Powered by .id (informed decisions) for Australia
.id community is an evidence base for over 250 local government areas in Australia and New Zealand, helping you make informed decisions.
LEARN MORE ABOUT .idIn Australian Capital Territory, 24.6% of people used a language other than English at home in 2021.
Australian Capital Territory's language statistics show the proportion of the population who use a language at home other than English. They indicate how culturally diverse a population is and the degree to which different ethnic groups and nationalities are retaining their language.
Australian Capital Territory's language statistics should be analysed in conjunction with Country of Birth and Proficiency in English to assist in identifying specific cultural and ethnic groups in the area and the services required by the multicultural community.
Please note: Due to ABS rules regarding perturbation of data to protect the confidentiality of individuals, counts of individual language groups and totals derived from them may differ slightly from those published by the ABS.
Q:
Derived from the Census question:
'Does the person use a language other than English at home?'
| Language used at home - Summary | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Capital Territory - Total persons (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||
| Language summary | Number | % | Australia % | Number | % | Australia % | 2016 to 2021 |
| Speaks English only | 323,454 | 71.3 | 72.0 | 288,636 | 72.7 | 72.7 | +34,818 |
| Non-English total | 111,582 | 24.6 | 22.3 | 86,296 | 21.7 | 20.8 | +25,286 |
| Not stated | 18,854 | 4.2 | 5.7 | 21,924 | 5.5 | 6.5 | -3,070 |
| Total Population | 453,890 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 396,856 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +57,034 |
| Language used at home - Ranked by size | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Capital Territory - Total persons (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||
| Language (excludes English) | Number | % | Australia % | Number | % | Australia % | 2016 to 2021 |
| Mandarin | 14,391 | 3.2 | 2.7 | 12,395 | 3.1 | 2.5 | +1,996 |
| Nepali | 5,852 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 866 | 0.2 | 0.3 | +4,986 |
| Vietnamese | 5,029 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 4,215 | 1.1 | 1.2 | +814 |
| Punjabi | 5,014 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 2,215 | 0.6 | 0.6 | +2,799 |
| Hindi | 4,765 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 3,642 | 0.9 | 0.7 | +1,123 |
| Cantonese | 4,225 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 3,854 | 1.0 | 1.2 | +371 |
| Spanish | 4,116 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 3,272 | 0.8 | 0.6 | +844 |
| Filipino/Tagalog | 3,959 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 2,984 | 0.8 | 0.8 | +975 |
| Arabic | 3,865 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 3,029 | 0.8 | 1.4 | +836 |
| Urdu | 3,638 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 2,370 | 0.6 | 0.3 | +1,268 |
Show all (100 entries)
Dominant groups
Analysis of the language used at home by the population of Australian Capital Territory in 2021 compared to Australia shows that there was a smaller proportion of people who used English only, and a larger proportion of those using a non-English language (either exclusively, or in addition to English).
Overall, 71.3% of the population used English only, and 24.6% used a non-English language, compared with 72.0% and 22.3% respectively for Australia.
The dominant language used at home, other than English, in Australian Capital Territory was Mandarin, with 3.2% of the population, or 14,391 people using this language at home.
There were no major differences between Australian Capital Territory and Australia in 2021.
Emerging groups
Between 2016 and 2021, the number of people who used a language other than English at home increased by 25,286 or 29.3%, and the number of people who used English only increased by 34,818 or 12.1%.
The largest changes in the languages used by the population in Australian Capital Territory between 2016 and 2021 were for those using:
- Nepali (+4,986 persons)
- Punjabi (+2,799 persons)
- Mandarin (+1,996 persons)
- Urdu (+1,268 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.