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 Southern Grampians (S) were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Southern Grampians (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Southern Grampians (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional Vic. and change since 2016.
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Southern Grampians (S), with comparison markers for Regional Vic..
Australian
2021 count
7,083
% of total
21.4%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
7,083
21.4%
-0.1pp
English
2021 count
6,823
% of total
20.6%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
6,823
20.6%
+0.6pp
Scottish
2021 count
2,374
% of total
7.2%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
2,374
7.2%
-0.1pp
Irish
2021 count
2,037
% of total
6.1%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
2,037
6.1%
-0.1pp
German
2021 count
1,288
% of total
3.9%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
1,288
3.9%
-0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
352
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
352
1.1%
+1.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
264
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
264
0.8%
0.0pp
Italian
2021 count
208
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
208
0.6%
+0.1pp
Chinese
2021 count
108
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
108
0.3%
0.0pp
Indian
2021 count
96
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
96
0.3%
0.0pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+216
-0.1pp
English
+452
+0.6pp
Scottish
+61
-0.1pp
Irish
+68
-0.1pp
German
+2
-0.1pp
Australian Aboriginal
+337
+1.1pp
Dutch
+17
0.0pp
Italian
+55
+0.1pp
Chinese
+16
0.0pp
Indian
+2
0.0pp
Data table
Ancestry for Southern Grampians (S). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional Vic..
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional Vic.% | Count | % | Regional Vic.% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 7,083 | 21.4% | 19.6% | 6,867 | 21.5% | 20.0% | +216 | -0.1pp |
| English | 6,823 | 20.6% | 20.3% | 6,371 | 20.0% | 20.0% | +452 | +0.6pp |
| Scottish | 2,374 | 7.2% | 5.8% | 2,313 | 7.3% | 5.7% | +61 | -0.1pp |
| Irish | 2,037 | 6.1% | 6.4% | 1,969 | 6.2% | 6.5% | +68 | -0.1pp |
| German | 1,288 | 3.9% | 2.3% | 1,286 | 4.0% | 2.3% | +2 | -0.1pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 352 | 1.1% | 1.0% | 15 | 0.0% | 0.1% | +337 | +1.1pp |
| Dutch | 264 | 0.8% | 1.1% | 247 | 0.8% | 1.1% | +17 | 0.0pp |
| Italian | 208 | 0.6% | 1.9% | 153 | 0.5% | 1.8% | +55 | +0.1pp |
| Chinese | 108 | 0.3% | 0.6% | 92 | 0.3% | 0.5% | +16 | 0.0pp |
| Indian | 96 | 0.3% | 0.5% | 94 | 0.3% | 0.4% | +2 | 0.0pp |
| Total | 33,141 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 31,897 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +1,244 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).