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 North Bondi were English, Australian and Irish.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

North Bondi - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for North Bondi in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Waverley (A) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for North Bondi, with comparison markers for Waverley (A).

North Bondi
Waverley (A)

English

2021 count

2,888

% of total

31.1%

Change from 2016

+0.7pp

Australian

2021 count

2,210

% of total

23.8%

Change from 2016

-0.9pp

Irish

2021 count

972

% of total

10.5%

Change from 2016

-1.6pp

Scottish

2021 count

714

% of total

7.7%

Change from 2016

+0.3pp

Italian

2021 count

527

% of total

5.7%

Change from 2016

+0.9pp

South African

2021 count

485

% of total

5.2%

Change from 2016

-0.2pp

German

2021 count

405

% of total

4.4%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

Jewish

2021 count

341

% of total

3.7%

Change from 2016

+1.1pp

Polish

2021 count

281

% of total

3.0%

Change from 2016

-0.2pp

Greek

2021 count

256

% of total

2.8%

Change from 2016

+0.9pp

Data table

Ancestry for North Bondi. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Waverley (A).

Ancestry for North Bondi. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Waverley (A).
Ancestry for North Bondi. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Waverley (A).
Category20212016Change
Count%Waverley (A)%Count%Waverley (A)%Countpp
English2,88831.1%30.8%2,78330.4%29.0%+105+0.7pp
Australian2,21023.8%21.3%2,26024.7%20.9%-50-0.9pp
Irish97210.5%12.0%1,10812.1%12.2%-136-1.6pp
Scottish7147.7%7.7%6817.4%7.3%+33+0.3pp
Italian5275.7%5.7%4444.8%5.0%+83+0.9pp
South African4855.2%3.7%4965.4%3.5%-11-0.2pp
German4054.4%4.2%4274.7%4.2%-22-0.3pp
Jewish3413.7%2.8%2392.6%2.1%+102+1.1pp
Polish2813.0%2.4%2973.2%2.5%-16-0.2pp
Greek2562.8%2.6%1781.9%2.3%+78+0.9pp

Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).