2000
#5,866
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,405
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.00
Rare Last name
Hagerty
An Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó hÉigceartaigh, meaning "descendant of Éigceartach" (a personal name meaning "unjust").
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,166 Americans carry the last name Hagerty. That puts it at #6,110 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 55,588 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hagerty 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 Hagerty with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.2K
1 in 55,588
Census rank
#6,110
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,377 bearers of the surname Hagerty in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6110th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hagerty, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hagerty
The surname Hagerty has its origins in the Gaelic language of Ireland, where it is thought to have emerged as a variant of the much more common Irish surname Haggerty. This name is believed to be derived from the Irish Gaelic words "Oigeir" meaning "insolent" or "rude," and the suffix "tach" meaning "one who possesses certain characteristics."
The earliest recorded instances of the Hagerty name appear in various Irish records and manuscripts from the 16th and 17th centuries. One notable example is found in the Annals of the Four Masters, which mentions a Dermot O'Hagerty who was killed in a battle in 1592. Another early reference is in the 1659 Census of Ireland, which lists several Hagerty families residing in County Mayo.
As the name spread throughout Ireland, various spellings emerged, including Hagarty, Haggarty, and Hegerty. Many of these variations were likely influenced by the regional accents and dialects of different parts of the country. Some of the earliest known bearers of the Hagerty name include John Hagerty, born in County Galway in 1650, and Patrick Hagerty, a merchant from Dublin who lived in the late 17th century.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Hagerty name began to appear more frequently in historical records, as Irish immigrants settled in various parts of the world. One notable figure was James Hagerty (1798-1876), an Irish-American politician who served as the Mayor of Philadelphia from 1857 to 1858. Another was Thomas Hagerty (1826-1905), a prominent businessman and landowner in County Westmeath, Ireland.
As the Hagerty name spread beyond Ireland, it also became associated with certain place names and geographic locations. For example, there is a small village called Hagerty in County Sligo, Ireland, which may have been named after a local family or landowner. Similarly, the town of Hagerty Township in Michigan, United States, was likely named after one of the early Irish settlers in the area.
Other notable individuals with the Hagerty surname include William Hagerty (1868-1944), an Irish-American politician and lawyer who served as the Mayor of Seattle, Washington, and James Byrne Hagerty (1909-1981), a prominent American journalist and press secretary to President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hagerty
Among Census respondents with the surname Hagerty, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Hagerty 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 Hagerty surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.1% · 4,900
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 217
- Two or more races2.9% · 155
- Black or African American0.9% · 46
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hagerty
Hagerty 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
#5,983
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,750
+345 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 1.95
Rank movement Down 117 places
2020
#6,110
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,377
-373 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 1.80
Rank movement Down 127 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,866 | 5,405 | 2.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,983 | 5,750 | 1.95 | +345 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 117 places |
| 2020 | #6,110 | 5,377 | 1.80 | -373 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 127 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 Hagerty 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 | #5,983 | #6,110 | -2.1% |
| Count | 5,750 | 5,377 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.95 | 1.80 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hagerty bearers went from 5,750 to 5,377 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 127 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,983 to #6,110.
FAQ
Hagerty surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hagerty?
Name Census estimates that about 6,166 living Americans carry the surname Hagerty. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 55,588 residents.
How common is Hagerty?
Hagerty ranks #6,110 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.80 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,377 people with the surname Hagerty. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,166), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.80 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Hagerty.
Has Hagerty become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hagerty went from 5,750 recorded bearers to 5,377. That is a decrease of 373 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,983 to #6,110.
What does the Census say about the background of Hagerty?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hagerty, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Hagerty in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.1% (4,900 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hagerty appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.1%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Hagerty (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 Hagerty mean?
An Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó hÉigceartaigh, meaning "descendant of Éigceartach" (a personal name meaning "unjust"). 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 Hagerty (1.80 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 many people have the surname Hagerty?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.