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 Scenic Rim (R) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Scenic Rim (R) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Scenic Rim (R) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Brisbane and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Scenic Rim (R), with comparison markers for Greater Brisbane.
English
2021 count
19,257
% of total
22.4%
Change from 2016
+1.7pp
19,257
22.4%
+1.7pp
Australian
2021 count
16,395
% of total
19.1%
Change from 2016
-1.0pp
16,395
19.1%
-1.0pp
Irish
2021 count
5,283
% of total
6.1%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
5,283
6.1%
+0.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
4,932
% of total
5.7%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
4,932
5.7%
+0.2pp
German
2021 count
4,144
% of total
4.8%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
4,144
4.8%
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,436
% of total
1.7%
Change from 2016
+1.5pp
1,436
1.7%
+1.5pp
Dutch
2021 count
756
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
756
0.9%
0.0pp
Italian
2021 count
719
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
719
0.8%
+0.2pp
New Zealander
2021 count
487
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
487
0.6%
-0.1pp
Welsh
2021 count
306
% of total
0.4%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
306
0.4%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+2,687
+1.7pp
Australian
+288
-1.0pp
Irish
+444
+0.1pp
Scottish
+502
+0.2pp
German
+140
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,276
+1.5pp
Dutch
+11
0.0pp
Italian
+206
+0.2pp
New Zealander
-46
-0.1pp
Welsh
+49
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Scenic Rim (R). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Brisbane.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Brisbane% | Count | % | Greater Brisbane% | Count | pp | |
| English | 19,257 | 22.4% | 18.2% | 16,570 | 20.7% | 18.5% | +2,687 | +1.7pp |
| Australian | 16,395 | 19.1% | 15.8% | 16,107 | 20.1% | 16.2% | +288 | -1.0pp |
| Irish | 5,283 | 6.1% | 5.6% | 4,839 | 6.0% | 6.2% | +444 | +0.1pp |
| Scottish | 4,932 | 5.7% | 5.0% | 4,430 | 5.5% | 5.2% | +502 | +0.2pp |
| German | 4,144 | 4.8% | 2.8% | 4,004 | 5.0% | 3.0% | +140 | -0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,436 | 1.7% | 1.4% | 160 | 0.2% | 0.2% | +1,276 | +1.5pp |
| Dutch | 756 | 0.9% | 0.8% | 745 | 0.9% | 0.8% | +11 | 0.0pp |
| Italian | 719 | 0.8% | 1.4% | 513 | 0.6% | 1.3% | +206 | +0.2pp |
| New Zealander | 487 | 0.6% | 0.7% | 533 | 0.7% | 0.8% | -46 | -0.1pp |
| Welsh | 306 | 0.4% | 0.4% | 257 | 0.3% | 0.3% | +49 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 85,994 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 80,099 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +5,895 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).