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

Holleran, 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 Holleran surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Holleran in America

Holleran is the 14328th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Holleran surname appeared 2,089 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 Holleran.

We can also compare 2010 data for Holleran 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 Holleran

The surname Holleran originates from Ireland, specifically in the counties of Cork and Kerry. It dates back to the 12th century when it was derived from the Gaelic words "O'Laoghaire," meaning "descendant of the calf keeper." The name evolved through various spellings like O'Loughran, O'Lougherin, and Loughran before settling on Holleran in the 18th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 15th century. It mentions an O'Laoghaire chieftain who ruled over a territory in what is now County Cork.

In the 16th century, the Hollerans were among the prominent families in the Barony of Duhallow, a historical territory in northwestern County Cork. Some notable figures from this era include Donough Holleran, a landowner and member of the Irish gentry, and Fineen Holleran, a respected Gaelic poet.

During the 17th century, many Hollerans were forced to change the spelling of their name due to the suppression of Irish culture and language under English rule. This led to variations like Hollaren and Holleran gaining prominence.

In the 19th century, a famous Holleran was John Holleran (1795-1872), a Catholic priest and educator who established several schools in Ireland and worked tirelessly to promote education among the poor.

Another noteworthy individual was Mary Holleran (1827-1905), a nun who founded the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Mary, a religious order dedicated to education and social work.

Patrick Holleran (1865-1946), a politician and businessman, served as a member of the British Parliament for the constituency of North Cork from 1900 to 1918.

In the 20th century, James Holleran (1903-1987) was a prominent Irish-American lawyer and judge who served as a justice on the New York State Supreme Court for over two decades.

Finally, Michael Holleran (1938-2021) was a renowned American author and academic, best known for his novels exploring LGBTQ themes and experiences.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Holleran

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

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

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

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