2000
#2,625
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,641
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.69
Uncommon Last name
Guinn
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Mac Fhionn, meaning "son of Fionn," derived from "fionn" (fair or white).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,992 Americans carry the last name Guinn. That puts it at #2,878 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 24,496 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Guinn surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Guinn with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
14K
1 in 24,496
Census rank
#2,878
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 12,202 bearers of the surname Guinn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2878th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Guinn, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.0%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Guinn
The surname Guinn originated in Ireland and traces its roots back to the ancient Gaelic name Ó Cuinn, meaning "descendant of Conn." Conn was a legendary high king of Ireland who ruled in the 2nd century AD. The name is derived from the Irish word "conn," meaning "chief" or "leader."
The earliest recorded instances of the name Guinn can be found in medieval Irish annals and genealogical manuscripts. One notable entry is in the Annals of Ulster, which mentions a "Gilla-Críst Ó Cuinn" in the year 1202. This suggests that the surname had already become established by the 12th century.
In the 16th century, the surname Guinn was primarily found in counties Galway and Roscommon in the province of Connacht. During this period, the anglicized spelling "Guinn" began to emerge, as the Irish language was suppressed and English became more prevalent.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Sir Patrick Guinn, a prominent landowner and member of the Irish Parliament in the late 16th century. Another notable figure was John Guinn, a Catholic priest who was executed for his faith during the English Reformation in 1642.
In the 17th century, many Irish families, including those with the surname Guinn, were displaced from their ancestral lands during the Plantation of Ulster and the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. This led to the spread of the name to other parts of Ireland and beyond.
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, the Guinn surname can be found in various records across Ireland, including birth, marriage, and death registers. Some notable individuals from this period include Michael Guinn (1745-1823), a Catholic priest and writer, and Patrick Guinn (1798-1872), a noted Catholic educator and founder of several schools in Dublin.
As Irish emigration increased in the 19th century, the surname Guinn began to appear in records in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia. Among those who emigrated was James Guinn (1841-1917), a prominent businessman and politician in Kansas, United States.
Other notable individuals with the surname Guinn throughout history include John Guinn (1592-1668), an English clergyman and author, and Vincent Guinn (1926-2017), an American actor and playwright.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Guinn
Among Census respondents with the surname Guinn, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.0%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Guinn bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Guinn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.4% · 9,571
- Black or African American10.0% · 1,220
- Two or more races5.6% · 680
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 416
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 223
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 92
Timeline
Historical Census data for Guinn
Guinn appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#2,868
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,577
-64 bearers (-0.5%)
Per 100,000 4.26
Rank movement Down 243 places
2020
#2,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,202
-375 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 4.08
Rank movement Down 10 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,625 | 12,641 | 4.69 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,868 | 12,577 | 4.26 | -64 bearers (-0.5%) | Down 243 places |
| 2020 | #2,878 | 12,202 | 4.08 | -375 bearers (-3.0%) | Down 10 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Guinn surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,868 | #2,878 | -0.3% |
| Count | 12,577 | 12,202 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 4.26 | 4.08 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Guinn bearers went from 12,577 to 12,202 (-3.0% change). The surname moved down 10 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,868 to #2,878.
FAQ
Guinn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Guinn?
Name Census estimates that about 13,992 living Americans carry the surname Guinn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 24,496 residents.
How common is Guinn?
Guinn ranks #2,878 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.08 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 12,202 people with the surname Guinn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,992), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.08 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Guinn.
Has Guinn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Guinn went from 12,577 recorded bearers to 12,202. That is a decrease of 375 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,868 to #2,878.
What does the Census say about the background of Guinn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Guinn, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.0%) and Two or More Races (5.6%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Guinn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.4% (9,571 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Guinn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.4%), Black (10.0%), Two or More Races (5.6%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Guinn (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Guinn mean?
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Mac Fhionn, meaning "son of Fionn," derived from "fionn" (fair or white). The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Guinn (4.08 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Guinn?
Find out how many people have the last name Guinn on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.