Conlin last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Conlin

An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Caoindealbháin," meaning "descendant of Caoindealbhán," a personal name meaning "fair-shaped."

Conlin, 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 Conlin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Conlin in America

Conlin is the 7542nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Conlin surname appeared 4,409 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 Conlin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Conlin 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 7542 7299 3.27%
Count 4,409 4,210 4.62%
Proportion per 100k 1.49 1.56 -4.59%

The history of the last name Conlin

The surname Conlin is of Irish origin, tracing its roots back to the 7th century. It is an Anglicized version of the Gaelic name O'Conallan or O'Conaleen, which means "descendant of the wolf." The name is believed to have originated in County Galway, where it was common among families in the region.

Historically, the name Conlin has been recorded in various forms, including Conallan, Conlan, and Connollan. One of the earliest documented instances of the name appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. It mentions a figure named Conallan, who was a leader of the Uí Fiachrach Aidne clan in the 8th century.

In the 11th century, the Conlin name was associated with a notable family in County Mayo. Records from this time indicate that a prominent figure named Conallan O'Conallan held a significant position within the local community. Additionally, the name is found in the Pipe Rolls of Cloyne, a collection of administrative records from the 13th century, which mentions a person named Richard Conlyne.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Conlin surname in its modern spelling can be traced back to the 16th century. In 1543, a document from the Chancery Rolls in Ireland mentions a person named John Conlyn. Another notable figure from this era was Robert Conlin, a landowner and merchant from County Antrim, who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.

Throughout history, several individuals with the Conlin surname have gained recognition in various fields. One notable example is John Conlin (1803-1888), an Irish-born American Catholic priest who served as the first Bishop of Milwaukee. Another prominent figure was William Conlin (1866-1940), an American journalist and newspaper editor who worked for the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin.

In the realm of literature, Francis Conlin (1891-1969) was an Irish-born American author and academic who wrote extensively on Irish literature and culture. Additionally, John Conlin (1927-2012) was a renowned American composer and music educator, best known for his contributions to choral music.

The Conlin name has also been associated with notable figures in sports. For instance, Jesse Conlin (born 1986) is an American professional baseball player who has played for several Major League Baseball teams, including the Oakland Athletics and the Houston Astros.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Conlin

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

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 Conlin was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 96.12% 4,238
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.34% 15
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.59% 26
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.18% 8
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.88% 39
Hispanic Origin 1.88% 83

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 96.12% 96.96% -0.87%
Black 0.34% 0.17% 66.67%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.59% 0.45% 26.92%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.18% 0.29% -46.81%
Two or More Races 0.88% 0.90% -2.25%
Hispanic 1.88% 1.24% 41.03%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Conlin last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/conlin-surname-popularity/.

"Conlin last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/conlin-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

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

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