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 Flemington (part) were English, Australian and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Flemington (part) - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Flemington (part) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Moonee Valley (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Flemington (part), with comparison markers for Moonee Valley (C).

Flemington (part)
Moonee Valley (C)

English

2021 count

1,777

% of total

25.3%

Change from 2016

+3.3pp

Australian

2021 count

1,539

% of total

21.9%

Change from 2016

+3.4pp

Irish

2021 count

832

% of total

11.8%

Change from 2016

+0.9pp

Scottish

2021 count

588

% of total

8.4%

Change from 2016

+1.3pp

Chinese

2021 count

552

% of total

7.9%

Change from 2016

-0.2pp

Somali

2021 count

344

% of total

4.9%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

Italian

2021 count

342

% of total

4.9%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Vietnamese

2021 count

320

% of total

4.6%

Change from 2016

-0.9pp

German

2021 count

223

% of total

3.2%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Ethiopian

2021 count

213

% of total

3.0%

Change from 2016

-0.8pp

Data table

Ancestry for Flemington (part). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moonee Valley (C).

Ancestry for Flemington (part). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moonee Valley (C).
Ancestry for Flemington (part). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moonee Valley (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Moonee Valley (C)%Count%Moonee Valley (C)%Countpp
English1,77725.3%24.0%1,69822.0%23.6%+79+3.3pp
Australian1,53921.9%23.2%1,43018.5%23.1%+109+3.4pp
Irish83211.8%11.3%84210.9%11.8%-10+0.9pp
Scottish5888.4%7.3%5467.1%7.1%+42+1.3pp
Chinese5527.9%5.0%6268.1%4.8%-74-0.2pp
Somali3444.9%0.5%3985.2%0.6%-54-0.3pp
Italian3424.9%17.4%3514.5%16.7%-9+0.4pp
Vietnamese3204.6%2.8%4285.5%2.6%-108-0.9pp
German2233.2%2.9%2052.7%2.7%+18+0.5pp
Ethiopian2133.0%0.4%2963.8%0.5%-83-0.8pp

Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).