2000
#134,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Cuilty
An Irish surname derived from the Old Irish word "cuilche", meaning an angle or corner.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Cuilty. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cuilty 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.
Bearers in the US
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Cuilty in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cuilty, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 58.1%. The next largest groups are White (36.8%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cuilty
The surname Cuilty has its origins in Ireland, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be an Anglicized form of the old Irish Gaelic name Ó Cuilidhe, which means "descendant of Cuilidhe." The name Cuilidhe itself comes from the Irish word "cuile," meaning "angle" or "corner."
Cuilty was primarily found in the counties of Leitrim and Sligo, where the family held lands and properties. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Fiants of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth I, where a John O'Cuilty is mentioned in connection with land transactions in County Sligo in the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, many Irish families, including the Cuiltys, were dispossessed of their lands and forced to relocate to other parts of the country. This led to the spread of the name to other regions, particularly in the northern counties of Ulster.
Notable individuals with the surname Cuilty throughout history include:
1. Patrick Cuilty (c. 1660 - 1720), an Irish Catholic priest who served as the Bishop of Raphoe from 1713 until his death.
2. Terence Cuilty (1828 - 1901), an Irish politician who served as a Member of Parliament for the constituency of Sligo County from 1880 to 1885.
3. Bridget Cuilty (1856 - 1932), an Irish-born American philanthropist and activist who founded several orphanages and shelters for women and children in New York City.
4. Michael Cuilty (1879 - 1958), an Irish-born Australian actor and theater producer who was influential in the development of Australian theater in the early 20th century.
5. Seán Cuilty (1917 - 1998), an Irish writer and poet who was a prominent figure in the Irish literary scene during the mid-20th century.
While the surname Cuilty is not among the most common Irish surnames, it has a rich history and cultural significance, tracing its roots back to the ancient Gaelic names and the Irish counties where the family was originally based.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cuilty
Among Census respondents with the surname Cuilty, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 58.1%. The next largest groups are White (36.8%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Cuilty 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 Cuilty surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino58.1% · 68
- White36.8% · 43
- Two or more races5.1% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cuilty
Cuilty 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,071 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,162 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,037 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 8,071 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 2,162 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 Cuilty 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 | #142,108 | #144,270 | -1.5% |
| Count | 117 | 117 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cuilty bearers went from 117 to 117 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 2,162 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #144,270.
FAQ
Cuilty surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cuilty?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Cuilty. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Cuilty?
Cuilty ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 117 people with the surname Cuilty. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Cuilty.
Has Cuilty become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cuilty went from 117 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Cuilty?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cuilty, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 58.1%. The next largest groups are White (36.8%) and Two or More Races (5.1%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Cuilty in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.1% (68 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cuilty appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (58.1%), White (36.8%), Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Cuilty (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 Cuilty mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Old Irish word "cuilche", meaning an angle or corner. 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 Cuilty (0.04 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 have the surname Cuilty?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.