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 Towong (S) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Towong (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Towong (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 Towong (S), with comparison markers for Regional Vic..
Australian
2021 count
2,583
% of total
20.8%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
2,583
20.8%
-0.4pp
English
2021 count
2,573
% of total
20.7%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
2,573
20.7%
-0.2pp
Irish
2021 count
822
% of total
6.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
822
6.6%
+0.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
721
% of total
5.8%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
721
5.8%
-0.1pp
German
2021 count
363
% of total
2.9%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
363
2.9%
-0.3pp
Italian
2021 count
128
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
128
1.0%
0.0pp
Dutch
2021 count
118
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
118
0.9%
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
107
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
107
0.9%
+0.8pp
Filipino
2021 count
41
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
41
0.3%
+0.1pp
New Zealander
2021 count
33
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
33
0.3%
+0.1pp
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+48
-0.4pp
English
+79
-0.2pp
Irish
+44
+0.1pp
Scottish
+21
-0.1pp
German
-22
-0.3pp
Italian
+7
0.0pp
Dutch
+11
0.0pp
Australian Aboriginal
+99
+0.8pp
Filipino
+16
+0.1pp
New Zealander
+7
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Towong (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 | 2,583 | 20.8% | 19.6% | 2,535 | 21.2% | 20.0% | +48 | -0.4pp |
| English | 2,573 | 20.7% | 20.3% | 2,494 | 20.9% | 20.0% | +79 | -0.2pp |
| Irish | 822 | 6.6% | 6.4% | 778 | 6.5% | 6.5% | +44 | +0.1pp |
| Scottish | 721 | 5.8% | 5.8% | 700 | 5.9% | 5.7% | +21 | -0.1pp |
| German | 363 | 2.9% | 2.3% | 385 | 3.2% | 2.3% | -22 | -0.3pp |
| Italian | 128 | 1.0% | 1.9% | 121 | 1.0% | 1.8% | +7 | 0.0pp |
| Dutch | 118 | 0.9% | 1.1% | 107 | 0.9% | 1.1% | +11 | 0.0pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 107 | 0.9% | 1.0% | 8 | 0.1% | 0.1% | +99 | +0.8pp |
| Filipino | 41 | 0.3% | 0.4% | 25 | 0.2% | 0.3% | +16 | +0.1pp |
| New Zealander | 33 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 26 | 0.2% | 0.3% | +7 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 12,436 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 11,951 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +485 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).