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 Parkside (Qld) were Australian, English and Australian Aboriginal.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Parkside (Qld) - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Parkside (Qld) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Mount Isa (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Parkside (Qld), with comparison markers for Mount Isa (C).

Parkside (Qld)
Mount Isa (C)

Australian

2021 count

520

% of total

34.0%

Change from 2016

-1.8pp

English

2021 count

460

% of total

30.1%

Change from 2016

-2.1pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

205

% of total

13.4%

Change from 2016

+12.1pp

Irish

2021 count

170

% of total

11.1%

Change from 2016

-1.4pp

Scottish

2021 count

123

% of total

8.0%

Change from 2016

+0.2pp

German

2021 count

79

% of total

5.2%

Change from 2016

+0.8pp

Filipino

2021 count

63

% of total

4.1%

Change from 2016

+0.6pp

Italian

2021 count

42

% of total

2.7%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Maori

2021 count

35

% of total

2.3%

Change from 2016

-1.2pp

Chinese

2021 count

23

% of total

1.5%

Change from 2016

+0.2pp

Data table

Ancestry for Parkside (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mount Isa (C).

Ancestry for Parkside (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mount Isa (C).
Ancestry for Parkside (Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Mount Isa (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Mount Isa (C)%Count%Mount Isa (C)%Countpp
Australian52034.0%33.4%54935.8%41.0%-29-1.8pp
English46030.1%28.5%49332.2%30.3%-33-2.1pp
Australian Aboriginal20513.4%19.1%201.3%3.2%+185+12.1pp
Irish17011.1%8.9%19112.5%10.9%-21-1.4pp
Scottish1238.0%7.2%1197.8%8.4%+4+0.2pp
German795.2%4.4%684.4%4.9%+11+0.8pp
Filipino634.1%3.8%543.5%3.1%+9+0.6pp
Italian422.7%2.5%362.3%2.5%+6+0.4pp
Maori352.3%2.3%533.5%2.3%-18-1.2pp
Chinese231.5%1.4%201.3%1.4%+3+0.2pp

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