2076.0 - Census of Population and Housing: Characteristics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2011 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 27/11/2012  First Issue
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POPULATION DISTRIBUTION AND STRUCTURE

KEY FINDINGS

In the 2011 Census:

  • 548,400 people identified and were counted as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin, an increase of 21% from the 2006 Census
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people represented 2.5% of the 2011 Census count, up from 2.3% in 2006
  • the median age of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was 21 years, compared with 20 years in 2006.

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

In the 2011 Census, 548,400 people identified and were counted as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin, representing 2.5% of the Census count.

New South Wales had the highest count of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (172,600 or 32% of the national total), followed by Queensland (155,800 or 28%) and Western Australia (69,700 or 13%). Combined, these three states made up almost three-quarters (73%) of people who identified as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin.

The Northern Territory had the highest proportion of the population counted as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin (27%), while Victoria had the lowest proportion at less than 1% of the state total.


2011 CENSUS COUNTS(a)


Aboriginal and
Torres Strait
Islander people


Non-
Indigenous people


Indigenous status
unknown




Total
Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander people as proportion of total population
no.
%
no
no.
no.
%

New South Wales
172 624
31.5
6 402 111
342 923
6 917 658
2.5
Victoria
37 991
6.9
5 069 156
246 893
5 354 040
0.7
Queensland
155 825
28.4
3 952 706
224 206
4 332 737
3.6
South Australia
30 431
5.5
1 503 205
62 934
1 596 570
1.9
Western Australia
69 665
12.7
2 038 786
130 719
2 239 170
3.1
Tasmania
19 625
3.6
456 345
19 380
495 350
4.0
Northern Territory
56 779
10.4
137 774
17 391
211 944
26.8
Australian Capital Territory
5 184
0.9
338 030
14 005
357 219
1.5
Australia(b)
548 370
100.0
19 900 764
1 058 586
21 507 719
2.5

(a) Usual residence Census counts. Excludes overseas visitors.
(b) Includes
Other Territories.
Note: Totals and components may not be consistent within and between tables due to introduced random error to protect confidentiality of Census respondents – see Census Dictionary, 2011 (cat. no. 2901.0).


Of the states and territories, the highest proportional increases between the 2006 and 2011 Census for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were recorded in the Australian Capital Territory (34%), Victoria (26%) and New South Wales (25%).


CENSUS COUNTS(a), Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people


2006
2011
Change between 2006 and 2011
no.
no.
%

New South Wales
138 507
172 624
24.6
Victoria
30 143
37 991
26.0
Queensland
127 580
155 825
22.1
South Australia
25 556
30 431
19.1
Western Australia
58 710
69 665
18.7
Tasmania
16 768
19 625
17.0
Northern Territory
53 661
56 779
5.8
Australian Capital Territory
3 875
5 184
33.8
Australia(b)
455 028
548 370
20.5

(a) Usual residence Census counts. Excludes overseas visitors.
(b) Includes
Other Territories.
Note: Totals and components may not be consistent within and between tables due to introduced random error to protect confidentiality of Census respondents – see Census Dictionary, 2011 (cat. no. 2901.0).


More information on the population distribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is available in Census of Population and Housing – Counts of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2011 (cat. no. 2075.0).


POPULATION STRUCTURE

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population has a younger age distribution than the non-Indigenous population with a median age of 21 years in the 2011 Census, compared with 38 years for non-Indigenous people. This is a small increase from 2006, when the median age for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was 20 years. In 2011, the median age for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males and females was 20 years and 22 years respectively.

In the 2011 Census, children under the age of 15 years made up 36% of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population, compared with 19% of the non-Indigenous population. Six in 10 (60%) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were aged between 15 and 64 years compared with almost seven in 10 (67%) non-Indigenous people. The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 65 years and over was considerably smaller than for non-Indigenous people (4% compared with 14%).


POPULATION STRUCTURE(a)
Graph displays the age structure of males and females by Indigenous status. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population has a higher proportion of younger people and lower proportion of older people than the non-Indigenous population.