2000
#1,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,710
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.94
Uncommon Last name
Cronin
Derived from the Irish surname Ó Cróinín, meaning "descendant of Crónín," a diminutive of Crón, meaning "saffron-colored."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,282 Americans carry the last name Cronin. That puts it at #1,899 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 16,105 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cronin surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Cronin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
21K
1 in 16,105
Census rank
#1,899
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,559 bearers of the surname Cronin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1899th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cronin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cronin
Among Census respondents with the surname Cronin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Cronin bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Cronin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 17,160
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 601
- Two or more races2.8% · 523
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 165
- Black or African American0.4% · 76
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 34
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cronin
Cronin appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#1,883
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,078
+368 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 6.47
Rank movement Down 127 places
2020
#1,899
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,559
-519 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 6.21
Rank movement Down 16 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,756 | 18,710 | 6.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,883 | 19,078 | 6.47 | +368 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 127 places |
| 2020 | #1,899 | 18,559 | 6.21 | -519 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 16 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Cronin surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,883 | #1,899 | -0.8% |
| Count | 19,078 | 18,559 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 6.47 | 6.21 | -4.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cronin bearers went from 19,078 to 18,559 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 16 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,883 to #1,899.
FAQ
Cronin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cronin?
Name Census estimates that about 21,282 living Americans carry the surname Cronin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 16,105 residents.
How common is Cronin?
Cronin ranks #1,899 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.21 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,559 people with the surname Cronin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,282), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.21 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Cronin.
Has Cronin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cronin went from 19,078 recorded bearers to 18,559. That is a decrease of 519 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,883 to #1,899.
What does the Census say about the background of Cronin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cronin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Cronin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (17,160 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cronin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (3.2%), Two or More Races (2.8%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Cronin (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Cronin mean?
Derived from the Irish surname Ó Cróinín, meaning "descendant of Crónín," a diminutive of Crón, meaning "saffron-colored." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Cronin (6.21 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Cronin?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Cronin at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.