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

Costello, 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 Costello surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Costello in America

Costello is the 1093rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Costello surname appeared 32,043 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 11 people would have the surname Costello.

We can also compare 2010 data for Costello 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 Costello

The surname Costello originated in Ireland and is derived from the Gaelic words "Cos" meaning victory and "Talamh" meaning land or territory. It is an anglicized version of the Irish name "O'Costalaimh" or "O'Costello."

The earliest recorded instances of the surname date back to the 12th century, with the O'Costello clan being based in County Mayo, Ireland. They were a prominent family and held significant influence in the region during the medieval period.

One of the earliest references to the name can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. The text mentions the O'Costello clan and their involvement in various battles and conflicts.

In the 14th century, the surname appears in the Pipe Roll of Cloyne, an administrative record from County Cork. This document lists individuals with the surname Costello living in the area during that time.

Notable historical figures with the surname Costello include:

1. Ambrose Costello (c. 1590 - 1637), an Irish Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Clonfert and Kilmacduagh in the early 17th century.

2. Thomas Costello (1766 - 1853), an Irish-born Australian explorer and surveyor who played a significant role in the early exploration of eastern Australia.

3. John Costello (1835 - 1916), an Irish-American politician who served as the 17th Mayor of Syracuse, New York, from 1893 to 1895.

4. John Austin Costello (1891 - 1976), an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as the Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland from 1948 to 1951.

5. Elvis Costello (born 1954), an English singer-songwriter and record producer, known for his influential contributions to the punk and new wave genres.

While the surname originated in Ireland, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to emigration and diaspora. The name has also undergone various spelling variations over time, such as Costelloe, Costellow, and Costelow.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Costello

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

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

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

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