We are Busselton

4 per cent.

4 in every 100 Busselton residents speak a language other than English at home. 1,693 people, in 67 languages — small enough to be overlooked, large enough to be a community.

Our population
40,111
Speak another language
1,693
Languages at home
67
Growth since last census
+23.9%

Most of us speak English at home. 1,693 of us do not, across 67 languages, most often Afrikaans, German and Italian. Small communities are the ones a mainstream service misses first and notices last — which is the whole reason to count them.

In Western Australia

#74

of 137 Western Australia councils for the share of residents speaking a language other than English at home. #283 of 540 nationally.

What makes our community ours

Afrikaans

189 speakers

Afrikaans is spoken by 189 of our residents at home, 0.5% of Busselton.

German

181 speakers

German is spoken by 181 of our residents at home, 0.5% of Busselton.

Italian

124 speakers

Italian is spoken by 124 of our residents at home, 0.3% of Busselton.

The languages of Busselton

67 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 Busselton, covering 1,303 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. 01189+68.8%
  2. 02181+34.1%
  3. 03124+1.6%
  4. 04108+36.7%
  5. 0577+14.9%
  6. 0672+106%
  7. 0763+125%
  8. 0860+13.2%
  9. 0959+3.5%
  10. 1054-3.6%

Why we publish this

4.2% 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. 1,693 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

17.4% of us were born overseas, across 71 countries.

  1. 01
    England
    3,170+13.7%
  2. 02
    New Zealand
    946+3.7%
  3. 03
    South Africa
    470+44.2%
  4. 04
    Scotland
    245+16.7%
  5. 05
    Germany
    196+12.6%
  6. 06
    India
    152+36.9%
  7. 07
    United States of America
    144+45.5%
  8. 08
    Philippines
    133+0.8%
  9. 09
    Ireland
    129+1.6%
  10. 10
    Netherlands
    122+19.6%

What we believe

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

  1. 01
    No religion or secular beliefs
    20,184+49.3%
  2. 02
    Christianity
    16,326-11.8%
  3. 03
    Buddhism
    369-3.7%
  4. 04
    Islam
    160+20.3%
  5. 05
    Hinduism
    109+25.3%
  6. 06
    Judaism
    7-46.2%

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

Busselton 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

Busselton
4.2%
Western Australia
17.3%
Australia
21.3%

4.2% of Busselton 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. 4.2% is 1,693 residents as a share of all 40,111 of us. A further 2,310 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 10.0%, which is a larger number and a weaker claim. Measured only across the residents who answered, the share is 4.5%. If you have seen a higher figure quoted for Busselton, 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 Busselton 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 Busselton.