2000
#5,850
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,420
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.01
Rare Last name
Eagan
Derived from the Irish surname Mac Aodhagáin, meaning "descendant of Aodhagán," a personal name meaning "little fire."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,885 Americans carry the last name Eagan. That puts it at #6,372 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 58,242 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Eagan 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 Eagan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.9K
1 in 58,242
Census rank
#6,372
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,132 bearers of the surname Eagan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6372nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Eagan, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Eagan
The surname Eagan originated in Ireland and is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name "O'hAodhagain". It is believed to have derived from the personal name "Aodh", which means "fire" in Irish, combined with the diminutive suffix "agan".
The earliest recorded instances of the name Eagan can be found in various Irish annals and records dating back to the 16th century. One notable mention is in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century, where the name is spelled as "O'hAodhagain".
The Eagan surname was predominantly found in the counties of Mayo and Sligo in the west of Ireland. The name is also associated with the Irish clans of O'Shaughnessy and O'Heyne, which were prominent in the region.
In the 17th century, during the English conquest of Ireland, many Irish families anglicized their surnames to sound more English. This led to the emergence of various spellings of the name, such as Egan, Eagan, Eaghan, and Eghan.
Notable individuals with the surname Eagan throughout history include:
1. Maurice Eagan (1773-1828), an Irish-born American merchant and politician who served as the 13th Mayor of New York City from 1805 to 1807.
2. John Eagan (1796-1888), an Irish-born American Catholic priest and politician who served as the first Bishop of the Diocese of Marquette, Michigan.
3. Charles Patrick Eagan (1841-1919), an American civil engineer and soldier who served as a Union Army officer during the American Civil War.
4. Eugene Eagan (1879-1954), an American actor and film director active during the silent film era of Hollywood.
5. Kathleen Eagan (1908-1968), an American stage and film actress known for her roles in several Broadway productions and Hollywood movies in the 1930s and 1940s.
The Eagan surname has also been associated with various place names, particularly in Ireland, such as Eaganville, a small village in County Mayo.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Eagan
Among Census respondents with the surname Eagan, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Eagan 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 Eagan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 4,641
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 183
- Two or more races2.8% · 145
- Black or African American1.8% · 92
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 56
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Eagan
Eagan 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
#6,190
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,528
+108 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.87
Rank movement Down 340 places
2020
#6,372
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,132
-396 bearers (-7.2%)
Per 100,000 1.72
Rank movement Down 182 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,850 | 5,420 | 2.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,190 | 5,528 | 1.87 | +108 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 340 places |
| 2020 | #6,372 | 5,132 | 1.72 | -396 bearers (-7.2%) | Down 182 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 Eagan 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 | #6,190 | #6,372 | -2.9% |
| Count | 5,528 | 5,132 | -7.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.87 | 1.72 | -8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Eagan bearers went from 5,528 to 5,132 (-7.2% change). The surname moved down 182 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,190 to #6,372.
FAQ
Eagan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Eagan?
Name Census estimates that about 5,885 living Americans carry the surname Eagan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 58,242 residents.
How common is Eagan?
Eagan ranks #6,372 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.72 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,132 people with the surname Eagan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,885), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.72 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.72 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Eagan.
Has Eagan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Eagan went from 5,528 recorded bearers to 5,132. That is a decrease of 396 (-7.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,190 to #6,372.
What does the Census say about the background of Eagan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Eagan, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) 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 Eagan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (4,641 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Eagan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Hispanic (3.6%), 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 Eagan (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 Eagan mean?
Derived from the Irish surname Mac Aodhagáin, meaning "descendant of Aodhagán," a personal name meaning "little fire." 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 Eagan (1.72 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 Eagan?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.