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 Maslin Beach were English, Australian and Scottish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Maslin Beach - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Maslin Beach in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Onkaparinga (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Maslin Beach, with comparison markers for Onkaparinga (C).

Maslin Beach
Onkaparinga (C)

English

2021 count

658

% of total

54.2%

Change from 2016

+1.3pp

Australian

2021 count

385

% of total

31.7%

Change from 2016

-0.6pp

Scottish

2021 count

143

% of total

11.8%

Change from 2016

+0.9pp

Irish

2021 count

132

% of total

10.9%

Change from 2016

-0.5pp

German

2021 count

104

% of total

8.6%

Change from 2016

+1.7pp

Dutch

2021 count

42

% of total

3.5%

Change from 2016

+0.1pp

Italian

2021 count

31

% of total

2.6%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

22

% of total

1.8%

Change from 2016

-

Welsh

2021 count

22

% of total

1.8%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Polish

2021 count

17

% of total

1.4%

Change from 2016

+0.5pp

Data table

Ancestry for Maslin Beach. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Onkaparinga (C).

Ancestry for Maslin Beach. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Onkaparinga (C).
Ancestry for Maslin Beach. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Onkaparinga (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Onkaparinga (C)%Count%Onkaparinga (C)%Countpp
English65854.2%48.5%60952.9%47.8%+49+1.3pp
Australian38531.7%37.7%37232.3%37.5%+13-0.6pp
Scottish14311.8%10.0%12510.9%9.6%+18+0.9pp
Irish13210.9%8.5%13111.4%8.7%+1-0.5pp
German1048.6%7.4%806.9%7.2%+24+1.7pp
Dutch423.5%2.4%393.4%2.2%+3+0.1pp
Italian312.6%2.9%242.1%2.7%+7+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal221.8%1.9%--0.2%--
Welsh221.8%1.1%151.3%1.0%+7+0.5pp
Polish171.4%1.2%100.9%1.1%+7+0.5pp

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