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 South Penrith were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
South Penrith - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for South Penrith in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Penrith (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for South Penrith, with comparison markers for Penrith (C).
Australian
2021 count
4,863
% of total
20.3%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
4,863
20.3%
-0.4pp
English
2021 count
4,422
% of total
18.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
4,422
18.5%
+0.1pp
Irish
2021 count
1,273
% of total
5.3%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
1,273
5.3%
-0.4pp
Scottish
2021 count
954
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
954
4.0%
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
626
% of total
2.6%
Change from 2016
+2.2pp
626
2.6%
+2.2pp
German
2021 count
384
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
384
1.6%
-0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
383
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
383
1.6%
-0.7pp
Indian
2021 count
286
% of total
1.2%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
286
1.2%
+0.3pp
Chinese
2021 count
271
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
271
1.1%
+0.6pp
Maltese
2021 count
249
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
249
1.0%
-0.2pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+3,086
-0.4pp
English
+2,842
+0.1pp
Irish
+781
-0.4pp
Scottish
+580
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
+594
+2.2pp
German
+234
-0.1pp
Italian
+188
-0.7pp
Indian
+205
+0.3pp
Chinese
+230
+0.6pp
Maltese
+145
-0.2pp
Data table
Ancestry for South Penrith. 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 | 4,863 | 20.3% | 16.6% | 1,777 | 20.7% | 17.9% | +3,086 | -0.4pp |
| English | 4,422 | 18.5% | 15.1% | 1,580 | 18.4% | 16.6% | +2,842 | +0.1pp |
| Irish | 1,273 | 5.3% | 4.1% | 492 | 5.7% | 4.9% | +781 | -0.4pp |
| Scottish | 954 | 4.0% | 3.4% | 374 | 4.4% | 3.7% | +580 | -0.4pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 626 | 2.6% | 2.3% | 32 | 0.4% | 0.3% | +594 | +2.2pp |
| German | 384 | 1.6% | 1.4% | 150 | 1.7% | 1.7% | +234 | -0.1pp |
| Italian | 383 | 1.6% | 1.9% | 195 | 2.3% | 1.8% | +188 | -0.7pp |
| Indian | 286 | 1.2% | 2.0% | 81 | 0.9% | 1.5% | +205 | +0.3pp |
| Chinese | 271 | 1.1% | 1.0% | 41 | 0.5% | 0.9% | +230 | +0.6pp |
| Maltese | 249 | 1.0% | 2.0% | 104 | 1.2% | 1.9% | +145 | -0.2pp |
| Total | 23,964 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 8,595 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +15,369 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).