Powered by .id (informed decisions) for RDA Darling Downs and South West Region
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LEARN MORE ABOUT .idThe three largest ancestries in Western Downs Regional Council area in 2021 were Australian, English and Irish.
Ancestry defines the cultural association and ethnic background of an individual going back three generations. Ancestry is a good measure of the total size of cultural groups in Western Downs Regional Council area regardless of where they were born or what language they speak.
Ancestry data, should be combined with data on Birthplace, Language Spoken at Home and Religion for a more complete picture of Western Downs Regional Council area's ethnic characteristics.
Please note that the "Australian Aboriginal" and "Torres Strait Islander" categories in this topic are not directly comparable from 2021 to previous years, due to a change in the wording of the question. In 2021, these options were marked boxes on the question rather than write-in options. The "Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Origin" question is still considered a more reliable count for this group, and can be found on the Population summary page.
Please note: Due to changes in ABS rules around perturbation and additivity of data to protect the confidentiality of individuals, counts of ancestry groups and totals derived from them may differ slightly from those published by the ABS. For more information see notes on data confidentiality.
Q:
Derived from the Census question:
'What is the person's ancestry?'
Multi-response
| Ancestry - Totals | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Downs Regional Council area - Total persons (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||
| Ancestry totals | Number | % | RDA Darling Downs and South West Region % | Number | % | RDA Darling Downs and South West Region % | 2016 to 2021 |
| Not stated | 3,591 | 8.3 | 5.5 | 3,902 | 9.6 | 6.4 | -311 |
| Total responses | 43,508 | -- | -- | 40,762 | -- | -- | +2,746 |
| Total people | 33,836 | -- | -- | 33,434 | -- | -- | +402 |
| Ancestry - Ranked by size | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Downs Regional Council area - Total persons (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||
| Ancestry | Number | % | RDA Darling Downs and South West Region % | Number | % | RDA Darling Downs and South West Region % | 2016 to 2021 |
| Australian | 14,503 | 42.9 | 39.8 | 15,220 | 45.5 | 42.4 | -717 |
| English | 12,803 | 37.8 | 38.7 | 11,816 | 35.3 | 38.3 | +987 |
| Irish | 3,526 | 10.4 | 12.3 | 3,635 | 10.9 | 13.1 | -109 |
| Scottish | 3,207 | 9.5 | 10.7 | 3,221 | 9.6 | 10.5 | -14 |
| German | 2,983 | 8.8 | 9.4 | 3,114 | 9.3 | 9.8 | -131 |
| Australian Aboriginal | 2,376 | 7.0 | 5.8 | 156 | 0.5 | 0.4 | +2,220 |
| Filipino | 581 | 1.7 | 1.2 | 455 | 1.4 | 0.9 | +126 |
| Italian | 364 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 291 | 0.9 | 1.7 | +73 |
| Dutch | 347 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 370 | 1.1 | 1.2 | -23 |
| New Zealander | 230 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 194 | 0.6 | 0.6 | +36 |
Show all (65 entries)
Dominant groups
Analysis of the ancestry responses of the population in Western Downs Regional Council area in 2021 shows that the top five ancestries nominated were:
- Australian (14,503 people or 42.9%)
- English (12,803 people or 37.8%)
- Irish (3,526 people or 10.4%)
- Scottish (3,207 people or 9.5%)
- German (2,983 people or 8.8%)
In combination these five ancestries account for 37,022 responses in total, or 109.42% of all responses.
The major differences between the ancestries of the population in Western Downs Regional Council area and the RDA Darling Downs and South West Region were:
- A larger percentage of people with Australian ancestry (42.9% compared to 39.8%)
- A larger percentage of people with Australian Aboriginal ancestry (7.0% compared to 5.8%)
- A smaller percentage of people with Irish ancestry (10.4% compared to 12.3%)
- A smaller percentage of people with Scottish ancestry (9.5% compared to 10.7%)
Emerging groups
The largest changes in the reported ancestries of the population in this area between 2016 and 2021 were:
- Australian Aboriginal (+2,220 persons)
- English (+987 persons)
- Australian (-717 persons)
- German (-131 persons)
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