idc-logo
svg rectangle color
Wollongong City CouncilCommunity profile

Wollongong City

Language spoken at home

reset

In 2021, 51.4% of the population born overseas in Wollongong City Council, spoke a language other than English at home.

Wollongong City Council's language statistics show the proportion of the overseas-born population who speak a language at home other than English. They indicate how linguistically diverse a population is, and whether most migrants are from English speaking countries or non-English speaking countries. This topic also shows those languages spoken specifically by the first-generation migrants (those born overseas) so as to separate them from those born in Australia who speak another language.

Some countries, such as India, have a variety of languages spoken there, so the language spoken can indicate the region of the country of origin. Languages such as Arabic and Spanish are spoken in a range of different countries.

Wollongong City Council's language statistics should be analysed in conjunction with Proficiency in English to assist in identifying specific cultural and ethnic groups in the area and the services required by the multicultural community.

Q:

Derived from the Census question:

'Does the person use a language other than English at home?'

Language spoken at home - Ranked by size
Wollongong City Council - born overseas20212016Change
LanguageNumber%Wollongong City - Total populationNumber%Wollongong City - Total population2016 to 2021
Macedonian2,5745.72.12,6656.12.3-91
Mandarin1,8784.21.12,7186.21.5-840
Arabic1,8654.11.41,9354.41.4-70
Italian1,7503.91.32,2075.01.8-457
Spanish1,1552.60.81,1112.50.8+44
Serbian1,0312.30.79522.20.7+79
Vietnamese8331.80.58451.90.6-12
Portuguese7511.70.57291.70.5+22
Malayalam7071.60.44911.10.3+216
Greek6741.50.77601.70.8-86
Show all (94 entries)
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information

Excludes languages with fewer than 10 people speaking them at home.

Language spoken at home - Summary
Wollongong City Council - born overseas20212016Change
Language summaryNumber%Wollongong City - Total populationNumber%Wollongong City - Total population2016 to 2021
Speaks English only21,18747.079.719,72544.978.2+1,462
Non-English total23,16851.415.823,89654.416.8-728
Not stated7401.64.53210.75.0+419
Total people45,095100.0100.043,942100.0100.0+1,153
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information

Dominant groups

Analysis of the language spoken at home by the population born overseas in Wollongong City Council in 2021 compared to the total population in Wollongong City Council shows that there was a smaller proportion of people who spoke English only, and a larger proportion of those speaking a non-English language (either exclusively, or in addition to English).

Overall, 47.0% of the population born overseas spoke English only, and 51.4%% spoke a non-English language, compared with 79.7% and 15.8% respectively for the total population in Wollongong City Council.

The dominant language spoken at home by the population born overseas, other than English, in Wollongong City Council was Macedonian, with 5.7% of the population, or 2,574 people speaking this language at home.

The major differences between the languages spoken at home for the population born overseas in Wollongong City and the total population in Wollongong City Council were:

  • A larger percentage speaking Macedonian at home (5.7% compared to 2.1%)
  • A larger percentage speaking Mandarin at home (4.2% compared to 1.1%)
  • A larger percentage speaking Arabic at home (4.1% compared to 1.4%)
  • A larger percentage speaking Italian at home (3.9% compared to 1.3%)

Emerging groups

Between 2016 and 2021, the number of the population born overseas who spoke a language other than English at home decreased by 728 or 3.0%, and the number of people who spoke English only increased by 1,462 or 7.4%.

The largest changes in the spoken languages of the population in Wollongong City between 2016 and 2021 were for those speaking:

  • Mandarin (-840 persons)
  • Italian (-457 persons)
  • Chinese, nfd (-266 persons)
  • Urdu (+245 persons)

DISCLAIMER: While all due care has been taken to ensure that the content of this website is accurate and current, there may be errors or omissions in it and no legal responsibility is accepted for the information and opinions in this website.

Please view our Privacy Policy, Terms of use and Legal notices.

ABS Data and the copyright in the ABS Data remains the property of the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The copyright in the way .id has modified, transformed or reconfigured the ABS Data as published on this website remains the property of .id. ABS Data can be accessed from the Australian Bureau of Statistics at www.abs.gov.au. ABS data can be used under license - terms published on ABS website. intermediary.management@abs.gov.au if you have any queries or wish to distribute any ABS data.