2000
#7,810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,928
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.46
Rare Last name
Heaney
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó hÉighnigh, meaning "descendant of Éighneach," a personal name meaning "bird-like" or "well-disposed."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,183 Americans carry the last name Heaney. That puts it at #8,632 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.22 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 81,940 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Heaney 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 Heaney with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.2K
1 in 81,940
Census rank
#8,632
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,648 bearers of the surname Heaney in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.22 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8632nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Heaney, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Heaney
The surname Heaney has its origins in Ireland, specifically in the province of Ulster. It is believed to have derived from the Irish Gaelic word "O'hInneirghe," which means "descendant of Inneirghe." Inneirghe was a personal name that may have originated from the Old Irish word "inneir," meaning "hostage" or "captive."
The Heaney surname first appeared in historical records in the 13th century, during the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland. It was primarily found in counties Derry and Antrim, where the family had established themselves as landowners and chieftains.
One of the earliest known references to the Heaney name can be found in the "Annals of the Four Masters," a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled by Franciscan monks in the 17th century. The annals mention a certain "O'hInneirghe" who was involved in a conflict with another clan in the year 1261.
In the 16th century, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the Heaney family played a significant role in the Nine Years' War, also known as the Tyrone Rebellion. Sir Hugh O'Heaney, born around 1550, was a prominent figure in this conflict, leading forces against the English.
Another notable Heaney was Patrick Heaney, a Catholic priest born in 1688 in County Derry. He was a prominent figure during the period of the Penal Laws, when Catholics faced discrimination and persecution in Ireland.
In more recent times, the most famous bearer of the Heaney surname was Seamus Heaney (1939-2013), an Irish poet, playwright, and lecturer. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1995 for his works, which explored themes of Irish nationalism, history, and the natural world.
Other notable individuals with the Heaney surname include Brian Heaney (born 1944), an Irish film director and screenwriter; Kathleen Heaney (1916-2004), an Irish-American actress; and Colm Heaney (born 1965), an Irish former Gaelic footballer.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Heaney
Among Census respondents with the surname Heaney, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Heaney 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 Heaney surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 3,373
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 129
- Two or more races2.5% · 92
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 25
- Black or African American0.7% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Heaney
Heaney 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
#7,888
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,197
+269 bearers (+6.8%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Down 78 places
2020
#8,632
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,648
-549 bearers (-13.1%)
Per 100,000 1.22
Rank movement Down 744 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,810 | 3,928 | 1.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,888 | 4,197 | 1.42 | +269 bearers (+6.8%) | Down 78 places |
| 2020 | #8,632 | 3,648 | 1.22 | -549 bearers (-13.1%) | Down 744 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 Heaney 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 | #7,888 | #8,632 | -9.4% |
| Count | 4,197 | 3,648 | -13.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.42 | 1.22 | -14.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Heaney bearers went from 4,197 to 3,648 (-13.1% change). The surname moved down 744 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,888 to #8,632.
FAQ
Heaney surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Heaney?
Name Census estimates that about 4,183 living Americans carry the surname Heaney. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 81,940 residents.
How common is Heaney?
Heaney ranks #8,632 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.22 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,648 people with the surname Heaney. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,183), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.22 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.22 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Heaney.
Has Heaney become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Heaney went from 4,197 recorded bearers to 3,648. That is a decrease of 549 (-13.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,888 to #8,632.
What does the Census say about the background of Heaney?
Among Census respondents with the surname Heaney, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Heaney in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (3,373 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Heaney appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Heaney (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 Heaney mean?
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó hÉighnigh, meaning "descendant of Éighneach," a personal name meaning "bird-like" or "well-disposed." 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 Heaney (1.22 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 Heaney?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.