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 Murray (S) were English, Australian and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Murray (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Murray (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional WA and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Murray (S), with comparison markers for Regional WA.
English
2021 count
8,641
% of total
23.9%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
8,641
23.9%
+0.2pp
Australian
2021 count
7,546
% of total
20.9%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
7,546
20.9%
0.0pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,912
% of total
5.3%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
1,912
5.3%
+0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
1,637
% of total
4.5%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
1,637
4.5%
-0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
609
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
609
1.7%
+0.1pp
German
2021 count
525
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
525
1.5%
-0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
478
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
+1.2pp
478
1.3%
+1.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
389
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
389
1.1%
+0.2pp
New Zealander
2021 count
199
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
199
0.6%
-0.1pp
Maori
2021 count
169
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
169
0.5%
+0.1pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+749
+0.2pp
Australian
+583
0.0pp
Scottish
+246
+0.3pp
Irish
+62
-0.2pp
Italian
+59
+0.1pp
German
-15
-0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
+432
+1.2pp
Dutch
+100
+0.2pp
New Zealander
-33
-0.1pp
Maori
+50
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Murray (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional WA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | % | Regional WA% | Count | pp | |
| English | 8,641 | 23.9% | 20.0% | 7,892 | 23.7% | 19.7% | +749 | +0.2pp |
| Australian | 7,546 | 20.9% | 18.2% | 6,963 | 20.9% | 19.9% | +583 | 0.0pp |
| Scottish | 1,912 | 5.3% | 4.5% | 1,666 | 5.0% | 4.4% | +246 | +0.3pp |
| Irish | 1,637 | 4.5% | 4.3% | 1,575 | 4.7% | 4.3% | +62 | -0.2pp |
| Italian | 609 | 1.7% | 1.9% | 550 | 1.6% | 1.8% | +59 | +0.1pp |
| German | 525 | 1.5% | 1.7% | 540 | 1.6% | 1.7% | -15 | -0.1pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 478 | 1.3% | 3.9% | 46 | 0.1% | 1.5% | +432 | +1.2pp |
| Dutch | 389 | 1.1% | 1.0% | 289 | 0.9% | 0.9% | +100 | +0.2pp |
| New Zealander | 199 | 0.6% | 0.6% | 232 | 0.7% | 0.6% | -33 | -0.1pp |
| Maori | 169 | 0.5% | 0.6% | 119 | 0.4% | 0.6% | +50 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 36,086 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 33,366 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,720 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).