Find out how popular the last name Brady is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Brady.

Brady, 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 Brady surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Brady in America

Brady is the 450th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Brady surname appeared 73,145 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 25 people would have the surname Brady.

We can also compare 2010 data for Brady 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.

The history of the last name Brady

The surname Brady originates from Ireland and is derived from the Irish Gaelic word "bráidhe," which means "literally spirited" or "ill-tempered." It is believed to have first emerged in County Cavan, an area in the northern half of Ireland, during the 12th century.

The name Brady is thought to have evolved from the ancient Irish personal name "Bráidhé," which was commonly used in the region. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name appear in medieval Irish annals and manuscripts, such as the Annals of Ulster and the Book of Leinster, dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Brady was Giolla na Naomh Ó Brádaigh, a 14th-century Irish poet and historian from County Cavan. He is renowned for his work "Tóruigheacht Dhiarmada agus Ghráinne," a retelling of the ancient Irish legend of Diarmuid and Gráinne.

In the 16th century, the Brady family became prominent landowners in County Cavan, particularly in the area of Fermanagh. Notable members of this lineage include Sir Hugh Brady (1559-1635), an Irish landowner and member of the Irish Parliament, and Sir Francis Brady (1590-1667), a soldier who fought for the English Parliamentarians during the English Civil War.

Another distinguished figure with the surname Brady was Nicholas Brady (1659-1726), an Anglican clergyman and poet who co-authored the famous metrical version of the Psalms, known as the "Brady and Tate Psalter." This work was widely used in Anglican churches throughout the British Isles for over two centuries.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, many Irish families with the name Brady immigrated to various parts of the British Empire, including North America, due to political unrest and economic hardships in their homeland. This led to the widespread dispersal of the name across different regions of the world.

Other notable individuals with the surname Brady include Mathew Brady (1822-1896), an American photographer renowned for his documentation of the American Civil War, and James Buchanan Brady (1856-1917), an American businessman and philanthropist who played a significant role in the development of the modern entertainment industry.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Brady

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Brady.

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:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Brady was:

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 Brady has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

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 Brady was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Brady, please contact us.

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