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 Atherton were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Atherton - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Atherton in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Tablelands (R) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Atherton, with comparison markers for Tablelands (R).
English
2021 count
2,884
% of total
37.3%
Change from 2016
-0.8pp
2,884
37.3%
-0.8pp
Australian
2021 count
2,809
% of total
36.4%
Change from 2016
-4.3pp
2,809
36.4%
-4.3pp
Irish
2021 count
961
% of total
12.4%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
961
12.4%
-0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
804
% of total
10.4%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
804
10.4%
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
631
% of total
8.2%
Change from 2016
+7.0pp
631
8.2%
+7.0pp
Italian
2021 count
557
% of total
7.2%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
557
7.2%
-0.3pp
German
2021 count
443
% of total
5.7%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
443
5.7%
-0.1pp
Torres Strait Islander
2021 count
168
% of total
2.2%
Change from 2016
+1.8pp
168
2.2%
+1.8pp
Dutch
2021 count
108
% of total
1.4%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
108
1.4%
0.0pp
Chinese
2021 count
77
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
77
1.0%
-0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+93
-0.8pp
Australian
-176
-4.3pp
Irish
+34
-0.2pp
Scottish
+10
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
+542
+7.0pp
Italian
+10
-0.3pp
German
+19
-0.1pp
Torres Strait Islander
+136
+1.8pp
Dutch
+8
0.0pp
Chinese
-2
-0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Atherton. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Tablelands (R).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Tablelands (R)% | Count | % | Tablelands (R)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 2,884 | 37.3% | 38.3% | 2,791 | 38.1% | 38.6% | +93 | -0.8pp |
| Australian | 2,809 | 36.4% | 37.1% | 2,985 | 40.7% | 41.2% | -176 | -4.3pp |
| Irish | 961 | 12.4% | 12.5% | 927 | 12.6% | 12.9% | +34 | -0.2pp |
| Scottish | 804 | 10.4% | 10.7% | 794 | 10.8% | 11.1% | +10 | -0.4pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 631 | 8.2% | 6.8% | 89 | 1.2% | 0.9% | +542 | +7.0pp |
| Italian | 557 | 7.2% | 5.8% | 547 | 7.5% | 6.0% | +10 | -0.3pp |
| German | 443 | 5.7% | 6.1% | 424 | 5.8% | 6.0% | +19 | -0.1pp |
| Torres Strait Islander | 168 | 2.2% | 1.5% | 32 | 0.4% | 0.2% | +136 | +1.8pp |
| Dutch | 108 | 1.4% | 1.5% | 100 | 1.4% | 1.5% | +8 | 0.0pp |
| Chinese | 77 | 1.0% | 0.8% | 79 | 1.1% | 0.8% | -2 | -0.1pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).