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 Whittlesea (C) were Australian, English and Italian.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Whittlesea (C) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Whittlesea (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Melbourne and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Whittlesea (C), with comparison markers for Greater Melbourne.
Australian
2021 count
45,207
% of total
19.7%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
45,207
19.7%
-0.3pp
English
2021 count
40,319
% of total
17.6%
Change from 2016
-1.1pp
40,319
17.6%
-1.1pp
Italian
2021 count
27,879
% of total
12.2%
Change from 2016
-1.0pp
27,879
12.2%
-1.0pp
Indian
2021 count
18,025
% of total
7.9%
Change from 2016
+1.2pp
18,025
7.9%
+1.2pp
Macedonian
2021 count
13,979
% of total
6.1%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
13,979
6.1%
-0.5pp
Greek
2021 count
12,211
% of total
5.3%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
12,211
5.3%
-0.6pp
Irish
2021 count
11,183
% of total
4.9%
Change from 2016
-0.7pp
11,183
4.9%
-0.7pp
Chinese
2021 count
9,907
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
9,907
4.3%
-0.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
9,196
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
9,196
4.0%
-0.3pp
Lebanese
2021 count
5,151
% of total
2.2%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
5,151
2.2%
-0.2pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Australian
+5,761
-0.3pp
English
+3,441
-1.1pp
Italian
+1,819
-1.0pp
Indian
+4,840
+1.2pp
Macedonian
+976
-0.5pp
Greek
+466
-0.6pp
Irish
+78
-0.7pp
Chinese
+1,238
-0.1pp
Scottish
+620
-0.3pp
Lebanese
+385
-0.2pp
Data table
Ancestry for Whittlesea (C). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Melbourne.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Melbourne% | Count | % | Greater Melbourne% | Count | pp | |
| Australian | 45,207 | 19.7% | 23.4% | 39,446 | 20.0% | 24.0% | +5,761 | -0.3pp |
| English | 40,319 | 17.6% | 25.6% | 36,878 | 18.7% | 26.6% | +3,441 | -1.1pp |
| Italian | 27,879 | 12.2% | 6.6% | 26,060 | 13.2% | 6.7% | +1,819 | -1.0pp |
| Indian | 18,025 | 7.9% | 5.3% | 13,185 | 6.7% | 4.4% | +4,840 | +1.2pp |
| Macedonian | 13,979 | 6.1% | 0.9% | 13,003 | 6.6% | 0.9% | +976 | -0.5pp |
| Greek | 12,211 | 5.3% | 3.5% | 11,745 | 5.9% | 3.6% | +466 | -0.6pp |
| Irish | 11,183 | 4.9% | 8.3% | 11,105 | 5.6% | 9.1% | +78 | -0.7pp |
| Chinese | 9,907 | 4.3% | 8.3% | 8,669 | 4.4% | 7.9% | +1,238 | -0.1pp |
| Scottish | 9,196 | 4.0% | 7.1% | 8,576 | 4.3% | 7.3% | +620 | -0.3pp |
| Lebanese | 5,151 | 2.2% | 1.0% | 4,766 | 2.4% | 1.0% | +385 | -0.2pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).