Irish Population in Kern County, CA by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Irish population in Kern County, CA is recorded at 42,874 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Each city in Kern County, CA has some Irish population, but the county''s higher total suggests additional rural or non-municipal representation. The analysis below explores how Irish communities are spread across Kern County, CA and comparable counties throughout California.

Top 5 cities with the largest Irish population in Kern County

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  • 1
    Bakersfield
    Irish population in Bakersfield is 17,318
    4.24% of Bakersfield population is Irish
  • 2
    Ridgecrest
    Irish population in Ridgecrest is 3,637
    12.93% of Ridgecrest population is Irish
  • 3
    Tehachapi
    Irish population in Tehachapi is 1,005
    8.13% of Tehachapi population is Irish
  • 4
    California City
    Irish population in California City is 759
    5.12% of California City population is Irish
  • 5
    Taft
    Irish population in Taft is 607
    8.40% of Taft population is Irish

Overview of Irish population in Kern County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data shows Kern County contains 42,874 Irish residents (4.7% of 910,433 total county population), ranking the jurisdiction at the 94th percentile nationally among counties and 70th percentile within California for Irish demographic concentrations across both absolute and proportional measures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS data indicate Kern County's Irish population of 4.7% remains below California's state average of 5.8% and the national average of 9.4%, placing the county below demographic benchmarks across multiple geographic scales.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey show Kern County's 42,874 Irish residents constitute 1.9% of California's total Irish population of 2.3 million.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey indicate Kern County's density of 5.3 Irish Americans per square mile remains below California's average of 14.6 per square mile, with relatively sparse community distribution compared to state demographic concentrations.
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11 Cities in Kern County Ranked by Irish Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] confirm Irish populations in every incorporated city in the county, with the largest counts in Bakersfield, Ridgecrest, Tehachapi, and California City. The table below provides detailed figures, including total population, density measures, and demographic distributions, based on the current ACS data for all 11 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Kern County, CA ranked by Irish population count
Rank by Irish Population
City
Irish Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Kern County Irish Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Bakersfield 17,318 4.24% 40.39%
2 Ridgecrest 3,637 12.93% 8.48%
3 Tehachapi 1,005 8.13% 2.34%
4 California City 759 5.12% 1.77%
5 Taft 607 8.40% 1.42%
6 Delano 371 0.73% 0.87%
7 Shafter 258 1.25% 0.60%
8 249 0.95% 0.58%
9 114 11.23% 0.27%
10 63 0.45% 0.15%
11 8 0.04% 0.02%
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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 city in Kern County, CA by their Irish population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines Irish 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 Irish 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 Irish alone, while others identify as Irish along with another race (such as Irish and German).
  • We’ve used the “Irish alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Irish population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Irish alone or in combination in city. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total City Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Irish .
  2. % of Total Kern County Irish Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Irish 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 Irish 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.
  • City that don’t have any reported Irish 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 Irish populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

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