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

Galligan, 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 Galligan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Galligan in America

Galligan is the 8938th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Galligan surname appeared 3,663 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 Galligan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Galligan 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 Galligan

The surname Galligan has its origins in Ireland, where it first appeared in the late 16th or early 17th century. The name is believed to be a variant of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Gallchobhair, which means "descendant of Gallchobhair." Gallchobhair is a personal name derived from the Gaelic words "gall," meaning "foreigner" or "stranger," and "cobhair," meaning "help" or "aid."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Galligan surname can be found in the Fiants of the Reign of Elizabeth I, a collection of Irish government records from the late 16th century. The name is also mentioned in various land and tax records from the 17th and 18th centuries in counties such as Mayo, Sligo, and Roscommon.

The Galligan surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded examples is Terence Galligan (c. 1640-1720), an Irish Catholic priest and historian who wrote extensively about the Irish Confederate Wars of the 1640s.

Another prominent figure was John Galligan (1829-1904), an Irish-born Australian politician who served as a member of the Victorian Legislative Council and was instrumental in the establishment of the Catholic Diocese of Ballarat.

In the United States, Michael J. Galligan (1847-1916) was a notable figure who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and as a judge in Milwaukee County. Additionally, Cornelius Galligan (1840-1908) was an Irish-American politician who served as a member of the New York State Assembly and as the first Roman Catholic Sheriff of New York County.

The Galligan surname has also been associated with several place names in Ireland, including Galligan's Cross in County Mayo and Galligan's Hill in County Roscommon. These place names likely originated from families or individuals bearing the Galligan surname who lived or owned land in those areas.

Throughout its history, the Galligan surname has undergone various spelling variations, such as Galigan, Gallegan, and Gallighan, reflecting regional dialects and the evolution of language over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Galligan

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

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

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

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