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

Finneran, 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 Finneran surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Finneran in America

Finneran is the 21509th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Finneran surname appeared 1,214 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 Finneran.

We can also compare 2010 data for Finneran 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 Finneran

The surname Finneran is of Irish origin and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name Ó Finnáráin, which means "descendant of Finnán." The name Finnán is derived from the Gaelic word "finn," meaning fair or white, and the diminutive suffix "-án."

This surname was first found in County Sligo, where the Ó Finnáráin clan was based. The family held territories near the town of Ballymote in the baronies of Corran and Leyny. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a 17th-century chronicle of medieval Irish history.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the Finneran surname is Donatus Finneran, who was born in County Sligo around 1540. He was a prominent figure in the Irish campaigns against the English forces during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

In the 17th century, the name appeared in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of records of grants and patents issued by the English government in Ireland. One entry from 1622 mentions a "John Fynneren" of County Sligo.

During the 18th century, the Finnerans were among the Irish Catholic families who faced persecution and discrimination under the Penal Laws. Many were forced to Anglicize their names or leave Ireland in search of better opportunities.

Notable Finnerans throughout history include:

1. Michael Finneran (1735-1803), an Irish-born soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Pennsylvania.
2. William Finneran (1822-1891), an Irish-born journalist and politician in Wisconsin, United States.
3. Joseph Finneran (1861-1939), an Irish-American labor leader and politician in Massachusetts.
4. Mary Finneran (1880-1972), an Irish writer and poet from County Sligo.
5. John Finneran (1903-1972), an Irish-American actor who appeared in numerous Hollywood films in the 1940s and 1950s.

The Finneran surname has also been found in various place names, such as Finnerantown and Finnernagh, reflecting the historical presence of the Ó Finnáráin clan in certain regions of Ireland.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Finneran

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

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

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

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