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

Culligan, 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 Culligan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Culligan in America

Culligan is the 21403rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Culligan surname appeared 1,222 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Culligan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Culligan 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 Culligan

The surname Culligan originates from Ireland. It is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name O'Cuileagain, which means "descendant of Cuileagan". Cuileagan is a diminutive form of the word "cuile", meaning "fly". The name likely originated as a nickname for an individual who was considered annoying or bothersome, similar to a fly.

The earliest known recorded instance of the name dates back to the 16th century. In 1591, a document from County Cork mentioned a James O'Cuileagain. The name was also found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a historical chronicle written in the early 17th century, mentioning a Tuathal O'Cuileagain who was a member of the Clan O'Driscoll.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name was anglicized to various spellings, such as Cullinan, Culligan, and Cullinane. One notable individual from this period was John Cullinane (1753-1828), an Irish Catholic priest and historian who wrote extensively about the history of County Cork.

In the 19th century, the surname Culligan began to appear more frequently in records. John Culligan (1823-1895) was an Irish-American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Culligan Water Treatment Company in the United States. Another notable figure was Patrick Culligan (1842-1914), an Irish politician and Member of Parliament for Kilkenny City.

Other notable individuals with the surname Culligan include:

1. Mathew Culligan (1865-1935), an Irish-American prelate who served as Bishop of Fall River, Massachusetts.
2. Joseph Culligan (1905-1980), an American businessman who served as the CEO of the Culligan Water Treatment Company.
3. Gert Culligan (1939-2016), an American actress best known for her role in the television series "The Waltons".
4. Colum Culligan (born 1985), an Irish professional golfer who has competed on the European Tour.
5. James Culligan (1936-2019), an Irish-American lawyer and judge who served as a Justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court.

The Culligan surname continues to be predominantly found in Ireland, particularly in County Cork and County Kerry, as well as among Irish diaspora communities around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Culligan

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

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

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

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