Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky became the 15th U.S. state when it was admitted to the U.S. in 1792. It was once believed that the name Kentucky was derived from the Native American word meaning "dark and bloody hunting ground," which is believed to be due to the fact that many Native American tribes went there to hunt in the game-rich forests and often fought each other there. However, it is now most commonly believed that the name Kentucky can be attributed to various Native American languages with several possible meanings from "land of tomorrow" to "cane and turkey lands" to "meadow lands." This last may come from the Iroquois name for the Shawnee town Eskippathiki. The name Kentucky referred originally to the Kentucky River and from that came the name of the region.

Demographics

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As of 2004, there were an estimated 4,145,922 people living in Kentucky. This is a increase of over 104,104 people from 2000. This includes about 95,000 foreign-born (2.3%).

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Racially, the population is:

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• 89.3% White, non-Hispanic
• 7.3% Black
• 1.5% Hispanic
• 0.7% Asian
• 0.2% Native American
• 1.1% Mixed race

The five largest ancestries in the state are: American (20.9%), German (12.7%), Irish (10.5%), English (9.7%), African American (7.3%).

Related Topics:
American - German - Irish - English - African American

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Blacks, who once represented a quarter of the state's population during the height of the tobacco, cotton, and hemp plantation era, are most concentrated in the southwest (notably Christian county), the Bluegrass, and the city of Louisville. "American ancestry" is the largest reported ancestry group throughout most of the state in the Census. Other large reported ancestries are British and German. Germans are especially present in Louisville. The overwhelming majority of people reporting "American" ancestry are ultimately of British extraction, although their ancestry in the United States often predates the creation of the United Kingdom and other European nations.

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Religion

Religiously, Kentucky is mostly Protestant. The religious affiliations of the state are as follows:

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• Christian – 86%
• Protestant – 70%
• Baptist – 35%
• Methodist – 5%
• Pentecostal – 4%
• Church of Christ – 3%
• Lutheran – 2%
• Presbyterian – 2%
• Other Protestant – 19%
• Roman Catholic – 15%
• Other Christian – 1%
• Jewish 0.01%
• Other Religions – <1%
• Non-religious – 14%