Cultural diversity
Birthplace
About this topic
Birthplace records the country in which a person was born. It is a core measure of migration history and cultural diversity and helps distinguish Australia-born and overseas-born populations.
This topic is useful for understanding settlement patterns and the likely language, service, and support needs of different communities. It should be interpreted together with ancestry, language used at home, and religion for a fuller view of cultural diversity.
Interpretation notes
- Country of birth measures birthplace only; it does not capture ancestry, ethnicity, or current citizenship on its own.
- Use birthplace with ancestry and language when interpreting cultural background, because many cultural groups include both Australia-born and overseas-born people.
Key insight
In 2021, 14% (268) of people in Lightning Ridge were born overseas, compared with 8.1% in Walgett (A). A further 65.1% (1,249) of people were born in Australia.
Section overview
Birthplace - Ranked by size
Lightning Ridge - Overseas born (Usual residence)
This table summarises birthplace for Lightning Ridge in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Walgett (A) and change since 2016.
Birthplace - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Lightning Ridge, with comparison markers for Walgett (A).
Not stated
England
Philippines
New Zealand
Serbia
Germany
South Eastern Europe, nfd
Croatia
Sweden
Slovakia
Chart view
Birthplace - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Not stated
+70
+6.2pp
England
-17
-0.5pp
Philippines
-5
0.0pp
New Zealand
-3
+0.1pp
Serbia
+1
+0.2pp
Germany
-14
-0.5pp
South Eastern Europe, nfd
-15
-0.6pp
Croatia
-9
-0.3pp
Sweden
+6
+0.4pp
Slovakia
+4
+0.3pp
Data table
Birthplace for Lightning Ridge. Birthplace - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Walgett (A).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Walgett (A)% | Count | % | Walgett (A)% | Count | pp | |
| Not stated | 402 | 20.9% | 26.9% | 332 | 14.7% | 13.8% | +70 | +6.2pp |
| England | 30 | 1.6% | 1.1% | 47 | 2.1% | 1.3% | -17 | -0.5pp |
| Philippines | 27 | 1.4% | 0.7% | 32 | 1.4% | 0.7% | -5 | 0.0pp |
| New Zealand | 25 | 1.3% | 0.9% | 28 | 1.2% | 1.0% | -3 | +0.1pp |
| Serbia | 20 | 1.0% | 0.4% | 19 | 0.8% | 0.3% | +1 | +0.2pp |
| Germany | 18 | 0.9% | 0.4% | 32 | 1.4% | 0.6% | -14 | -0.5pp |
| South Eastern Europe, nfd | 16 | 0.8% | 0.3% | 31 | 1.4% | 0.5% | -15 | -0.6pp |
| Croatia | 16 | 0.8% | 0.3% | 25 | 1.1% | 0.4% | -9 | -0.3pp |
| Sweden | 11 | 0.6% | 0.2% | 5 | 0.2% | 0.2% | +6 | +0.4pp |
| Slovakia | 11 | 0.6% | 0.2% | 7 | 0.3% | 0.1% | +4 | +0.3pp |
Excludes countries of birth with fewer than 10 people.