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

Doheny, 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 Doheny surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Doheny in America

Doheny is the 25083rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Doheny surname appeared 990 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 Doheny.

We can also compare 2010 data for Doheny 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 Doheny

The surname Doheny is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic Ó Dochartaigh, which translates to "descendant of Dochartach." Dochartach was a personal name that meant "obstructive" or "difficult." The name originated in County Donegal, Ireland, during the medieval period.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century. The annals mention several members of the Ó Dochartaigh family, including Niall Ó Dochartaigh, who was killed in 1395.

As the Ó Dochartaigh family spread throughout Ireland, the name underwent various spelling changes, including Doherty, Daugherty, and eventually Doheny. The variation Doheny became more prevalent among Irish immigrants to the United States in the 19th century.

One of the most notable figures with the surname Doheny was Edward L. Doheny (1856-1935), an American oil tycoon and businessman. He founded the Pan American Petroleum and Transport Company and played a significant role in the development of the oil industry in California.

Another prominent individual was William Doheny (1857-1919), a Canadian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Canadian House of Commons and the Senate of Canada.

In the literary world, Michael Doheny (1805-1863) was an Irish poet, journalist, and revolutionary who participated in the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848.

Father Peter Doheny (1862-1934) was an Irish Catholic priest and educator who founded Doheny Memorial Library at the University of Southern California.

Lastly, John Doheny (1904-1967) was an American professional baseball player who played as an outfielder for the New York Giants and the Boston Braves in the 1920s and 1930s.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Doheny

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

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

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

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