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 Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld) were Australian, English and Australian Aboriginal.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld) - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Weipa (T) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld), with comparison markers for Weipa (T).

Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld)
Weipa (T)

Australian

2021 count

734

% of total

33.2%

Change from 2016

-17.2pp

English

2021 count

653

% of total

29.5%

Change from 2016

-0.9pp

Australian Aboriginal

2021 count

363

% of total

16.4%

Change from 2016

+14.0pp

Torres Strait Islander

2021 count

334

% of total

15.1%

Change from 2016

+12.4pp

Irish

2021 count

186

% of total

8.4%

Change from 2016

-1.5pp

Scottish

2021 count

142

% of total

6.4%

Change from 2016

-0.4pp

German

2021 count

95

% of total

4.3%

Change from 2016

-0.7pp

Italian

2021 count

58

% of total

2.6%

Change from 2016

-0.3pp

Dutch

2021 count

39

% of total

1.8%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Filipino

2021 count

32

% of total

1.4%

Change from 2016

+0.4pp

Data table

Ancestry for Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Weipa (T).

Ancestry for Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Weipa (T).
Ancestry for Rocky Point (Weipa - Qld). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Weipa (T).
Category20212016Change
Count%Weipa (T)%Count%Weipa (T)%Countpp
Australian73433.2%35.7%98750.4%48.2%-253-17.2pp
English65329.5%30.3%59430.4%30.8%+59-0.9pp
Australian Aboriginal36316.4%14.5%462.4%1.7%+317+14.0pp
Torres Strait Islander33415.1%12.3%522.7%2.6%+282+12.4pp
Irish1868.4%8.8%1949.9%10.3%-8-1.5pp
Scottish1426.4%8.0%1336.8%8.1%+9-0.4pp
German954.3%4.0%985.0%5.6%-3-0.7pp
Italian582.6%2.9%572.9%2.5%+1-0.3pp
Dutch391.8%1.5%271.4%0.9%+12+0.4pp
Filipino321.4%1.9%191.0%1.8%+13+0.4pp

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