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 North Sydney (A) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
North Sydney (A) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for North Sydney (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Sydney and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for North Sydney (A), with comparison markers for Greater Sydney.
English
2021 count
23,185
% of total
16.8%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
23,185
16.8%
-0.2pp
Australian
2021 count
15,773
% of total
11.4%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
15,773
11.4%
+0.2pp
Irish
2021 count
8,922
% of total
6.5%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
8,922
6.5%
-0.4pp
Chinese
2021 count
7,452
% of total
5.4%
Change from 2016
+1.0pp
7,452
5.4%
+1.0pp
Scottish
2021 count
7,111
% of total
5.2%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
7,111
5.2%
0.0pp
Italian
2021 count
2,713
% of total
2.0%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
2,713
2.0%
+0.3pp
German
2021 count
2,608
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
2,608
1.9%
-0.1pp
Indian
2021 count
2,323
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
2,323
1.7%
+0.3pp
Japanese
2021 count
1,247
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
1,247
0.9%
-0.1pp
Filipino
2021 count
1,139
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
1,139
0.8%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+168
-0.2pp
Australian
+641
+0.2pp
Irish
-431
-0.4pp
Chinese
+1,516
+1.0pp
Scottish
+21
0.0pp
Italian
+437
+0.3pp
German
-30
-0.1pp
Indian
+369
+0.3pp
Japanese
-132
-0.1pp
Filipino
+245
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for North Sydney (A). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Sydney.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Sydney% | Count | % | Greater Sydney% | Count | pp | |
| English | 23,185 | 16.8% | 11.9% | 23,017 | 17.0% | 12.6% | +168 | -0.2pp |
| Australian | 15,773 | 11.4% | 11.2% | 15,132 | 11.2% | 11.8% | +641 | +0.2pp |
| Irish | 8,922 | 6.5% | 3.8% | 9,353 | 6.9% | 4.3% | -431 | -0.4pp |
| Chinese | 7,452 | 5.4% | 5.3% | 5,936 | 4.4% | 5.1% | +1,516 | +1.0pp |
| Scottish | 7,111 | 5.2% | 3.0% | 7,090 | 5.2% | 3.2% | +21 | 0.0pp |
| Italian | 2,713 | 2.0% | 2.1% | 2,276 | 1.7% | 2.1% | +437 | +0.3pp |
| German | 2,608 | 1.9% | 1.2% | 2,638 | 2.0% | 1.3% | -30 | -0.1pp |
| Indian | 2,323 | 1.7% | 2.3% | 1,954 | 1.4% | 2.0% | +369 | +0.3pp |
| Japanese | 1,247 | 0.9% | 0.2% | 1,379 | 1.0% | 0.2% | -132 | -0.1pp |
| Filipino | 1,139 | 0.8% | 1.2% | 894 | 0.7% | 1.1% | +245 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 137,834 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 135,265 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,569 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).