0.5%
+0.3pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-261
-2.4pp
English
-44
+0.9pp
Scottish
+3
+0.4pp
Irish
-45
-0.4pp
Italian
+6
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
+114
+1.9pp
German
-8
0.0pp
Dutch
-10
-0.1pp
New Zealander
-12
-0.2pp
Indian
+17
+0.3pp
Data table
Ancestry for Merredin (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional WA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 1,297 | 20.9% | 18.2% | 1,558 | 23.3% | 19.9% | -261 | -2.4pp |
| English | 1,297 | 20.9% | 20.0% | 1,341 | 20.0% | 19.7% | -44 | +0.9pp |
| Scottish | 283 | 4.6% | 4.5% | 280 | 4.2% | 4.4% | +3 | +0.4pp |
| Irish | 228 | 3.7% | 4.3% | 273 | 4.1% | 4.3% | -45 | -0.4pp |
| Italian | 167 | 2.7% | 1.9% | 161 | 2.4% | 1.8% | +6 | +0.3pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 144 | 2.3% | 3.9% | 30 | 0.4% | 1.5% | +114 | +1.9pp |
| German | 98 | 1.6% | 1.7% | 106 | 1.6% | 1.7% | -8 | 0.0pp |
| Dutch | 46 | 0.7% | 1.0% | 56 | 0.8% | 0.9% | -10 | -0.1pp |
| New Zealander | 33 | 0.5% | 0.6% | 45 | 0.7% | 0.6% | -12 | -0.2pp |
| Indian | 29 | 0.5% | 0.4% | 12 | 0.2% | 0.4% | +17 | +0.3pp |
| Total | 6,211 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 6,690 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -479 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).