23rd of 542 local government areas for language diversity
Languages spoken in Canning
Across Canning, just over two in five residents speak a language other than English at home (ABS Census 2021), and the largest of those languages, Mandarin, reaches only 9.7 per cent of residents. Canning runs ahead of Australia as a whole on this measure. Cannington has the highest share of any suburb.
- Residents
- 87,644
- Speak another language
- 36,613
- Languages at home
- 138
- Change since 2016
- +13.7%
How evenly spread are Canning's languages?
The largest, Mandarin, reaches 9.7 per cent of residents. Combined, the leading five account for one in five residents. Each of 11 languages is spoken by at least one resident in 100.
How do Canning's top languages rank?
Each row is a language and the number who speak it at home, beside its change on 2016. The headline total also includes broad ABS categories such as "Chinese, nfd", which aren't listed here.
What does Canning's language mix look like?
- Grew 50%+
- 25%+
- 10%+
- Held
- Slipped
- Declined 10%+
- Not comparable
- Grew 50%+
- 25%+
- 10%+
- Held
- Slipped
- Declined 10%+
- Not comparable
How does Canning rank against every other council?
Nationally
#23
Nationally, 22 councils rank above Canning. In Western Australia, it’s 1 of 137. Every council ranked, Canning included.
Which language leads in each suburb of Canning?
The share runs from nearly three in five residents in Cannington to 20 per cent of residents in Ferndale.
Open any suburb for its own language breakdown.
- CanningtonLed by Punjabi58%3,929
- Queens Park (WA)Led by Punjabi56%3,994
- East CanningtonLed by Punjabi55%3,563
- Riverton (WA)Led by Mandarin47%2,852
- WillettonLed by Mandarin44%8,385
- Welshpool (WA)Led by Tagalog43%9
- Bentley (WA)Led by Mandarin41%3,648
- Lynwood (WA)Led by Mandarin39%1,339
- WilsonLed by Mandarin36%2,350
- Shelley (WA)Led by Mandarin32%1,499
- Parkwood (WA)Led by Mandarin32%1,884
- RossmoyneLed by Mandarin27%987
- St James (WA)Led by Mandarin27%1,305
- Ferndale (WA)Led by Mandarin20%869
- 14 suburbs, ordered by the share speaking another language at home, with the head count underneath.
What else does the census say about Canning?
Overseas-born residents make up 49 per cent of residents, most often from India.
Country of birth
49.2% born overseas, across 138 countries.
- 01India7,117+36.3%
- 02Malaysia5,233+7.1%
- 03China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)4,161-1.7%
- 04England4,051-9.6%
- 05Indonesia1,647+10.8%
- 06Singapore1,626+3.2%
- 07New Zealand1,607-5.5%
- 08Philippines1,528-4.0%
- 09Sri Lanka1,326+8.9%
- 10Korea, Republic of (South)1,017+4.3%
Religious affiliation
Reported affiliation, with the change since 2016.
- 01Christianity32,755-11.0%
- 02No religion or secular beliefs30,084+26.8%
- 03Islam6,509+28.2%
- 04Hinduism5,664+46.3%
- 05Buddhism5,593+15.1%
- 06Judaism16-11.1%
Where does Canning sit next to the City of Perth?
Canning runs ahead of the City of Perth on this measure. No council in Western Australia has a higher share.
- Canning
- 41.8%
- City of Perth
- 33.5%
- Australia
- 21.3%
Every figure leaves unanswered questions out of the count, so the areas compare like for like.
How does Canning look on the map?
Canning on the Language Map, shaded for residents who speak a multicultural languageany language other than English at home (ABS ASGS 2021 boundaries). View all councils.
Figures come from the ABS Census of Population and Housing 2021 (language used at home), aggregated from Statistical Area Level 2 to Local Government Area, with 2016 for comparison.
Other sources sometimes quote 46.9% for Canning. That figure treats the 4,476 unanswered forms as another language. This page uses 41.8%, and 44.0% is the share among those who answered.
Ranked lists skip broad categories such as "Chinese, nfd", which stay in the totals. National figures are summed from suburbs and sit a touch under the ABS release.
Reuse these figures under CC BY 4.0 with credit to LEXIGO Language Map.
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