2000
#4,533
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,192
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.67
Rare Last name
Irish
Referring to someone from Ireland or of Irish descent.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,135 Americans carry the last name Irish. That puts it at #4,832 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 42,133 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Irish 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 Irish with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.1K
1 in 42,133
Census rank
#4,832
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,094 bearers of the surname Irish in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4832nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Irish, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Irish
The surname Irish is thought to have originated in Scotland and Ireland. The name is believed to be derived from the Gaelic word "Eireannach," which means "Irish person" or "from Ireland." This suggests that the name was originally given as a descriptive surname to someone who had immigrated from Ireland to Scotland or another part of the British Isles.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Irish can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of homage rolls that documented those who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. In these rolls, a person named Gillecrist Irisshe is mentioned, which is likely an early spelling variation of the surname Irish.
Another early reference to the name can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the 14th century. In these records, a person named William Iryssche is listed as having been granted lands in Dumfriesshire, Scotland.
One notable bearer of the Irish surname was John Irish, a 16th-century Scottish Protestant reformer and minister. He was born around 1505 and played a significant role in the establishment of the Presbyterian Church in Scotland.
In England, the Irish surname can be traced back to the 13th century. One early record mentions a man named Richard le Irissh, who was listed in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1292.
Another noteworthy individual with the Irish surname was John Irish, an English poet and playwright who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He is best known for his work "The Unfortunate Traveller or The Life of Jack Wilton," which was published in 1594.
In the United States, the Irish surname has been present since the colonial era. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of William Irish, who was born in Massachusetts in 1637 and later became a prominent landowner and militia officer in the town of Falmouth (now Portland, Maine).
Other notable individuals with the Irish surname include Jane Irish (1828-1896), an American philanthropist and advocate for women's rights, and John Irish (1879-1963), an American politician who served as the 57th Governor of Connecticut from 1935 to 1939.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Irish
Among Census respondents with the surname Irish, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Irish 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 Irish surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.2% · 6,042
- Black or African American5.1% · 361
- Two or more races4.5% · 318
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 280
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 66
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 27
Timeline
Historical Census data for Irish
Irish 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
#4,813
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,336
+144 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 2.49
Rank movement Down 280 places
2020
#4,832
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,094
-242 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 2.37
Rank movement Down 19 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,533 | 7,192 | 2.67 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,813 | 7,336 | 2.49 | +144 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 280 places |
| 2020 | #4,832 | 7,094 | 2.37 | -242 bearers (-3.3%) | Down 19 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 Irish 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 | #4,813 | #4,832 | -0.4% |
| Count | 7,336 | 7,094 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.49 | 2.37 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Irish bearers went from 7,336 to 7,094 (-3.3% change). The surname moved down 19 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,813 to #4,832.
FAQ
Irish surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Irish?
Name Census estimates that about 8,135 living Americans carry the surname Irish. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 42,133 residents.
How common is Irish?
Irish ranks #4,832 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.37 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 7,094 people with the surname Irish. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,135), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.37 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 Irish.
Has Irish become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Irish went from 7,336 recorded bearers to 7,094. That is a decrease of 242 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,813 to #4,832.
What does the Census say about the background of Irish?
Among Census respondents with the surname Irish, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Irish in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.2% (6,042 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Irish appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.2%), Black (5.1%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Irish (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 Irish mean?
Referring to someone from Ireland or of Irish descent. 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 Irish (2.37 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 Irish?
You can see how many people have the last name Irish on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.