2000
#3,216
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,182
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.77
Uncommon Last name
Horan
A surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic Ó hOdhárain, meaning "descendant of Odhárán" (a personal name meaning "pale little green one").
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,355 Americans carry the last name Horan. That puts it at #3,514 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 30,185 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Horan 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 Horan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 30,185
Census rank
#3,514
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.9K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,902 bearers of the surname Horan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3514th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Horan, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Horan
The surname Horan has its origins in Ireland, with records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to be an anglicized version of the Gaelic name Ó hÓráin, which means "descendant of Órán." Órán is thought to be a personal name derived from the Old Irish word "ór," meaning "pale" or "golden."
The Horan name is most commonly associated with County Mayo in the west of Ireland, where many bearers of the name lived in the baronies of Erris and Gallen. Some early records of the name can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Horan surname is in the Pipe Roll of Cloyne from 1276, which mentions a "David O'Horan." This document, related to the Diocese of Cloyne in County Cork, suggests the name's presence in other parts of Ireland as well.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Horan name appeared in various records, such as the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns and the Irish Monastic Register. Notable individuals from this time period include Dermot O'Horan, a 16th-century Bishop of Kilmacduagh, and Edmond O'Horan, a 17th-century Franciscan friar and historian.
In the 19th century, several prominent figures bore the Horan surname. James Horan (1798-1876) was an Irish Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Kingston in Canada. James Horan (1845-1923) was a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, representing the constituency of Tipperary from 1885 to 1900.
Other notable individuals with the Horan surname include John P. Horan (1826-1900), an American Civil War general and politician from Missouri, and Seán Horan (1901-1988), an Irish Republican Army officer and politician who served as a Teachta Dála (Member of Parliament) in the 1920s.
While the Horan name has its roots in Ireland, it has since spread to other parts of the world through emigration. However, its origins and historical significance remain deeply rooted in the Irish tradition and culture.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Horan
Among Census respondents with the surname Horan, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Horan 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 Horan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 9,125
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 415
- Two or more races2.2% · 217
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 70
- Black or African American0.6% · 62
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Horan
Horan 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
#3,345
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,711
+529 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 3.63
Rank movement Down 129 places
2020
#3,514
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,902
-809 bearers (-7.6%)
Per 100,000 3.31
Rank movement Down 169 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,216 | 10,182 | 3.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,345 | 10,711 | 3.63 | +529 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 129 places |
| 2020 | #3,514 | 9,902 | 3.31 | -809 bearers (-7.6%) | Down 169 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 Horan 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 | #3,345 | #3,514 | -5.1% |
| Count | 10,711 | 9,902 | -7.6% |
| Per 100K | 3.63 | 3.31 | -8.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Horan bearers went from 10,711 to 9,902 (-7.6% change). The surname moved down 169 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,345 to #3,514.
FAQ
Horan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Horan?
Name Census estimates that about 11,355 living Americans carry the surname Horan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 30,185 residents.
How common is Horan?
Horan ranks #3,514 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.31 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,902 people with the surname Horan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,355), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.31 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Horan.
Has Horan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Horan went from 10,711 recorded bearers to 9,902. That is a decrease of 809 (-7.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,345 to #3,514.
What does the Census say about the background of Horan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Horan, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Horan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (9,125 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Horan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Hispanic (4.2%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Horan (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 Horan mean?
A surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic Ó hOdhárain, meaning "descendant of Odhárán" (a personal name meaning "pale little green one"). 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 Horan (3.31 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 Horan?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.