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

Flanagan, 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 Flanagan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Flanagan in America

Flanagan is the 1134th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Flanagan surname appeared 30,887 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 10 people would have the surname Flanagan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Flanagan 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 Flanagan

The surname Flanagan is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic Ó Flannagáin, meaning "descendant of Flannagán". Flannagán is a diminutive form of the personal name Flann, which means "red" or "ruddy".

The Flanagans were initially concentrated in the province of Connacht, particularly in counties Galway and Roscommon. The name can be traced back to the 11th century and is associated with the Síl Muireadaigh, a powerful family that ruled over parts of Connacht.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. In 1256, the annals reference a figure named Donnchadh Ó Flannagáin, a member of the Síl Muireadaigh dynasty.

In the 14th century, the Flanagans were among the leading families in the territory of Uí Maine, located in modern-day County Galway. The name appears in various records from this period, including the Annals of Loch Cé and the Register of the Priory of Athenry.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname was Malachy Flanagan (c. 1510 - c. 1590), a Catholic priest and historian from County Galway. He is best known for his work, Desiderius Hibernicus, which documented the lives of Irish saints.

Another prominent figure was Sir John Flanagan (c. 1579 - 1644), an Irish soldier who served in the Spanish Army of Flanders during the Eighty Years' War. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant-General and was knighted for his military service.

In the 17th century, the Flanagans were among the families transplanted to the province of Connacht during the Cromwellian Settlement. Many of them settled in County Roscommon, where the name remains prevalent today.

One of the most famous Flanagans was Michael Joseph Flanagan (1824 - 1886), an Irish Catholic priest and educator. He founded the Flanagan Industrial School in Omaha, Nebraska, which provided vocational training and education for Native American children.

Another notable individual was Reverend William Flanagan (1836 - 1925), an Irish-born Catholic priest who served as the first Bishop of the Diocese of Juneau, Alaska. He played a crucial role in establishing the Catholic Church in Alaska during the late 19th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Flanagan

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!