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 Richmond (S) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Richmond (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Richmond (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Qld and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Richmond (S), with comparison markers for Regional Qld.
Australian
2021 count
354
% of total
23.3%
Change from 2016
-1.5pp
354
23.3%
-1.5pp
English
2021 count
272
% of total
17.9%
Change from 2016
-1.6pp
272
17.9%
-1.6pp
Irish
2021 count
78
% of total
5.1%
Change from 2016
-1.3pp
78
5.1%
-1.3pp
Scottish
2021 count
73
% of total
4.8%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
73
4.8%
-0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
51
% of total
3.4%
Change from 2016
-
51
3.4%
-
German
2021 count
37
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
37
2.4%
+0.4pp
Italian
2021 count
20
% of total
1.3%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
20
1.3%
+0.9pp
Chinese
2021 count
10
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
10
0.7%
+0.1pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
-34
-1.5pp
English
-33
-1.6pp
Irish
-23
-1.3pp
Scottish
-10
-0.5pp
German
+5
+0.4pp
Italian
+14
+0.9pp
Chinese
0
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Richmond (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Qld.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | % | Regional Qld% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 354 | 23.3% | 17.7% | 388 | 24.8% | 18.8% | -34 | -1.5pp |
| English | 272 | 17.9% | 19.8% | 305 | 19.5% | 19.6% | -33 | -1.6pp |
| Irish | 78 | 5.1% | 5.5% | 101 | 6.4% | 5.9% | -23 | -1.3pp |
| Scottish | 73 | 4.8% | 5.2% | 83 | 5.3% | 5.2% | -10 | -0.5pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 51 | 3.4% | 2.6% | - | - | 0.6% | - | - |
| German | 37 | 2.4% | 3.2% | 32 | 2.0% | 3.3% | +5 | +0.4pp |
| Italian | 20 | 1.3% | 1.6% | 6 | 0.4% | 1.5% | +14 | +0.9pp |
| Chinese | 10 | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 | 0.6% | 0.8% | 0 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 1,522 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 1,566 | 100.0% | 100.0% | -44 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).