Irish Population in Tennessee by County : 2025 Ranking & Insights

According to U.S. Census estimates, the Irish population in Tennessee stands at 639,748. Every county reports a non-zero population, with Davidson County leading at 55,684, followed by Knox County (49,364) and Shelby County (46,344). 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 Tennessee by their Irish population, offering a localized perspective on how the community is distributed across the state.

Top 5 counties with the largest Irish population in Tennessee

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  • 1
    Davidson County
    Irish population in Davidson County is 55,684
    7.84% of Davidson County population is Irish
  • 2
    Knox County
    Irish population in Knox County is 49,364
    10.13% of Knox County population is Irish
  • 3
    Shelby County
    Irish population in Shelby County is 46,344
    5.03% of Shelby County population is Irish
  • 4
    Hamilton County
    Irish population in Hamilton County is 40,308
    10.87% of Hamilton County population is Irish
  • 5
    Williamson County
    Irish population in Williamson County is 30,074
    11.81% of Williamson County population is Irish

Overview of Irish population in Tennessee

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey documents Tennessee with 639,748 Irish residents (9.2% of 7.0 million total state population), ranking the state at the 66th percentile nationally among U.S. jurisdictions for Irish demographic representation.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: U.S. Census surveys show Tennessee's Irish demographic representation of 9.2% remains below the national average of 9.4%, positioning the state below typical U.S. demographic distribution patterns.
  • Share of Total National Population: Official American Community Survey records show Tennessee hosts 639,748 Irish residents, representing 2% of the nation's total Irish population of 31.2 million, establishing the state as a significant demographic concentration center within national boundaries.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data show Tennessee maintains 15.5 Irish Americans per square mile compared to the national average of 8.8, indicating higher demographic concentration relative to national averages.
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93 Counties in Tennessee Ranked by Irish Population

View Methodology
American Community Survey data [1] show Irish populations across every county in Tennessee, with demographic distributions ranging from the highest population in Davidson 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 Tennessee ranked by Irish population count
Rank by Irish Population
County
Irish Population
% of Total County Population
% of Total Tennessee Irish Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Davidson County 55,684 7.84% 8.70%
2 Knox County 49,364 10.13% 7.72%
3 Shelby County 46,344 5.03% 7.24%
4 Hamilton County 40,308 10.87% 6.30%
5 Williamson County 30,074 11.81% 4.70%
6 Rutherford County 27,878 7.93% 4.36%
7 Montgomery County 20,914 9.17% 3.27%
8 20,157 12.62% 3.15%
9 17,479 8.72% 2.73%
10 15,243 9.92% 2.38%
11 14,917 11.07% 2.33%
12 14,562 10.57% 2.28%
13 12,762 12.92% 1.99%
14 12,250 11.16% 1.91%
15 8,146 10.42% 1.27%
16 7,798 14.40% 1.22%
17 7,513 7.17% 1.17%
18 7,479 10.07% 1.17%
19 7,093 11.34% 1.11%
20 6,875 6.96% 1.07%
21 6,823 8.39% 1.07%
22 6,557 11.88% 1.02%
23 6,537 10.66% 1.02%
24 6,443 9.09% 1.01%
25 6,189 10.50% 0.97%
26 6,089 11.19% 0.95%
27 5,954 10.66% 0.93%
28 5,871 10.30% 0.92%
29 5,834 12.40% 0.91%
30 5,625 9.79% 0.88%
31 5,545 10.96% 0.87%
32 5,075 12.23% 0.79%
33 4,774 13.01% 0.75%
34 4,741 8.40% 0.74%
35 4,465 9.94% 0.70%
36 4,313 6.64% 0.67%
37 4,274 8.33% 0.67%
38 4,203 9.85% 0.66%
39 3,823 11.48% 0.60%
40 3,772 11.71% 0.59%
41 3,639 8.75% 0.57%
42 3,607 8.30% 0.56%
43 3,598 9.09% 0.56%
44 3,502 9.59% 0.55%
45 3,467 11.34% 0.54%
46 3,398 12.61% 0.53%
46 3,398 9.63% 0.53%
47 3,136 10.30% 0.49%
48 3,124 10.77% 0.49%
49 2,983 11.82% 0.47%
50 2,979 8.36% 0.47%
51 2,970 11.45% 0.46%
52 2,899 13.68% 0.45%
53 2,839 8.78% 0.44%
54 2,678 15.13% 0.42%
55 2,631 9.43% 0.41%
56 2,525 7.66% 0.39%
57 2,493 10.42% 0.39%
58 2,265 11.25% 0.35%
59 2,260 7.94% 0.35%
60 2,233 8.04% 0.35%
61 2,139 11.29% 0.33%
62 2,138 10.40% 0.33%
63 2,105 9.58% 0.33%
64 2,077 10.89% 0.32%
65 2,052 8.05% 0.32%
66 1,934 11.90% 0.30%
67 1,928 10.84% 0.30%
68 1,799 10.31% 0.28%
69 1,786 13.07% 0.28%
70 1,767 13.51% 0.28%
71 1,747 7.01% 0.27%
72 1,721 7.55% 0.27%
73 1,708 9.45% 0.27%
74 1,659 8.21% 0.26%
75 1,498 13.03% 0.23%
76 1,476 10.59% 0.23%
77 1,433 10.34% 0.22%
78 1,405 9.58% 0.22%
79 1,404 10.98% 0.22%
80 1,325 8.31% 0.21%
81 1,263 7.70% 0.20%
82 1,257 8.43% 0.20%
83 1,232 4.78% 0.19%
84 1,082 9.11% 0.17%
85 1,044 12.59% 0.16%
86 868 13.79% 0.14%
87 774 9.04% 0.12%
88 773 10.14% 0.12%
89 702 10.49% 0.11%
90 671 3.80% 0.10%
91 440 6.48% 0.07%
92 413 8.16% 0.06%
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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 Tennessee 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 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 Irish .
  2. % of Total Tennessee 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.
  • County 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.