We are Banana

4 per cent.

4 in every 100 Banana residents speak a language other than English at home. 517 people, in 43 languages — small enough to be overlooked, large enough to be a community.

Our population
14,395
Speak another language
517
Languages at home
43
Growth since last census
−11.5%

Most of us speak English at home. 517 of us do not, across 43 languages, most often Mandarin, Tagalog and Filipino. Small communities are the ones a mainstream service misses first and notices last — which is the whole reason to count them.

In Queensland

#45

of 76 Queensland councils for the share of residents speaking a language other than English at home. #317 of 540 nationally.

What makes our community ours

Mandarin

116 speakers

Mandarin is spoken by 116 of our residents at home, 0.8% of Banana.

Tagalog

61 speakers

Tagalog is spoken by 61 of our residents at home, 0.4% of Banana.

Filipino

39 speakers

Filipino is spoken by 39 of our residents at home, 0.3% of Banana.

The languages of Banana

43 languages carry the conversation at home. Every one of them is spoken here.

Each block below is scaled to the number of people who speak that language at home, and tinted by how fast that community has grown since the last census.

  • Grew 50%+
  • 25%+
  • 10%+
  • Held
  • Slipped
  • Declined 10%+
  • Not comparable
The 18 most spoken languages in Banana, covering 432 speakers. Area is speakers at the 2021 Census; tint is the change since 2016. Every figure is also in the table below.

Every language, in order

Speakers at the 2021 Census, with the change since 2016. Broader ABS categories such as “Chinese, nfd” are counted in our totals but left out of this list, so the percentages can exceed the sum of the languages shown.

  1. 01116+205%
  2. 0261+19.6%
  3. 0339-2.5%
  4. 0426
  5. 0525+31.6%
  6. 0621
  7. 0720-62.3%
  8. 0820-82.5%
  9. 0916-69.2%
  10. 1016+220%

Why we publish this

3.6% of us

We share this portrait because a council below the Queensland average is the one most likely to be planned for as though everybody here reads English. 517 of us do not, at home, and a service that reaches everyone except them has not reached everyone. This almanac exists so that the number is on the record before the decision is made.

Who we are, beyond language

Where we were born

6.1% of us were born overseas, across 34 countries.

  1. 01
    New Zealand
    154-20.6%
  2. 02
    England
    144-7.7%
  3. 03
    China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)
    133+217%
  4. 04
    Philippines
    117+7.3%
  5. 05
    South Africa
    44-17.0%
  6. 06
    India
    33-15.4%
  7. 07
    Brazil
    28-34.9%
  8. 08
    Sri Lanka
    27-35.7%
  9. 09
    Zimbabwe
    25+150%
  10. 10
    Nepal
    25

What we believe

Reported affiliation in Banana at the 2021 Census, with the change since 2016.

  1. 01
    Christianity
    8,034-21.8%
  2. 02
    No religion or secular beliefs
    4,184+82.2%
  3. 03
    Buddhism
    94-19.7%
  4. 04
    Hinduism
    57-6.6%
  5. 05
    Islam
    38-52.5%

Our suburbs

Our linguistic character changes street by street. Click through to any of our 24 suburbs for its own portrait: the languages spoken there, the communities calling it home.

Where we are

Banana shaded by the share of residents speaking a language other than English at home. Boundaries are ABS ASGS 2021. See every council on one map.

In context

Banana
3.6%
Queensland
12.2%
Australia
21.3%

3.6% of Banana residents speak a language other than English at home, against 12.2% for Queensland and 21.3% nationally. Drawn from the 2021 Census.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2021, language used at home by Statistical Area Level 2, aggregated to Local Government Area. Growth compares 2021 against the 2016 Census.

How the headline share is counted. 3.6% is 517 residents as a share of all 14,395 of us. A further 1,858 did not state a language at all, and we do not count them as speaking one — counting every non-response as a non-English speaker would put this figure at 16.5%, which is a larger number and a weaker claim. Measured only across the residents who answered, the share is 4.1%. If you have seen a higher figure quoted for Banana, it is almost certainly one of those two.

Two further caveats we would rather state than bury. Summing suburbs omits residents not allocated to one — no usual address, migratory and unincorporated areas — so national totals sit a little under the ABS published figures; the Banana figures on this page are unaffected. And ranked language lists exclude ABS residual categories such as “Chinese, nfd”, which are not languages anyone can order a translation in; they remain inside the headline total.

Need this community reached in its own languages? Talk to us about translation in Banana.