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 Yarra Ranges (S) were English, Australian and Irish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Yarra Ranges (S) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Yarra Ranges (S) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Melbourne and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Yarra Ranges (S), with comparison markers for Greater Melbourne.
English
2021 count
67,602
% of total
21.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
67,602
21.7%
+0.1pp
Australian
2021 count
61,354
% of total
19.7%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
61,354
19.7%
+0.1pp
Irish
2021 count
17,727
% of total
5.7%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
17,727
5.7%
-0.2pp
Scottish
2021 count
17,490
% of total
5.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
17,490
5.6%
+0.1pp
German
2021 count
7,891
% of total
2.5%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
7,891
2.5%
0.0pp
Italian
2021 count
7,427
% of total
2.4%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
7,427
2.4%
+0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
7,072
% of total
2.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
7,072
2.3%
+0.1pp
Chinese
2021 count
2,708
% of total
0.9%
Change from 2016
+0.3pp
2,708
0.9%
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
1,654
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.4pp
1,654
0.5%
+0.4pp
Indian
2021 count
1,638
% of total
0.5%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
1,638
0.5%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+3,107
+0.1pp
Australian
+2,872
+0.1pp
Irish
+158
-0.2pp
Scottish
+893
+0.1pp
German
+400
0.0pp
Italian
+832
+0.2pp
Dutch
+459
+0.1pp
Chinese
+785
+0.3pp
Australian Aboriginal
+1,475
+0.4pp
Indian
+536
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Yarra Ranges (S). 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 | |
| English | 67,602 | 21.7% | 12.8% | 64,495 | 21.6% | 13.3% | +3,107 | +0.1pp |
| Australian | 61,354 | 19.7% | 11.7% | 58,482 | 19.6% | 12.0% | +2,872 | +0.1pp |
| Irish | 17,727 | 5.7% | 4.2% | 17,569 | 5.9% | 4.6% | +158 | -0.2pp |
| Scottish | 17,490 | 5.6% | 3.6% | 16,597 | 5.5% | 3.7% | +893 | +0.1pp |
| German | 7,891 | 2.5% | 1.4% | 7,491 | 2.5% | 1.5% | +400 | 0.0pp |
| Italian | 7,427 | 2.4% | 3.3% | 6,595 | 2.2% | 3.3% | +832 | +0.2pp |
| Dutch | 7,072 | 2.3% | 0.7% | 6,613 | 2.2% | 0.7% | +459 | +0.1pp |
| Chinese | 2,708 | 0.9% | 4.2% | 1,923 | 0.6% | 4.0% | +785 | +0.3pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 1,654 | 0.5% | 0.3% | 179 | 0.1% | 0.0% | +1,475 | +0.4pp |
| Indian | 1,638 | 0.5% | 2.7% | 1,102 | 0.4% | 2.2% | +536 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 312,095 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 299,085 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +13,010 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).