Find out how popular the last name Cavan is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Cavan.
An Irish surname derived from the name of the town of Cavan.
Cavan, 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 Cavan surname is from the 2010 census data.
Cavan is the 37125th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Cavan surname appeared 601 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Cavan.
We can also compare 2010 data for Cavan 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 | 37125 | 34259 | 8.03% |
| Count | 601 | 626 | -4.07% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.20 | 0.23 | -13.95% |
The surname Cavan is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Cabáin, which originated in Ireland. It is derived from the Irish word "caban," meaning a tent or a small hut, suggesting that the name may have initially been an occupational surname referring to someone who lived in a tent or a small dwelling.
Cavan is also the name of a county in the province of Ulster, Ireland, and it is possible that the surname may have originated from this place name. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, dating back to the 13th century.
One notable historical figure bearing the surname Cavan was Richard O'Cavan, an Irish soldier who served in the Irish Brigade of the French Army during the 17th century. He fought in the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession, and his military exploits were recorded in contemporary accounts.
Another prominent bearer of the name was James Cavan, an Irish-American politician who served as the Mayor of Boston from 1872 to 1873. He was born in 1822 and played a significant role in the city's political landscape during the mid-19th century.
In the realm of literature, Philip Cavan is a notable figure. Born in 1865, he was an Irish poet and novelist who wrote extensively about the Irish countryside and rural life. His works, such as "The Fields of Evening" and "The Quiet Road," were widely acclaimed and contributed to the literary tradition of his time.
The Cavan surname has also been associated with places like Cavanacor, an ancient Irish settlement, and Cavanagh, an alternative spelling of the name that was common in some regions of Ireland. These place names and variations of the surname reflect the rich history and diversity of the Irish diaspora.
William Cavan, born in 1842, was a prominent figure in the Irish Nationalist movement. He was a staunch advocate for Irish Home Rule and played a significant role in the political struggles of his time, working alongside notable figures like Charles Stewart Parnell and Isaac Butt.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Cavan.
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 Cavan was:
| Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Hispanic White Only | 58.57% | 352 |
| Non-Hispanic Black Only | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | 26.62% | 160 |
| Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 4.33% | 26 |
| Hispanic Origin | 8.65% | 52 |
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 Cavan has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 58.57% | 61.98% | -5.66% |
| Black | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 26.62% | 26.20% | 1.59% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Two or More Races | 4.33% | 3.19% | 30.32% |
| Hispanic | 8.65% | 7.35% | 16.25% |
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 Cavan was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
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