We are Broome

11 per cent.

About 11 in every 100 Broome residents speak a language other than English at home, across 83 languages.

Our population
16,686
Speak another language
1,785
Languages at home
83
Growth since last census
+15.7%

1,785 of us — 10.7% — speak a language other than English at home, most often Bardi, Kriol and Spanish. A share this size is easy to design around by accident, which is precisely how it gets designed out.

In Western Australia

#38

of 137 Western Australia councils for the share of residents speaking a language other than English at home. #157 of 540 nationally.

What makes our community ours

Bardi

208 speakers

Bardi is spoken by 208 of our residents at home, 1.2% of Broome.

Kriol

127 speakers

Kriol is spoken by 127 of our residents at home, 0.8% of Broome.

Spanish

112 speakers

Spanish is spoken by 112 of our residents at home, 0.7% of Broome.

The languages of Broome

83 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 Broome, covering 1,342 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. 01208-20.0%
  2. 02127-12.4%
  3. 03112+331%
  4. 0496+77.8%
  5. 0595+90.0%
  6. 0691+3.4%
  7. 0787+358%
  8. 0881-12.0%
  9. 0979-8.1%
  10. 1074+5.7%

Why we publish this

10.7% of us

We share this portrait because a council below the Western Australia average is the one most likely to be planned for as though everybody here reads English. 1,785 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

12.0% of us were born overseas, across 54 countries.

  1. 01
    England
    469-14.7%
  2. 02
    New Zealand
    302-22.6%
  3. 03
    Philippines
    204-4.7%
  4. 04
    South Africa
    103+53.7%
  5. 05
    China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)
    88+633%
  6. 06
    Germany
    85+2.4%
  7. 07
    France
    63+43.2%
  8. 08
    India
    62+21.6%
  9. 09
    Italy
    50+108%
  10. 10
    Ireland
    46+24.3%

What we believe

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

  1. 01
    No religion or secular beliefs
    7,643+29.6%
  2. 02
    Christianity
    6,134-17.6%
  3. 03
    Buddhism
    175-26.8%
  4. 04
    Islam
    74+2.8%
  5. 05
    Hinduism
    53-1.9%
  6. 06
    Judaism
    3-50.0%

Our suburbs

Our linguistic character changes street by street. Click through to any of our 8 suburbs for its own portrait: the languages spoken there, the communities calling it home.

Where we are

Broome 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

Broome
10.7%
Western Australia
17.3%
Australia
21.3%

10.7% of Broome residents speak a language other than English at home, against 17.3% for Western Australia 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. 10.7% is 1,785 residents as a share of all 16,686 of us. A further 2,461 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 25.4%, which is a larger number and a weaker claim. Measured only across the residents who answered, the share is 12.5%. If you have seen a higher figure quoted for Broome, 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 Broome 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 Broome.