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 Yorke Peninsula (DC) were English, Australian and German.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Yorke Peninsula (DC) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Yorke Peninsula (DC) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional SA and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Yorke Peninsula (DC), with comparison markers for Regional SA.
English
2021 count
5,170
% of total
22.3%
Change from 2016
-0.6pp
5,170
22.3%
-0.6pp
Australian
2021 count
4,942
% of total
21.3%
Change from 2016
-0.5pp
4,942
21.3%
-0.5pp
German
2021 count
1,148
% of total
5.0%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
1,148
5.0%
-0.1pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,002
% of total
4.3%
Change from 2016
-0.3pp
1,002
4.3%
-0.3pp
Irish
2021 count
887
% of total
3.8%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
887
3.8%
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
413
% of total
1.8%
Change from 2016
+1.3pp
413
1.8%
+1.3pp
Dutch
2021 count
141
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
141
0.6%
+0.1pp
Italian
2021 count
141
% of total
0.6%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
141
0.6%
+0.1pp
Welsh
2021 count
70
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
70
0.3%
0.0pp
Polish
2021 count
62
% of total
0.3%
Change from 2016
+0.1pp
62
0.3%
+0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+109
-0.6pp
Australian
+112
-0.5pp
German
+22
-0.1pp
Scottish
-11
-0.3pp
Irish
-40
-0.4pp
Australian Aboriginal
+306
+1.3pp
Dutch
+29
+0.1pp
Italian
+24
+0.1pp
Welsh
-6
0.0pp
Polish
+10
+0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Yorke Peninsula (DC). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional SA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | pp | |
| English | 5,170 | 22.3% | 21.0% | 5,061 | 22.9% | 20.5% | +109 | -0.6pp |
| Australian | 4,942 | 21.3% | 20.3% | 4,830 | 21.8% | 21.0% | +112 | -0.5pp |
| German | 1,148 | 5.0% | 5.3% | 1,126 | 5.1% | 5.4% | +22 | -0.1pp |
| Scottish | 1,002 | 4.3% | 4.6% | 1,013 | 4.6% | 4.5% | -11 | -0.3pp |
| Irish | 887 | 3.8% | 3.8% | 927 | 4.2% | 3.9% | -40 | -0.4pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 413 | 1.8% | 2.2% | 107 | 0.5% | 0.6% | +306 | +1.3pp |
| Dutch | 141 | 0.6% | 0.8% | 112 | 0.5% | 0.8% | +29 | +0.1pp |
| Italian | 141 | 0.6% | 1.1% | 117 | 0.5% | 1.1% | +24 | +0.1pp |
| Welsh | 70 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 76 | 0.3% | 0.3% | -6 | 0.0pp |
| Polish | 62 | 0.3% | 0.3% | 52 | 0.2% | 0.3% | +10 | +0.1pp |
| Total | 23,191 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 22,109 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +1,082 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).