The results of the latest national Census on Tuesday revealed that Australia is a fast-changing, growing and culturally diverse nation.

So what has, or hasn't changed in the Southern Highlands?

ALSO READ:

The 2021 Census counted nearly 25.5 million people in Australia revealing that the population has more than doubled in the last 50 years, with the 1971 Census counting around 12 million people.

In the Southern Highlands, there were 52,678 people counted on Census night, up from the 47,869 counted in 2016.

One of the biggest changes in this year's data was that within a very small margin, the numbers of Millennials (25-39 years old) have caught up to Baby Boomers (55-74 years old) as the largest generational group in Australia.

READ MORE: Hey baby boomer, shuffle over. Millennials on the rise, Census says

However, that trend hasn't quite reached the Southern Highlands yet. There are more than double the amount of Boomers compared to Millennials with 15,032 people between the ages of 55 to 74 and just 7,385 between 25-39.

Although that's not to say that things aren't changing at all.

While Christianity remains the dominant religion in the region, there are now 19,181 people who identify as having 'no religion', up from 12,452 in 2016.

This matches a broader national trend where almost 40 per cent of Australia's population reported having no religion in the 2021 Census, an increase from 30 per cent in 2016 and 22 per cent in 2011.

However, nationally more than 40 per cent of the population are still identifying as Christian.

ALSO READ: Christianity still top but numbers falling

One of many possible factors impacting this could be Australia's increasing multiculturalism with the 2021 Census finding that almost half of Australians have a parent born overseas and 27.6 per cent reporting their own birthplace overseas.

The Southern Highlands' ethnic makeup has remained the same over time with the majority of the population born in Australia followed by England and New Zealand.

However, what were once the fourth and fifth most common birthplaces in 2016, Scotland and South Africa have now been overtaken by India and Nepal.

Nationally, the largest increase in country of birth, outside Australia, was India with around 220,000 additional people counted.

India has now moved past China and New Zealand to become the third largest country of birth behind Australia and England, although it remains fourth in the Southern Highlands.

We depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:

Make sure you are signed up for our breaking news and regular newsletters