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 Parkside (SA) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Parkside (SA) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Parkside (SA) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Unley (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Parkside (SA), with comparison markers for Unley (C).
English
2021 count
1,839
% of total
35.9%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
1,839
35.9%
-0.4pp
Australian
2021 count
1,438
% of total
28.1%
Change from 2016
+0.9pp
1,438
28.1%
+0.9pp
Irish
2021 count
552
% of total
10.8%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
552
10.8%
-0.4pp
Scottish
2021 count
539
% of total
10.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
539
10.5%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
452
% of total
8.8%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
452
8.8%
+1.1pp
German
2021 count
366
% of total
7.1%
Change from 2016
-0.9pp
366
7.1%
-0.9pp
Greek
2021 count
339
% of total
6.6%
Change from 2016
+0.5pp
339
6.6%
+0.5pp
Chinese
2021 count
310
% of total
6.0%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
310
6.0%
-0.2pp
Indian
2021 count
99
% of total
1.9%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
99
1.9%
+0.3pp
Dutch
2021 count
81
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
81
1.6%
+0.4pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+102
-0.4pp
Australian
+136
+0.9pp
Irish
+15
-0.4pp
Scottish
+46
+0.2pp
Italian
+82
+1.1pp
German
-15
-0.9pp
Greek
+49
+0.5pp
Chinese
+14
-0.2pp
Indian
+22
+0.3pp
Dutch
+22
+0.4pp
Data table
Ancestry for Parkside (SA). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Unley (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Unley (C)% | Count | % | Unley (C)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 1,839 | 35.9% | 37.5% | 1,737 | 36.3% | 36.9% | +102 | -0.4pp |
| Australian | 1,438 | 28.1% | 29.5% | 1,302 | 27.2% | 29.3% | +136 | +0.9pp |
| Irish | 552 | 10.8% | 10.1% | 537 | 11.2% | 10.3% | +15 | -0.4pp |
| Scottish | 539 | 10.5% | 10.7% | 493 | 10.3% | 10.1% | +46 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 452 | 8.8% | 6.5% | 370 | 7.7% | 6.1% | +82 | +1.1pp |
| German | 366 | 7.1% | 7.9% | 381 | 8.0% | 7.7% | -15 | -0.9pp |
| Greek | 339 | 6.6% | 5.5% | 290 | 6.1% | 5.4% | +49 | +0.5pp |
| Chinese | 310 | 6.0% | 5.9% | 296 | 6.2% | 6.0% | +14 | -0.2pp |
| Indian | 99 | 1.9% | 2.6% | 77 | 1.6% | 2.4% | +22 | +0.3pp |
| Dutch | 81 | 1.6% | 1.6% | 59 | 1.2% | 1.2% | +22 | +0.4pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).