English Population in South Dakota by County : 2025 Ranking & Insights

According to U.S. Census estimates, the English population in South Dakota stands at 65,626. Every county reports a non-zero population, with Minnehaha County leading at 13,873, followed by Pennington County (12,568) and Lincoln County (4,489). The combined total across counties is slightly lower than the statewide figure - a gap that may reflect rounding, data lag, or unassigned residents in certain census tracts. This analysis ranks all counties in South Dakota by their English population, offering a localized perspective on how the community is distributed across the state.

Top 5 counties with the largest English population in South Dakota

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  • 1
    Minnehaha County
    English population in Minnehaha County is 13,873
    6.91% of Minnehaha County population is English
  • 2
    Pennington County
    English population in Pennington County is 12,568
    11.21% of Pennington County population is English
  • 3
    Lincoln County
    English population in Lincoln County is 4,489
    6.57% of Lincoln County population is English
  • 4
    Lawrence County
    English population in Lawrence County is 2,888
    10.87% of Lawrence County population is English
  • 5
    Brown County
    English population in Brown County is 2,664
    7.00% of Brown County population is English

Overview of English population in South Dakota

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey documents South Dakota with 65,626 English residents (7.3% of 899,194 total state population), ranking the state at the 4th percentile nationally among U.S. jurisdictions for English demographic representation.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: U.S. Census surveys show South Dakota's English demographic representation of 7.3% remains below the national average of 9.1%, positioning the state below typical U.S. demographic distribution patterns.
  • Share of Total National Population: Official American Community Survey data indicates South Dakota contains 65,626 English residents, representing less than 1% of the nation's total English population of 30.1 million, constituting a minimal fraction of the national demographic community relative to the state's overall population size.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey document South Dakota with 0.87 English Americans per square mile, below the national average of 8.5 per square mile, placing the state among jurisdictions with below-average demographic concentrations nationally.
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64 Counties in South Dakota Ranked by English Population

View Methodology
American Community Survey data [1] show English populations across every county in South Dakota, with demographic distributions ranging from the highest population in Minnehaha County to the lowest in $rank_n_geo_name. The table below provides broader statistics, including total population figures, density measures, and demographic distributions based on current ACS data for all counties included in this analysis*.
counties in South Dakota ranked by English population count
Rank by English Population
County
English Population
% of Total County Population
% of Total South Dakota English Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Minnehaha County 13,873 6.91% 21.14%
2 Pennington County 12,568 11.21% 19.15%
3 Lincoln County 4,489 6.57% 6.84%
4 Lawrence County 2,888 10.87% 4.40%
5 Brown County 2,664 7.00% 4.06%
6 Meade County 2,648 8.74% 4.04%
7 Brookings County 2,584 7.39% 3.94%
8 1,978 11.16% 3.01%
9 1,563 5.47% 2.38%
10 1,411 6.04% 2.15%
11 1,365 12.95% 2.08%
12 1,354 6.79% 2.06%
13 1,317 7.79% 2.01%
14 1,221 6.33% 1.86%
15 963 6.36% 1.47%
16 911 12.69% 1.39%
17 899 8.13% 1.37%
18 857 9.87% 1.31%
19 543 8.64% 0.83%
20 488 6.95% 0.74%
21 424 7.56% 0.65%
22 388 6.09% 0.59%
23 382 12.55% 0.58%
24 369 9.52% 0.56%
25 364 5.79% 0.55%
26 346 6.58% 0.53%
27 326 9.39% 0.50%
28 324 3.17% 0.49%
29 321 3.66% 0.49%
30 300 5.49% 0.46%
31 292 3.87% 0.44%
32 283 5.43% 0.43%
33 277 4.83% 0.42%
34 259 4.89% 0.39%
35 254 8.43% 0.39%
36 253 6.27% 0.39%
37 252 2.72% 0.38%
38 244 6.11% 0.37%
39 232 7.59% 0.35%
40 224 5.19% 0.34%
41 200 13.50% 0.30%
42 196 5.84% 0.30%
42 196 8.27% 0.30%
43 170 6.61% 0.26%
44 167 2.26% 0.25%
45 156 3.58% 0.24%
46 154 11.80% 0.23%
47 145 7.86% 0.22%
48 130 4.60% 0.20%
49 128 3.44% 0.20%
50 117 4.81% 0.18%
51 116 6.79% 0.18%
52 111 5.19% 0.17%
53 102 4.44% 0.16%
54 101 4.43% 0.15%
54 101 4.94% 0.15%
55 96 3.40% 0.15%
56 72 6.59% 0.11%
57 70 2.90% 0.11%
58 68 4.59% 0.10%
59 65 6.31% 0.10%
60 64 1.22% 0.10%
61 38 0.41% 0.06%
62 32 0.83% 0.05%
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Methodology

This ranking list is based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is one of the most reliable sources for understanding population trends across different locations, and it provides estimates for various racial and ethnic groups at city, county, state and all geography levels down to the Census block group.
This list ranks county in South Dakota by their English population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines English population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their ancestry, meaning individuals can write upto ancestries when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as having English ancestry, whether alone or in combination with another ancestry.
Here are a few important things to know about how ancestry is reported:
  • Some people identify as English alone, while others identify as English along with another race (such as English and German).
  • We’ve used the “English alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the English population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as English alone or in combination in county. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total County Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as English .
  2. % of Total South Dakota English Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. English population lives in that state.
To keep things simple, all population numbers have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place. Because of rounding, some percentages may not add up to exactly 100%.

Things to Keep in Mind

Like all survey-based data, ACS estimates come with some limitations. Here are a few things to be aware of:
  • In places with very small English populations, the numbers may not be reported at all due to privacy protections or sampling variability in the survey.
  • Since the ACS is based on a sample, the numbers are estimates, not exact counts. That means they may slightly differ from other sources like the decennial U.S. Census.
  • County that don’t have any reported English population are not included in the ranking but are listed separately below for reference.
This ranking is meant to provide a clear, data-driven look at where English populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

  1. 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.
  2. 2023.