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 Tumby Bay (DC) were Australian, English and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Tumby Bay (DC) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Tumby Bay (DC) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional SA and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Tumby Bay (DC), with comparison markers for Regional SA.
Australian
2021 count
1,267
% of total
22.6%
Change from 2016
-1.4pp
1,267
22.6%
-1.4pp
English
2021 count
1,233
% of total
22.0%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
1,233
22.0%
+0.9pp
Scottish
2021 count
323
% of total
5.8%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
323
5.8%
0.0pp
German
2021 count
248
% of total
4.4%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
248
4.4%
-0.2pp
Irish
2021 count
233
% of total
4.2%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
233
4.2%
+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
54
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
54
1.0%
+0.7pp
Italian
2021 count
53
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
53
0.9%
+0.1pp
Dutch
2021 count
32
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
32
0.6%
-0.2pp
Polish
2021 count
16
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
16
0.3%
0.0pp
Welsh
2021 count
12
% of total
0.2%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
12
0.2%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+20
-1.4pp
English
+135
+0.9pp
Scottish
+23
0.0pp
German
+9
-0.2pp
Irish
+42
+0.5pp
Australian Aboriginal
+41
+0.7pp
Italian
+13
+0.1pp
Dutch
-7
-0.2pp
Polish
+3
0.0pp
Welsh
+5
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Tumby Bay (DC). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional SA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 1,267 | 22.6% | 20.3% | 1,247 | 24.0% | 21.0% | +20 | -1.4pp |
| English | 1,233 | 22.0% | 21.0% | 1,098 | 21.1% | 20.5% | +135 | +0.9pp |
| Scottish | 323 | 5.8% | 4.6% | 300 | 5.8% | 4.5% | +23 | 0.0pp |
| German | 248 | 4.4% | 5.3% | 239 | 4.6% | 5.4% | +9 | -0.2pp |
| Irish | 233 | 4.2% | 3.8% | 191 | 3.7% | 3.9% | +42 | +0.5pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 54 | 1.0% | 2.2% | 13 | 0.3% | 0.6% | +41 | +0.7pp |
| Italian | 53 | 0.9% | 1.1% | 40 | 0.8% | 1.1% | +13 | +0.1pp |
| Dutch | 32 | 0.6% | 0.8% | 39 | 0.8% | 0.8% | -7 | -0.2pp |
| Polish | 16 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 13 | 0.3% | 0.3% | +3 | 0.0pp |
| Welsh | 12 | 0.2% | 0.3% | 7 | 0.1% | 0.3% | +5 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 5,600 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 5,200 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +400 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).