2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Brannelly
A Scottish surname derived from a place name meaning "burnt land" or "burned clearing".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 111 Americans carry the last name Brannelly. That puts it at #156,449 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,087,877 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brannelly 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
111
1 in 3,087,877
Census rank
#156,449
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
97
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 97 bearers of the surname Brannelly in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156449th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brannelly, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%) and Black (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brannelly
The surname Brannelly is believed to have originated in Ireland, likely during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Gaelic words "bran" meaning raven and "eille" meaning bright or shining, suggesting a potential connection to a person with dark hair or a place associated with ravens.
Historically, the name Brannelly appears to have been concentrated in the counties of Sligo and Mayo in the western part of Ireland. Records indicate that it may have been an anglicized version of the Irish surname "Ó Brannagháin" or "O'Brannagain," which was more commonly found in these regions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Brannelly surname can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, where a man named Domnall Ua Brannagáin is mentioned in the year 1178. This suggests that the surname or a variant of it existed at least as far back as the 12th century.
In the 16th century, a notable figure with the surname Brannelly was Tadhg Ó Brannagáin, a Gaelic poet and historian who lived in County Sligo. His work, known as the "Book of the O'Brannagains," is considered an important source of information about the history and genealogy of the O'Brannagain family.
Another historical figure associated with the name Brannelly was Conor Brannelly, born in 1732 in County Mayo. He was a prominent Irish lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Irish House of Commons in the late 18th century.
In the 19th century, John Brannelly (1809-1884) was a notable Irish-born Australian explorer and surveyor. He played a significant role in the exploration and mapping of various regions in Australia, including the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
A more recent figure with the Brannelly surname was Francis Brannelly (1893-1955), an Irish politician and member of the Fianna Fáil party. He served as a member of Dáil Éireann, the principal chamber of the Irish parliament, representing the Sligo-Leitrim constituency.
While the Brannelly surname has its roots in Ireland, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through Irish immigration to countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia. However, the name remains relatively uncommon, reflecting its specific geographic origins and historical lineage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brannelly
Among Census respondents with the surname Brannelly, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%) and Black (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Brannelly 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 Brannelly surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.9% · 94
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brannelly
Brannelly appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#156,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 97
-5 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 1,983 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,449 | 97 | 0.03 | -5 bearers (-4.9%) | Up 1,983 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 Brannelly 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 | #156,449 | 1.3% |
| Count | 102 | 97 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brannelly bearers went from 102 to 97 (-4.9% change). The surname moved up 1,983 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #156,449.
FAQ
Brannelly surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brannelly?
Name Census estimates that about 111 living Americans carry the surname Brannelly. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,087,877 residents.
How common is Brannelly?
Brannelly ranks #156,449 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 97 people with the surname Brannelly. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (111), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Brannelly.
Has Brannelly become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brannelly went from 102 recorded bearers to 97. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #156,449.
What does the Census say about the background of Brannelly?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brannelly, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%) and Black (1.0%). 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 Brannelly in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.9% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brannelly appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%), Black (1.0%). 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 Brannelly (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 Brannelly mean?
A Scottish surname derived from a place name meaning "burnt land" or "burned clearing". 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 Brannelly (0.03 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 have the last name Brannelly?
Find out how many people have the last name Brannelly on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.