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

Gallaher, 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 Gallaher surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gallaher in America

Gallaher is the 7885th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gallaher surname appeared 4,198 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Gallaher.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gallaher 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 Gallaher

The surname Gallaher has its origins in Ireland, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be an Anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Gallchobhair, which means "descendant of the foreign-assistance." This name likely referred to an ancestor who provided assistance to foreigners or outsiders.

The name is thought to have originated in County Donegal, a region in the northwest of Ireland. Some early spellings of the name include Gallagher, Gallacher, and Gallocher. These variations reflect the various ways the name was recorded and pronounced by English-speaking officials and scribes.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gallaher can be found in the Fiants of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, a collection of Irish administrative records from the late 16th century. In these records, a man named John Gallaher is mentioned as a landholder in County Donegal in 1598.

In the 17th century, the name appears in the Hearth Money Rolls, a tax record that listed households in Ireland. Several Gallaher families are recorded as living in County Donegal during this period.

A notable figure with the surname Gallaher was Sir William Gallaher, a member of the Irish Parliament in the late 17th century. He was born in County Donegal in 1655 and played a role in the Williamite Wars, supporting the ascension of William III to the throne of England.

Another individual of note was Patrick Gallaher, an Irish Catholic priest and author who lived in the early 18th century. He wrote several works on theology and philosophy, including a treatise on the nature of the soul published in 1721.

In the 19th century, the name Gallaher appeared in various records and literature. One example is the novel "The Gallaher Family" by Irish writer Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, published in 1868. The book is set in County Donegal and features characters with the Gallaher surname.

As the Irish diaspora spread throughout the world, the name Gallaher traveled with them. In the United States, for instance, a notable figure was Nicholas Gallaher, an American politician and soldier who served in the Revolutionary War. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1747 and later became a member of the Virginia House of Delegates.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gallaher

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

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

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

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