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 Upper Lachlan Shire (A) were Australian, English and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Upper Lachlan Shire (A) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Upper Lachlan Shire (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Upper Lachlan Shire (A), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Australian
2021 count
3,609
% of total
42.4%
Change from 2016
-2.2pp
3,609
42.4%
-2.2pp
English
2021 count
3,609
% of total
42.4%
Change from 2016
+2.0pp
3,609
42.4%
+2.0pp
Irish
2021 count
1,388
% of total
16.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
1,388
16.3%
+0.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,002
% of total
11.8%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
1,002
11.8%
-0.3pp
German
2021 count
299
% of total
3.5%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
299
3.5%
+0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
270
% of total
3.2%
Change from 2016
+3.0pp
270
3.2%
+3.0pp
Italian
2021 count
136
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
136
1.6%
+0.7pp
Dutch
2021 count
125
% of total
1.5%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
125
1.5%
+0.2pp
Welsh
2021 count
70
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
70
0.8%
+0.2pp
Maltese
2021 count
62
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
62
0.7%
-0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+175
-2.2pp
English
+497
+2.0pp
Irish
+140
+0.1pp
Scottish
+73
-0.3pp
German
+78
+0.6pp
Australian Aboriginal
+257
+3.0pp
Italian
+67
+0.7pp
Dutch
+24
+0.2pp
Welsh
+23
+0.2pp
Maltese
0
-0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Upper Lachlan Shire (A). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NSW.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 3,609 | 42.4% | 40.2% | 3,434 | 44.6% | 42.5% | +175 | -2.2pp |
| English | 3,609 | 42.4% | 40.9% | 3,112 | 40.4% | 40.8% | +497 | +2.0pp |
| Irish | 1,388 | 16.3% | 11.8% | 1,248 | 16.2% | 12.3% | +140 | +0.1pp |
| Scottish | 1,002 | 11.8% | 10.7% | 929 | 12.1% | 10.5% | +73 | -0.3pp |
| German | 299 | 3.5% | 4.2% | 221 | 2.9% | 4.3% | +78 | +0.6pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 270 | 3.2% | 6.1% | 13 | 0.2% | 0.8% | +257 | +3.0pp |
| Italian | 136 | 1.6% | 2.8% | 69 | 0.9% | 2.6% | +67 | +0.7pp |
| Dutch | 125 | 1.5% | 1.4% | 101 | 1.3% | 1.3% | +24 | +0.2pp |
| Welsh | 70 | 0.8% | 0.7% | 47 | 0.6% | 0.7% | +23 | +0.2pp |
| Maltese | 62 | 0.7% | 0.5% | 62 | 0.8% | 0.5% | 0 | -0.1pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).