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 Butler (WA) were English, Australian and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Butler (WA) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Butler (WA) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Wanneroo (C) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Butler (WA), with comparison markers for Wanneroo (C).
English
2021 count
6,258
% of total
46.4%
Change from 2016
+2.3pp
6,258
46.4%
+2.3pp
Australian
2021 count
3,562
% of total
26.4%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
3,562
26.4%
-0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,294
% of total
9.6%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
1,294
9.6%
+0.8pp
Irish
2021 count
1,213
% of total
9.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
1,213
9.0%
0.0pp
Maori
2021 count
483
% of total
3.6%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
483
3.6%
+0.6pp
German
2021 count
395
% of total
2.9%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
395
2.9%
+0.2pp
Italian
2021 count
361
% of total
2.7%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
361
2.7%
+0.3pp
South African
2021 count
351
% of total
2.6%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
351
2.6%
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
312
% of total
2.3%
Change from 2016
+2.0pp
312
2.3%
+2.0pp
Filipino
2021 count
292
% of total
2.2%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
292
2.2%
+0.7pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+400
+2.3pp
Australian
+34
-0.2pp
Scottish
+124
+0.8pp
Irish
+15
0.0pp
Maori
+79
+0.6pp
German
+39
+0.2pp
Italian
+40
+0.3pp
South African
-15
-0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+278
+2.0pp
Filipino
+89
+0.7pp
Data table
Ancestry for Butler (WA). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Wanneroo (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Wanneroo (C)% | Count | % | Wanneroo (C)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 6,258 | 46.4% | 39.7% | 5,858 | 44.1% | 39.4% | +400 | +2.3pp |
| Australian | 3,562 | 26.4% | 26.3% | 3,528 | 26.6% | 26.6% | +34 | -0.2pp |
| Scottish | 1,294 | 9.6% | 8.5% | 1,170 | 8.8% | 8.3% | +124 | +0.8pp |
| Irish | 1,213 | 9.0% | 8.5% | 1,198 | 9.0% | 8.3% | +15 | 0.0pp |
| Maori | 483 | 3.6% | 1.7% | 404 | 3.0% | 1.7% | +79 | +0.6pp |
| German | 395 | 2.9% | 2.6% | 356 | 2.7% | 2.5% | +39 | +0.2pp |
| Italian | 361 | 2.7% | 4.6% | 321 | 2.4% | 4.5% | +40 | +0.3pp |
| South African | 351 | 2.6% | 2.4% | 366 | 2.8% | 2.3% | -15 | -0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 312 | 2.3% | 1.8% | 34 | 0.3% | 0.2% | +278 | +2.0pp |
| Filipino | 292 | 2.2% | 1.7% | 203 | 1.5% | 1.4% | +89 | +0.7pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).