2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Boyhan
A surname possibly derived from an Irish place name or meaning "yellow hound".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Boyhan. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boyhan surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Boyhan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boyhan, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boyhan
The surname Boyhan is believed to have originated in Ireland. It is thought to be an anglicized version of the Gaelic name "Ó Buadháin," which means "descendant of Buadhán." Buadhán is a personal name derived from the Irish word "buadh," meaning "victory."
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 16th century in County Cork, Ireland. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname was Dermot Boyhan, who was born in Kinsale, County Cork, around 1550.
In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the Boyhans were known to be prominent landowners in the Kinsale area. They were also involved in the Irish Rebellion of 1641, fighting against the English forces.
One notable member of the Boyhan family was William Boyhan, who was born in Kinsale in 1610. He was a captain in the Irish Confederate Army during the Irish Confederate Wars (1641-1653) and fought bravely against the English forces.
Another significant figure was John Boyhan, who was born in Bandon, County Cork, in 1675. He was a successful merchant and trader, and his business dealings helped establish the Boyhan family as one of the wealthier families in the region.
In the 18th century, the Boyhans began to spread out from their stronghold in County Cork. Some members of the family migrated to other parts of Ireland, while others emigrated to England and the Americas.
One such individual was Michael Boyhan, who was born in Kinsale in 1720. He moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the mid-18th century and became a prominent businessman and landowner in the city.
Another notable figure was Patrick Boyhan, who was born in County Cork in 1785. He was a soldier in the British Army and fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He later settled in England after his military service.
While the Boyhan surname is not as common today as it once was, it remains a part of Ireland's rich cultural heritage, with its roots firmly planted in the historic county of Cork.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boyhan
Among Census respondents with the surname Boyhan, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Boyhan bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Boyhan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 100
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 3
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boyhan
Boyhan appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-15 bearers (-12.8%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 25,318 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+7 bearers (+6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,227 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | -15 bearers (-12.8%) | Down 25,318 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.9%) | Up 8,227 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Boyhan surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #158,432 | #150,205 | 5.2% |
| Count | 102 | 109 | 6.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 21.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boyhan bearers went from 102 to 109 (+6.9% change). The surname moved up 8,227 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #150,205.
FAQ
Boyhan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boyhan?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Boyhan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Boyhan?
Boyhan ranks #150,205 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Boyhan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Boyhan.
Has Boyhan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boyhan went from 102 recorded bearers to 109. That is an increase of 7 (+6.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Boyhan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boyhan, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Boyhan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boyhan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.8%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Boyhan (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Boyhan mean?
A surname possibly derived from an Irish place name or meaning "yellow hound". The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Boyhan (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Boyhan?
See how many people are called Boyhan on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.