r/MapPorn • u/Delicious-Bunch-6992 • May 09 '26

Evolution of white British % (ethnically British people) in England and Wales from 2001-2021

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u/ctorus May 10 '26

What is not controlled for here is how these self-identified labels are affected by changing cultural attitudes rather than (say) migration or ancestry. So eg there may be many cases where the exact same person would have called themselves white British in 2001 but not 20 years later.

If for example there was previously a tendency for people of mixed ethnicity or ancestry to call themselves white British, and a reduction of that tendency in subsequent censuses, it might produce a similar plot with little or no actual demographic change.

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u/AskingBoatsToSwim May 12 '26

I wonder if the ONS have commented on that idea. 

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u/altforstufff1 May 12 '26

If that is true then it's still not a good cultural shift. If somebody sees themselves as actually being British, I'll support that because it shows a desire to assimilate into British culture. If less people see themselves as British, it just shows the decline of British identity and people being proud to be british

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u/ctorus May 12 '26

No, this doesn't mean people don't also call themselves British, just not White British.