Nearly 100,000 people now identify as Cornish

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Cornish flag
Image caption,

The census showed an increase in people identifying as Cornish

The number of people in England and Wales identifying as Cornish or Cornish and British rose by 50% in a decade.

In the 2021 Census, 99,754 people in England and Wales identified as wholly or partially Cornish, up by more than 33,000 since 2011.

In Cornwall, people identifying as Cornish also rose by 50%.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said questionnaires were more user-friendly and people could write in Cornish.

It said it would publish a report next year on health, housing, work and education in relation to those with Cornish identities.

National identity formImage source, ONS
Image caption,

The first time the ONS produced an analytical report on the population who identified as Cornish was in 2011

The survey also looked at the identities of people living in Cornwall.

In total, 14% (80,000) of the population reported a fully Cornish identity in 2021.

That's up from 9.9% (53,000) in 2011.

Results also showed that in Cornwall, an additional 1.6% (9,000) said they were Cornish in combination with one or more UK identities, up from 1% (5,000) in 2011.

'Analytical report'

Jon Wroth-Smith, ONS deputy director, said the number of people living in Cornwall who identified as Cornish only had increased by just under 30,000.

He added: "There's even more data to follow. Next year we will produce an analytical report on the population who identify as Cornish, and how their health, housing, work and education differs from those who do not identify as Cornish."

Of the 13,045 people outside Cornwall identifying as Cornish only, 1,290 lived in Devon, with a large concentration in Plymouth.

The ONS said there were also pockets of people identifying as Cornish in Bristol, while in London 799 people said they were Cornish.

In total, more than 90% of people living in Cornwall identified their ethnic group as white.

This is above the England and Wales average of 74.4%.

In Cornwall, 98.2% of people said their main language was English. This compares with 91.1% nationally. Some 471 people said their main language was Cornish.

Meanwhile, 46.2% of people reported "no religion" in Cornwall, while 45.4% said they were Christian. A further 1,769 people said they were Pagan, the third most commonly described religion in Cornwall.

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