2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kinealy
A surname of Irish origin meaning "descendant of Cionaith" or "brave headman".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Kinealy. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kinealy 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.
Bearers in the US
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Kinealy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kinealy, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kinealy
The surname KINEALY is of Irish origin, originating from County Galway in the west of Ireland. It is believed to have emerged during the 16th century, derived from the Irish Gaelic word "Ó Cinnéidigh", which means "descendant of Cinnéideach".
The name Cinnéideach itself is thought to be derived from the word "ceann", meaning "head", and "éidigh", meaning "ugly" or "misshapen". This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone with a distinctive or unusual physical appearance.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the KINEALY surname appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century. The annals mention a man named Donnchadh Ó Cinnéidigh, who lived in the 16th century and was a prominent member of the Ó Cinnéidigh clan in County Galway.
Over time, the spelling of the surname evolved, with variations such as KINNEALY, KINNALY, and KINEALY emerging. This was likely due to the anglicization of Irish names during the 16th and 17th centuries, as well as regional differences in pronunciation and spelling.
One notable bearer of the KINEALY surname was John Kinealy (1819-1887), an Irish-American journalist and newspaper editor who founded the Boston Pilot, one of the earliest and most influential Irish-American newspapers in the United States.
Another prominent figure was Michael Kinealy (1866-1942), an Irish Jesuit priest and educator who served as the president of University College Dublin from 1919 to 1936. He played a significant role in the development of higher education in Ireland during the early 20th century.
In the realm of sports, John Kinealy (1909-1986) was a professional baseball player who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1930s.
The name KINEALY has also been associated with certain places in Ireland, such as Kinealy Townland in County Galway, which likely derived its name from the surname's origins in that region.
While the KINEALY surname may not be among the most common in Ireland or elsewhere, it has a rich history and legacy that spans several centuries, reflecting the cultural and linguistic influences that have shaped Irish names over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kinealy
Among Census respondents with the surname Kinealy, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kinealy 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 Kinealy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.5% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 5
- Two or more races3.8% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kinealy
Kinealy 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-4 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,669 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-3 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,887 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 13,669 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 1,887 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 Kinealy 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 | #150,452 | #152,339 | -1.3% |
| Count | 109 | 106 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kinealy bearers went from 109 to 106 (-2.8% change). The surname moved down 1,887 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #152,339.
FAQ
Kinealy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kinealy?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Kinealy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Kinealy?
Kinealy ranks #152,339 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 106 people with the surname Kinealy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Kinealy.
Has Kinealy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kinealy went from 109 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #150,452 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Kinealy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kinealy, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Kinealy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kinealy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.5%), Hispanic (4.7%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Kinealy (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 Kinealy mean?
A surname of Irish origin meaning "descendant of Cionaith" or "brave headman". 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 Kinealy (0.04 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 last name Kinealy?
You can see how common the surname Kinealy is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.