SourceTargetCommunity Atlas
Local Government Area · New South Wales

Newcastle

166,252 residents · 115+ languages recorded at suburb level.

CALD share
13.9%
23,153 people
Growth since last census
+35.6%
vs previous census
In context
0.44× New South Wales avg
0.51× national avg
Population
166,252
CALD residents
23,153
Languages spoken
115
Fastest-growing
+347%
Narrative

Why this matters

Newcastle is home to 166,252 residents. 13.9% of them speak a language other than English at home. That's 23,153 people whose daily linguistic reality shapes how services, communications and campaigns actually reach them.

This briefing pulls the full ABS Census 2021 picture for Newcastle into a single shareable document: the languages spoken at home, the communities growing fastest, and the suburb-level variation that a council-wide average hides.

Languages

The twelve most-spoken

Bars show share of LGA residents · growth since last census

  1. 01
    Mandarin1,589 · 1.0%
    ▼15.3%
  2. 02
    Macedonian1,013 · 0.6%
    ▼4.5%
  3. 03
    Arabic851 · 0.5%
    ▲33.0%
  4. 04
    Greek670 · 0.4%
    ▼6.9%
  5. 05
    Vietnamese595 · 0.4%
    ▲29.1%
  6. 06
    Italian585 · 0.4%
    ▼20.4%
  1. 01
    Spanish576 · 0.3%
    ▲37.5%
  2. 02
    Malayalam520 · 0.3%
    ▲56.2%
  3. 03
    Urdu516 · 0.3%
    ▲96.2%
  4. 04
    Cantonese477 · 0.3%
    ▼10.0%
  5. 05
    Nepali434 · 0.3%
    ▲347.4%
  6. 06
    Hindi387 · 0.2%
    ▲45.5%
Composition

Everyone at home

ENGLISH · 86%
OTHER
ENGLISH ONLY 86.1%  ·  OTHER LANGUAGES 13.9%
Mandarin
1,589 · -15.3%
Macedonian
1,013 · -4.5%
Arabic
851 · +33.0%
Greek
670 · -6.9%
Vietnamese
595 · +29.1%
Italian
585 · -20.4%
Spanish
576 · +37.5%
Malayalam
520 · +56.2%
Urdu
516 · +96.2%
Cantonese
477 · -10.0%
Nepali
434 · +347.4%
Hindi
387 · +45.5%
Korean
359 · -4.3%
Punjabi
337 · +62.0%
Bengali
331 · +59.9%
SIZE = SPEAKERS  ·  TINT = GROWTH SINCE LAST CENSUS
  1. 01
    Mandarin1,589 · 1.0%
    ▼15.3%
  2. 02
    Macedonian1,013 · 0.6%
    ▼4.5%
  3. 03
    Arabic851 · 0.5%
    ▲33.0%
  4. 04
    Greek670 · 0.4%
    ▼6.9%
  5. 05
    Vietnamese595 · 0.4%
    ▲29.1%
  6. 06
    Italian585 · 0.4%
    ▼20.4%
  7. 07
    Spanish576 · 0.3%
    ▲37.5%
  8. 08
    Malayalam520 · 0.3%
    ▲56.2%
  9. 09
    Urdu516 · 0.3%
    ▲96.2%
  10. 10
    Cantonese477 · 0.3%
    ▼10.0%
  11. 11
    Nepali434 · 0.3%
    ▲347.4%
  12. 12
    Hindi387 · 0.2%
    ▲45.5%
Momentum

Fastest-growing languages

Top movers since the last census

#1
Language
Nepali
+347.4%
434 speakers · 0.3% of LGA
#2
Language
Urdu
+96.2%
516 speakers · 0.3% of LGA
#3
Language
Punjabi
+62.0%
337 speakers · 0.2% of LGA
Sub-regions

Suburb-level data

Click a suburb to drill down to SAL-level figures

Sandgate (NSW)
274 RESIDENTS
52.9% CALDTop: Tongan
Jesmond
2,997 RESIDENTS
45.4% CALDTop: Arabic
Callaghan
1,349 RESIDENTS
35.9% CALDTop: Cantonese
Birmingham Gardens
2,560 RESIDENTS
29.0% CALDTop: Mandarin
Fletcher (NSW)
7,882 RESIDENTS
24.1% CALDTop: Malayalam
Newcastle West
1,480 RESIDENTS
20.0% CALDTop: Arabic
Warabrook
2,031 RESIDENTS
19.9% CALDTop: Mandarin
Waratah (NSW)
5,037 RESIDENTS
19.7% CALDTop: Nepali
Hamilton South
4,026 RESIDENTS
19.3% CALDTop: Greek
North Lambton
3,422 RESIDENTS
19.1% CALDTop: Mandarin
Waratah West
2,770 RESIDENTS
17.1% CALDTop: Mandarin
Broadmeadow
1,722 RESIDENTS
17.1% CALDTop: Macedonian
Use this data

Commission a gap report for Newcastle.

We turn census data into targeted outreach plans: which documents to translate first, which community leaders to engage, where the gaps are.