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 Cranebrook were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Cranebrook - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Cranebrook in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Penrith (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Cranebrook, with comparison markers for Penrith (C).
Australian
2021 count
6,464
% of total
41.0%
Change from 2016
-1.6pp
6,464
41.0%
-1.6pp
English
2021 count
5,762
% of total
36.5%
Change from 2016
-2.0pp
5,762
36.5%
-2.0pp
Irish
2021 count
1,608
% of total
10.2%
Change from 2016
-1.0pp
1,608
10.2%
-1.0pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,258
% of total
8.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
1,258
8.0%
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,049
% of total
6.6%
Change from 2016
+6.0pp
1,049
6.6%
+6.0pp
Maltese
2021 count
761
% of total
4.8%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
761
4.8%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
564
% of total
3.6%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
564
3.6%
+0.3pp
German
2021 count
502
% of total
3.2%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
502
3.2%
-0.5pp
Dutch
2021 count
299
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
299
1.9%
+0.2pp
Filipino
2021 count
264
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
264
1.7%
+0.4pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-246
-1.6pp
English
-306
-2.0pp
Irish
-161
-1.0pp
Scottish
+5
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
+953
+6.0pp
Maltese
+39
+0.2pp
Italian
+37
+0.3pp
German
-80
-0.5pp
Dutch
+26
+0.2pp
Filipino
+62
+0.4pp
Data table
Ancestry for Cranebrook. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Penrith (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Penrith (C)% | Count | % | Penrith (C)% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 6,464 | 41.0% | 33.3% | 6,710 | 42.6% | 35.7% | -246 | -1.6pp |
| English | 5,762 | 36.5% | 30.2% | 6,068 | 38.5% | 33.3% | -306 | -2.0pp |
| Irish | 1,608 | 10.2% | 8.2% | 1,769 | 11.2% | 9.8% | -161 | -1.0pp |
| Scottish | 1,258 | 8.0% | 6.7% | 1,253 | 8.0% | 7.4% | +5 | 0.0pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,049 | 6.6% | 4.6% | 96 | 0.6% | 0.6% | +953 | +6.0pp |
| Maltese | 761 | 4.8% | 4.0% | 722 | 4.6% | 3.9% | +39 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 564 | 3.6% | 3.7% | 527 | 3.3% | 3.7% | +37 | +0.3pp |
| German | 502 | 3.2% | 2.9% | 582 | 3.7% | 3.3% | -80 | -0.5pp |
| Dutch | 299 | 1.9% | 1.4% | 273 | 1.7% | 1.5% | +26 | +0.2pp |
| Filipino | 264 | 1.7% | 3.6% | 202 | 1.3% | 2.8% | +62 | +0.4pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).