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

Callan, 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 Callan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Callan in America

Callan is the 7353rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Callan surname appeared 4,531 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Callan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Callan 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 Callan

The surname Callan has its origins in Ireland and is derived from the Irish Gaelic word "callan," which means "young man" or "lad." It is believed to have originated as a descriptive nickname for a young man or youth.

The name is first recorded in the early 13th century in the Annals of the Four Masters, an ancient chronicle of Irish history. It is mentioned in reference to the Callan clan, a prominent family in County Kilkenny, Ireland.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir William Callan (c. 1270-1348), a noted Irish knight and landowner. He was recorded as holding lands in County Kilkenny during the reign of Edward III.

The Callan surname also has strong ties to the town of Callan in County Kilkenny, which may have derived its name from the same Gaelic root word. The town was an important center of trade and commerce during the Middle Ages.

In the 16th century, the name appears in various historical records, including the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, which documented land grants and administrative orders in Ireland. One notable entry is for a Thomas Callan, who was granted lands in County Kilkenny in 1576.

Another prominent figure with the Callan surname was John Callan (1604-1648), an Irish Jesuit priest and theologian. He was born in County Tipperary and is known for his influential theological works, including "The Moral Theology of the Jesuit John Callan."

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name spread throughout Ireland and beyond, with members of the Callan family migrating to various parts of the British Isles and eventually to North America and other regions.

One notable American bearer of the name was James Callan (1779-1846), a Catholic priest and educator who founded St. John's Literary Institution in Frederick, Maryland, one of the earliest Catholic colleges in the United States.

In the 19th century, the surname was associated with several notable academics and writers, including John Callan (1801-1878), an Irish mathematician and author of several textbooks on arithmetic and algebra.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Callan

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

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

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

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