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 Narrandera (A) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Narrandera (A) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Narrandera (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Narrandera (A), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Australian
2021 count
2,365
% of total
20.8%
Change from 2016
-2.5pp
2,365
20.8%
-2.5pp
English
2021 count
2,182
% of total
19.2%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
2,182
19.2%
+0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
720
% of total
6.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
720
6.3%
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
655
% of total
5.8%
Change from 2016
+5.4pp
655
5.8%
+5.4pp
Scottish
2021 count
567
% of total
5.0%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
567
5.0%
+0.3pp
German
2021 count
291
% of total
2.6%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
291
2.6%
+0.3pp
Italian
2021 count
155
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
155
1.4%
+0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
49
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
49
0.4%
+0.1pp
Welsh
2021 count
36
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
36
0.3%
+0.1pp
Chinese
2021 count
32
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
32
0.3%
0.0pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-363
-2.5pp
English
-23
+0.3pp
Irish
-15
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
+604
+5.4pp
Scottish
+17
+0.3pp
German
+18
+0.3pp
Italian
-1
+0.1pp
Dutch
+14
+0.1pp
Welsh
+18
+0.1pp
Chinese
-4
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Narrandera (A). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NSW.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 2,365 | 20.8% | 20.1% | 2,728 | 23.3% | 21.3% | -363 | -2.5pp |
| English | 2,182 | 19.2% | 20.5% | 2,205 | 18.9% | 20.4% | -23 | +0.3pp |
| Irish | 720 | 6.3% | 5.9% | 735 | 6.3% | 6.1% | -15 | 0.0pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 655 | 5.8% | 3.1% | 51 | 0.4% | 0.4% | +604 | +5.4pp |
| Scottish | 567 | 5.0% | 5.4% | 550 | 4.7% | 5.3% | +17 | +0.3pp |
| German | 291 | 2.6% | 2.1% | 273 | 2.3% | 2.1% | +18 | +0.3pp |
| Italian | 155 | 1.4% | 1.4% | 156 | 1.3% | 1.3% | -1 | +0.1pp |
| Dutch | 49 | 0.4% | 0.7% | 35 | 0.3% | 0.6% | +14 | +0.1pp |
| Welsh | 36 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 18 | 0.2% | 0.3% | +18 | +0.1pp |
| Chinese | 32 | 0.3% | 0.5% | 36 | 0.3% | 0.5% | -4 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 11,343 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 11,690 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -347 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).