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

Cronin, 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 Cronin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cronin in America

Cronin is the 1883rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cronin surname appeared 19,078 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Cronin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cronin 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 Cronin

The surname Cronin is of Irish origin and dates back to ancient Gaelic times. It is derived from the old Irish word "crónán" which means "little brown one" or "little tawny one." This was likely an original nickname referring to someone with reddish-brown hair or tanned complexion.

The name is also linked to the word "croine" meaning a brown woolen habit or cloak worn by monks. It's possible the surname arose as a descriptor for someone associated with monastic life in early medieval Ireland. The earliest recorded spelling variations include Cronyn, Cronine, Cronen, and Cronen.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Diarmaid O Cronin, chief of the O'Cronins of Muskerry, County Cork, who flourished in the 13th century. The Cronins were part of the Ui Floinn tribe and held territories near the River Blackwater in modern County Cork and County Kerry.

The Cronin name appears in various Irish annals and records from the 14th century onwards. For example, Donogh O'Cronyn is mentioned as witnessing a land grant in 1389. The 1659 Census of Ireland lists several Cronin households in counties like Cork, Kerry, and Limerick.

Notable historical figures with the Cronin surname include John Cronin (c.1508-1609), an Irish centenarian farmer from County Cork reputed to have lived to 107 years old. Father William Cronin (1826-1891) was a Catholic priest and writer from County Limerick. Jeremiah J. Cronin (1831-1904) was a U.S. Representative from Missouri in the late 1800s.

Other prominent Cronins were Australian politician Daniel Cronin (1853-1936), Irish novelist Michael Cronin (1904-1987), and Irish actors Donal Cronin (1923-1997) and Dermot Cronin (1925-2019). The Irish playwright and author Anthony Cronin (1928-2016) is another well-known bearer of this surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cronin

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

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

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

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