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

Ennis, 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 Ennis surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ennis in America

Ennis is the 2220th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ennis surname appeared 16,419 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Ennis.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ennis 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 Ennis

The surname Ennis has its origins in Ireland, where it first appeared around the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Irish Gaelic word "innis," which means "island" or "river meadow." This suggests that the name was likely given to someone who lived near or on an island or riverbank.

The name Ennis is particularly associated with County Clare in the west of Ireland, where the town of Ennis is located. This town dates back to the 13th century and was once an important center of trade and commerce. It's possible that the surname originated from this location and spread from there.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ennis can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. The annals mention an individual named Ennis O'Brien, who was a chieftain of the O'Brien clan in the 14th century.

In the 16th century, the name appears in the Fiants of the Tudor Monarchs, a collection of documents relating to Ireland during the reign of the Tudor dynasty. These records mention several individuals with the surname Ennis, including John Ennis, who was granted lands in County Longford in 1591.

One notable bearer of the name Ennis was Sir Walter Ennis (1565-1625), an Irish soldier and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for County Down in the early 17th century. Another was Sir John Ennis (1614-1683), an Irish judge and politician who served as Lord Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas.

In the 18th century, the name Ennis was associated with the Irish diaspora, as many individuals with this surname emigrated to other parts of the world, particularly the United States and Canada. For example, James Ennis (1760-1820) was an Irish immigrant to Pennsylvania who became a successful merchant and landowner.

Other notable individuals with the surname Ennis include the British actor Wilfred Ennis (1884-1967), known for his roles in films such as "The Winslow Boy" and "The Lady Vanishes," and the American baseball player Del Ennis (1925-1996), who played for the Philadelphia Phillies and the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1940s and 1950s.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ennis

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

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

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

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