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

Egans, 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 Egans surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Egans in America

Egans is the 116829th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Egans surname appeared 149 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 Egans.

We can also compare 2010 data for Egans 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 Egans

The surname Egans has its origins in Ireland, dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Irish Gaelic name "Ó hÉigín," which means "descendant of Éigín." This name was first found in the counties of Cork and Kerry in the southern region of Ireland.

The Egans were a prominent clan in the area of Muskerry in County Cork, where they held lands and positions of power. One of the earliest recorded references to the name can be found in the "Annals of the Four Masters," a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century.

In the 14th century, a branch of the Egan family settled in County Tipperary, where they became known as the "Egans of Redwood." This branch produced several notable figures, including Sir John Egan, who was a member of the Irish Parliament in the 16th century.

Another notable Egan was Edmond Egan, born in 1572, who was a Catholic bishop and served as the Archbishop of Tuam from 1609 until his death in 1629. He played a significant role in the Counter-Reformation in Ireland.

The Egans were also present in the Irish Rebellion of 1641, which aimed to overthrow English rule in Ireland. One prominent member of the family during this time was Redmond Egan, who was a leader of the Confederate Catholic forces in County Cork.

In the late 17th century, many Egans were forced to leave Ireland due to the Penal Laws, which discriminated against Catholics. Several members of the family found refuge in France, where they served in the Irish Brigades of the French Army.

One of the most famous Egans in history was Philemon Egan, born in 1708, who was an Irish-born French military officer. He served in the French Army and fought in several battles during the War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Years' War.

Another notable figure was Maurice Francis Egan, born in 1852, who was an American author, diplomat, and educator. He served as the United States Minister to Denmark from 1907 to 1918 and was a prolific writer, publishing numerous works of fiction, poetry, and literary criticism.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Egans

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

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

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

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