GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- How well do Americans do when given a quiz asking them to name the country with which key historical figures are identified? Not badly, as it turns out, although the findings show definitively that accurate historical knowledge is almost directly correlated with age. The older the American, apparently, the better he or she has absorbed the facts of history.
In a survey conducted May 5-7, Gallup asked Americans to identify the nations associated with several historical figures. The overwhelming majority of Americans (87%) correctly name Germany as the country associated with Adolf Hitler. Seventy-three percent successfully link Indira Gandhi with India, and a similar percentage (70%) correctly associate Winston Churchill with Great Britain, England, or the United Kingdom. For Napoleon Bonaparte, 65% correctly tie his name to France.
Historical Knowledge Improves With Age and
Education
The latest poll shows that a person's ability to correctly
associate a historical figure with the proper country varies
greatly by a person's age and education.
These findings suggest, in fact, a deficit of knowledge among younger Americans (18-29), who are significantly less accurate in associating names with countries than are their elders. Although 79% of 18- to 29-year-olds can put Hitler with Germany, and 63% can associate Gandhi and India, only a bare majority -- 51% -- link Napoleon with France, and just 34% associate Churchill with England. These numbers pale in comparison to the percentage of adults aged 50-64 who correctly associate Hitler (93%), Gandhi (82%), Napoleon (77%) and Churchill (71%) with the appropriate country.
It is also important to note that correct name-to-country association drops to even lower levels among teenagers. A Gallup Poll Youth Survey conducted earlier this year asked teens, aged 13-17, the above questions. Just 66% of American teens associated Hitler with Germany, and 41% put Indira Gandhi with India. Thirty-six percent of teens put Napoleon with France, and only 25% could link Churchill to England. Interestingly, even among teens, the younger subgroup -- those 13-15 -- was less accurate in its knowledge than was the older subgroup (those 16-17).
Not surprisingly, adults who have attended college are significantly more likely to give correct answers to these questions than are those who did not attend college. For adults with a high school education or less, 79% know Hitler was associated with Germany, 59% place Gandhi with India, and 48% know that Napoleon and Churchill belong with France and England, respectively. For those who say they have attended at least some college, the numbers increase dramatically. Ninety-two percent assign Hitler correctly; 82%, Gandhi; 75%, Napoleon; and 66%, Churchill.
Survey Methods
The results below are based on
telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of
1,031 adults, 18 years and older, conducted May 5-7, 2000. For
results based on this sample, one can say with 95 percent
confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and
other random effects is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In
addition to sampling error, question wording and practical
difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into
the findings of public opinion polls.
Please identify the nation with which each of these individuals is associated. What nation do you identify with [ROTATED A-D]?
A.Adolf Hitler
Germany |
Other |
No opinion |
|
2000 May 5-7 |
% |
% |
% |
TOTAL |
87 |
8 |
5 |
Age |
|||
18-29 |
79 |
12 |
9 |
30-49 |
88 |
7 |
5 |
50-64 |
93 |
5 |
2 |
65+ |
93 |
2 |
5 |
Education |
|||
Postgraduate |
97 |
3 |
-- |
College graduate |
97 |
1 |
2 |
Some college |
92 |
7 |
1 |
High school or less |
79 |
9 |
12 |
B.Indira Gandhi
India |
Other |
No opinion |
|
2000 May 5-7 |
% |
% |
% |
TOTAL |
73 |
8 |
19 |
Age |
|||
18-29 |
63 |
9 |
28 |
30-49 |
74 |
9 |
17 |
50-64 |
82 |
6 |
12 |
65+ |
79 |
3 |
18 |
Education |
|||
Postgraduate |
93 |
3 |
4 |
College graduate |
90 |
1 |
9 |
Some college |
82 |
6 |
12 |
High school or less |
59 |
11 |
30 |
C.Napoleon Bonaparte
France |
Other |
No opinion |
|||
2000 May 5-7 |
% |
% |
% |
||
TOTAL |
65 |
15 |
20 |
||
Age |
|||||
18-29 |
51 |
17 |
32 |
||
30-49 |
68 |
15 |
17 |
||
50-64 |
77 |
7 |
16 |
||
65+ |
65 |
13 |
22 |
||
Education |
|||||
Postgraduate |
89 |
7 |
4 |
||
College graduate |
80 |
12 |
8 |
||
Some college |
75 |
11 |
14 |
||
High school or less |
48 |
18 |
34 |
||
D.Winston Churchill
England/Great Britain/U.K. |
Other |
No opinion |
||
2000 May 5-7 |
% |
% |
% |
|
TOTAL |
70 |
14 |
16 |
|
Age |
||||
18-29 |
34 |
35 |
31 |
|
30-49 |
58 |
28 |
14 |
|
50-64 |
71 |
19 |
10 |
|
65+ |
74 |
18 |
8 |
|
Education |
||||
Postgraduate |
67 |
31 |
2 |
|
College graduate |
67 |
27 |
6 |
|
Some college |
66 |
23 |
11 |
|
High school or less |
48 |
25 |
27 |
|