Census 2011: Detailed characteristics on Ethnicity, Identity, Language and Religion in Scotland – Release 3B

The statistics published today by the Registrar General for Scotland on the Scotland’s Census website, present further details from the 2011 Census in Scotland on Ethnicity, Identity, Language and Religion, from national to local level.

Key points

Country of birth by national identity

• The proportion of Scotland’s population who felt they had some Scottish identity either on its own or in combination with another identity was highest for people born in Scotland, at 94 per cent. This proportion was 26 per cent for those born in England, 16 per cent for those born in Northern Ireland and 21 per cent for those born in Wales.
• For people born outside the UK, the proportion who felt they had some Scottish identity ranged from 38 per cent for those born in North America and 37 per cent for those born in Antarctica and Oceania (mainly Australia and New Zealand), to 10 per cent for those born in central Asia and 13 per cent for those born in the European Union (EU) Accession countries.
• Nearly all (99 per cent or over) of people born in Scotland, England or Wales felt they had some UK (including Scottish) identity. This proportion was 94 per cent for those born in Northern Ireland, 85 per cent for those born in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, 30 per cent for those born in the Republic of Ireland, 17 per cent for those born in the EU Accession countries and 47 per cent for those born in other EU member countries. For people born elsewhere, the proportion ranged from 26 per cent for those born in central Asia to 68 per cent for those born in south and eastern Africa.

Country of birth by age

• Of the population who were born in Scotland, 9 per cent were aged 18 to 24, generally speaking the student age population. This proportion was similar for people born in England (10 per cent) and Wales (8 per cent) but was slightly higher for those born in Northern Ireland (15 per cent). It was also generally higher for people born outside the UK, ranging up to 33 per cent for those born in eastern Asia and 36 per cent for those born in central Asia.
• The proportion of the population of younger working age (25 to 39) was 17 per cent for those born in Scotland. This proportion was generally higher for people born elsewhere, ranging up to 53 per cent for people born in the EU Accession countries and 54 per cent for who were born in a west and central African country.

Country of birth by religion by sex

• Of the population who were born in Scotland, 37 per cent stated they belonged to the Church of Scotland, 16 per cent stated they were Roman Catholic and 37 per cent stated they had ‘No religion’. The ‘Other Christian’ and ‘Muslim’ groups accounted for 3.2 per cent and 0.6 per cent respectively of the Scottish-born population.
• The proportion of the population who stated they were Roman Catholic was highest for those born in the Republic of Ireland (69 per cent), the EU Accession countries (64 per cent) and central America (47 per cent). The proportion of the population who stated they were Muslim was highest for those born in North Africa (61 per cent), middle eastern countries (57 per cent) and southern Asia (46 per cent).
• The proportion of the population who stated they had ‘No religion’ ranged from 6 per cent for those born in central and western Africa to 70 per cent for those born in eastern Asia.

Ethnic group by age of arrival in the UK

• The great majority (89 per cent) of the population born outside the UK arrived in the UK aged under 35; this pattern was generally reflected across all ethnic groups.

Country of birth by age of arrival in the UK

• While just over a third (35 per cent) of the population who were born outside the UK arrived into the UK aged 16 to 24, this proportion was 47 per cent for those born in the Republic of Ireland and 49 per cent for those born in in eastern Asia.

Proficiency in English by age of arrival in the UK

• The proportion of the population aged 3 and over reported as not being able to speak English well or at all was 1.4 per cent overall and 11 per cent for those born outside the UK. This proportion generally increased with age of arrival into the UK: for those who arrived aged under 16 it was 5 per cent while for those who arrived aged 65 and over it was 31 per cent.

Other tables in this release present information on:

• Gaelic language skills by sex by age
• English language skills by sex by age
• Language other than English used at home by sex by age

All the data contained in this release can be accessed on the Scotland’s Census website.