Comiskey last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Comiskey

An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic 'O Comasidhe' meaning 'descendent of the commissary' or official keeper.

Comiskey, 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 Comiskey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Comiskey in America

Comiskey is the 17927th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Comiskey surname appeared 1,559 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Comiskey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Comiskey 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 17927 16988 5.38%
Count 1,559 1,542 1.10%
Proportion per 100k 0.53 0.57 -7.27%

The history of the last name Comiskey

The surname Comiskey is of Irish origin, with roots dating back to the 16th century. It is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name "O'Comascaigh," which means "descended from Comascach," a personal name derived from the word "cumas," meaning "power" or "ability."

The earliest recorded instances of the Comiskey name can be found in historical records from County Westmeath, Ireland. One of the earliest known bearers of this name was John Comiskey, who was born around 1550 in Westmeath. He was a landowner and is mentioned in the Fiants of Elizabeth I, which were official records of royal orders and grants during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England.

In the 17th century, the Comiskey family played a significant role in the Irish Rebellion of 1641. Patrick Comiskey, born around 1610 in Westmeath, was a prominent figure in the uprising against English rule. He served as a captain in the Irish Confederate forces and was later pardoned by Oliver Cromwell after the rebellion was suppressed.

Another notable Comiskey was Charles Comiskey, born in 1859 in Chicago, Illinois. He was a famous baseball player and team owner, best known for founding the Chicago White Sox franchise in 1901. Comiskey played as a talented infielder in the major leagues and later became a successful manager before establishing his own team.

In the literary world, Michael Comiskey, born in 1892 in County Westmeath, Ireland, was a renowned poet and author. He published several collections of poetry, including "Bread for the Wanderer" and "The Rag-Picker," which explored themes of Irish identity and the struggles of the working class.

Another prominent figure with the Comiskey surname was John Comiskey, born in 1845 in County Westmeath, Ireland. He was a successful businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of Chicago's infrastructure, including the construction of the Comiskey Park baseball stadium, which served as the home of the Chicago White Sox from 1910 to 1990.

While the Comiskey name has its roots in Ireland, it has spread to other parts of the world over the centuries, with families bearing this surname found in countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia. The name has also experienced various spelling variations, such as Comiskey, Comishe, and Comishey, but the core meaning and origins remain tied to its Irish heritage.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Comiskey

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

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 Comiskey was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.29% 1,470
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.77% 12
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.86% 29
Hispanic Origin 2.63% 41

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.29% 96.37% -2.18%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.77% 0.52% 38.76%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.86% 0.78% 81.82%
Hispanic 2.63% 1.95% 29.69%

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

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

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"Comiskey last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/comiskey-surname-popularity/.

"Comiskey last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/comiskey-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Comiskey last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/comiskey-surname-popularity/.

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