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 Coburg North were English, Australian and Italian.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Coburg North - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Coburg North in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Moreland (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Coburg North, with comparison markers for Moreland (C).

Coburg North
Moreland (C)

English

2021 count

1,967

% of total

23.6%

Change from 2016

+1.9pp

Australian

2021 count

1,871

% of total

22.5%

Change from 2016

+2.9pp

Italian

2021 count

1,416

% of total

17.0%

Change from 2016

-0.1pp

Irish

2021 count

763

% of total

9.2%

Change from 2016

+0.1pp

Scottish

2021 count

618

% of total

7.4%

Change from 2016

+1.1pp

Greek

2021 count

495

% of total

5.9%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

Chinese

2021 count

450

% of total

5.4%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

Lebanese

2021 count

287

% of total

3.4%

Change from 2016

-0.8pp

German

2021 count

241

% of total

2.9%

Change from 2016

+0.6pp

Indian

2021 count

192

% of total

2.3%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Data table

Ancestry for Coburg North. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moreland (C).

Ancestry for Coburg North. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moreland (C).
Ancestry for Coburg North. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Moreland (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Moreland (C)%Count%Moreland (C)%Countpp
English1,96723.6%23.4%1,64621.7%22.0%+321+1.9pp
Australian1,87122.5%21.4%1,49219.6%20.0%+379+2.9pp
Italian1,41617.0%15.0%1,30217.1%15.6%+114-0.1pp
Irish7639.2%10.5%6919.1%10.3%+72+0.1pp
Scottish6187.4%7.6%4776.3%6.8%+141+1.1pp
Greek4955.9%5.9%4726.2%6.1%+23-0.3pp
Chinese4505.4%3.8%4325.7%3.8%+18-0.3pp
Lebanese2873.4%3.8%3194.2%4.3%-32-0.8pp
German2412.9%3.0%1752.3%2.7%+66+0.6pp
Indian1922.3%3.2%1421.9%3.4%+50+0.4pp

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