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 Mount Wallace were Australian, English and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Mount Wallace - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Mount Wallace in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Moorabool (S) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Mount Wallace, with comparison markers for Moorabool (S).

Mount Wallace
Moorabool (S)

Australian

2021 count

52

% of total

44.4%

Change from 2016

+3.7pp

English

2021 count

36

% of total

30.8%

Change from 2016

+10.4pp

Irish

2021 count

18

% of total

15.4%

Change from 2016

-0.5pp

Scottish

2021 count

16

% of total

13.7%

Change from 2016

-1.3pp

Maltese

2021 count

12

% of total

10.3%

Change from 2016

+5.0pp

Data table

Ancestry for Mount Wallace. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moorabool (S).

Ancestry for Mount Wallace. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moorabool (S).
Ancestry for Mount Wallace. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moorabool (S).
Category20212016Change
Count%Moorabool (S)%Count%Moorabool (S)%Countpp
Australian5244.4%39.2%4640.7%39.9%+6+3.7pp
English3630.8%38.8%2320.4%39.4%+13+10.4pp
Irish1815.4%13.2%1815.9%14.5%0-0.5pp
Scottish1613.7%11.4%1715.0%11.2%-1-1.3pp
Maltese1210.3%3.9%65.3%3.4%+6+5.0pp

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