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

Flanigan, 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 Flanigan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Flanigan in America

Flanigan is the 4640th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Flanigan surname appeared 7,648 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Flanigan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Flanigan 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 Flanigan

The surname Flanigan is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic name 'O'Flannagain', meaning 'descendant of Flannagan'. The name is believed to have originated in the 9th or 10th century in County Tipperary, Ireland.

The name 'Flannagan' is thought to be derived from the Irish word 'flann', meaning 'red' or 'ruddy', and the diminutive suffix '-agan', indicating a small or young person. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to a person with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Flanigan appears in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which mentions a 'Flannagan Mac Brolchain' in the year 1086. This indicates that the name was in use in Ireland during the late 11th century.

In the 16th century, the name Flanigan is found in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of royal letters and decrees relating to Ireland. A 'Donough Flanigan' is mentioned in a document from 1584, indicating the presence of the name in County Tipperary at that time.

During the 17th century, the name Flanigan appears in various Irish records, including the Petty Census of 1659, which lists several Flanigan families in County Tipperary. This suggests that the name was well-established in that region by that period.

Notable individuals with the surname Flanigan throughout history include:

1. Michael Flanigan (1832-1904), an Irish-American Civil War veteran and politician who served as a member of the New York State Assembly.

2. Patrick Flanigan (1834-1899), an Irish-born American Catholic priest and educator who served as the second president of St. John's University in New York.

3. John Flanigan (1806-1885), an Irish-born American businessman and politician who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.

4. Thomas Flanigan (1841-1915), an Irish-born American Catholic priest and educator who served as the first president of St. Viator College in Illinois.

5. William Flanigan (1804-1888), an Irish-born American soldier and politician who served as a member of the Illinois State Senate.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Flanigan

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Flanigan, 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!