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 Castle Cove were English, Australian and Chinese.

Section overview

Ancestry - Ranked by size

Castle Cove - Total persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises ancestry for Castle Cove in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Willoughby (C) and change since 2016.

Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot

2021 distribution by category for Castle Cove, with comparison markers for Willoughby (C).

Castle Cove
Willoughby (C)

English

2021 count

770

% of total

14.6%

Change from 2016

-7.9pp

Australian

2021 count

658

% of total

12.5%

Change from 2016

-9.7pp

Chinese

2021 count

616

% of total

11.7%

Change from 2016

-

Irish

2021 count

252

% of total

4.8%

Change from 2016

-2.7pp

Scottish

2021 count

204

% of total

3.9%

Change from 2016

-3.9pp

Italian

2021 count

130

% of total

2.5%

Change from 2016

+2.0pp

Armenian

2021 count

113

% of total

2.1%

Change from 2016

-

German

2021 count

74

% of total

1.4%

Change from 2016

-2.8pp

Greek

2021 count

39

% of total

0.7%

Change from 2016

-

Croatian

2021 count

38

% of total

0.7%

Change from 2016

-

Data table

Ancestry for Castle Cove. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Willoughby (C).

Ancestry for Castle Cove. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Willoughby (C).
Ancestry for Castle Cove. Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Willoughby (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Willoughby (C)%Count%Willoughby (C)%Countpp
English77014.6%11.7%13522.5%12.2%+635-7.9pp
Australian65812.5%10.0%13322.2%10.1%+525-9.7pp
Chinese61611.7%13.2%--12.1%--
Irish2524.8%4.3%457.5%4.8%+207-2.7pp
Scottish2043.9%3.5%477.8%3.4%+157-3.9pp
Italian1302.5%1.6%30.5%1.6%+127+2.0pp
Armenian1132.1%0.7%--0.7%--
German741.4%1.2%254.2%1.2%+49-2.8pp
Greek390.7%0.6%--0.6%--
Croatian380.7%0.5%--0.5%--
Total5,270100.0%100.0%599100.0%100.0%+4,6710.0pp

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