Find out how popular the last name Begley is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Begley.
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Béaglaoich," meaning "descendant of Béaglach," a personal name meaning "lively little one."
Begley, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Begley surname is from the 2010 census data.
Begley is the 4200th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Begley surname appeared 8,435 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Begley.
We can also compare 2010 data for Begley to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
Rank | 4200 | 3935 | 6.52% |
Count | 8,435 | 8,292 | 1.71% |
Proportion per 100k | 2.86 | 3.07 | -7.08% |
The surname Begley is of Irish origin, emerging from the Gaelic Ó Beaglaigh, meaning "descendant of Beaglach." The name Beaglach is derived from the Irish word "beag," meaning small or little, and the diminutive suffix "-lach." The name likely originated as a nickname or descriptive name referring to a small or diminutive person.
The Begley surname is most commonly found in counties Limerick and Tipperary, Ireland, indicating its roots may lie in the region of Munster. The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 16th century, with records of Begley families in the parish of Knockgrany, County Limerick.
One of the earliest known individuals with the Begley surname was John Begley, a landowner in County Tipperary, whose name appears in the Fiants of the Tudor sovereign, Elizabeth I, in the late 16th century. The Fiants were records of royal grants and pardons issued by the English Crown in Ireland during this period.
In the 17th century, the Begley surname is documented in the Petty's Census of Ireland, a survey of landowners conducted in 1659 by Sir William Petty. This census recorded several Begley families residing in County Limerick at the time.
Notable individuals with the Begley surname include:
While the Begley name has spread to various parts of the world due to Irish migration, its roots can be traced back to the ancient Gaelic language and the region of Munster in Ireland, where it first emerged as a descriptive surname.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Begley.
The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Begley was:
Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
---|---|---|
Non-Hispanic White Only | 93.63% | 7,898 |
Non-Hispanic Black Only | 1.79% | 151 |
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | 0.33% | 28 |
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.32% | 27 |
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 2.03% | 171 |
Hispanic Origin | 1.90% | 160 |
Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.
Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Begley has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
White | 93.63% | 95.16% | -1.62% |
Black | 1.79% | 1.19% | 40.27% |
Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.33% | 0.33% | 0.00% |
American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.32% | 0.46% | -35.90% |
Two or More Races | 2.03% | 1.56% | 26.18% |
Hispanic | 1.90% | 1.30% | 37.50% |
The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.
The history and meaning of the name Begley was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Begley, please contact us.
We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.
If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!
<a href="http://namecensus.com/last-names/begley-surname-popularity/">Begley last name popularity, history, and meaning</a>
"Begley last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 11, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/begley-surname-popularity/.
"Begley last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/begley-surname-popularity/. Accessed 11 October, 2024
Begley last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/begley-surname-popularity/.
Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.
Simple as that.