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 Smiths Lake were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Smiths Lake - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Smiths Lake in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Mid-Coast (A) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Smiths Lake, with comparison markers for Mid-Coast (A).
English
2021 count
609
% of total
45.7%
Change from 2016
-5.4pp
609
45.7%
-5.4pp
Australian
2021 count
553
% of total
41.5%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
553
41.5%
+0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
184
% of total
13.8%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
184
13.8%
-0.5pp
Scottish
2021 count
131
% of total
9.8%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
131
9.8%
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
55
% of total
4.1%
Change from 2016
-
55
4.1%
-
German
2021 count
55
% of total
4.1%
Change from 2016
-1.1pp
55
4.1%
-1.1pp
Italian
2021 count
32
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
32
2.4%
-0.7pp
Dutch
2021 count
22
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
22
1.7%
-0.1pp
Polish
2021 count
17
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
17
1.3%
+0.7pp
New Zealander
2021 count
13
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
13
1.0%
+0.3pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
-22
-5.4pp
Australian
+44
+0.3pp
Irish
+7
-0.5pp
Scottish
+14
+0.3pp
German
-9
-1.1pp
Italian
-6
-0.7pp
Dutch
0
-0.1pp
Polish
+9
+0.7pp
New Zealander
+4
+0.3pp
Danish
+6
+0.5pp
Data table
Ancestry for Smiths Lake. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mid-Coast (A).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Mid-Coast (A)% | Count | % | Mid-Coast (A)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 609 | 45.7% | 43.9% | 631 | 51.1% | 44.1% | -22 | -5.4pp |
| Australian | 553 | 41.5% | 42.4% | 509 | 41.2% | 45.1% | +44 | +0.3pp |
| Irish | 184 | 13.8% | 11.0% | 177 | 14.3% | 10.9% | +7 | -0.5pp |
| Scottish | 131 | 9.8% | 10.8% | 117 | 9.5% | 10.6% | +14 | +0.3pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 55 | 4.1% | 6.7% | - | - | 1.0% | - | - |
| German | 55 | 4.1% | 3.8% | 64 | 5.2% | 3.9% | -9 | -1.1pp |
| Italian | 32 | 2.4% | 1.7% | 38 | 3.1% | 1.5% | -6 | -0.7pp |
| Dutch | 22 | 1.7% | 1.2% | 22 | 1.8% | 1.2% | 0 | -0.1pp |
| Polish | 17 | 1.3% | 0.4% | 8 | 0.6% | 0.4% | +9 | +0.7pp |
| New Zealander | 13 | 1.0% | 0.5% | 9 | 0.7% | 0.5% | +4 | +0.3pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).