2000
#11,333
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,557
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.95
Rare Last name
Loughran
An Irish surname derived from Ó Lochráin, meaning "descendant of Lochrán," a personal name meaning "light" or "bright."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,907 Americans carry the last name Loughran. That puts it at #11,811 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.85 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 117,907 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Loughran 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 Loughran with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 117,907
Census rank
#11,811
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,535 bearers of the surname Loughran in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.85 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11811th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Loughran, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Loughran
The surname Loughran originated in Ireland, derived from the Gaelic surname Ó Lochráin, meaning "descendant of Lochran." The name Lochran itself is an old Irish personal name derived from the words "loch" meaning "lake" and "rán" meaning "seal" or "poetry." This suggests that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a lake or was associated with poetry or storytelling.
The Loughran surname can be traced back to County Donegal in Ulster, where the name was prominent in the 16th and 17th centuries. It is believed that the name originated in the Kilmacrenan area of Donegal, where the Ó Lochráin family held lands.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Loughran can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history written in the 17th century. The annals mention a "Lochran O'Lochrain" who was a poet and scholar in the 14th century.
In the 17th century, during the plantation of Ulster, many Loughran families were displaced from their lands in Donegal. This led to the spread of the name throughout Ireland and the adoption of various spellings, such as Loughran, Loughrane, and Loughrene.
Notable individuals with the surname Loughran throughout history include:
1. Patrick Loughran (c. 1770-1835), an Irish-born soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.
2. James Loughran (1855-1923), an Irish-born Roman Catholic priest who served as the Bishop of Brooklyn from 1897 to 1923.
3. Marianne Loughran (1872-1950), an Irish-born artist and illustrator known for her portraits and book illustrations.
4. Edward Loughran (1892-1968), an Irish-born actor who appeared in numerous films and television shows in the mid-20th century.
5. Peter Loughran (1909-1994), an Irish-born economist and academic who served as the President of the University of Notre Dame from 1952 to 1962.
The Loughran surname is still prevalent in Ireland, particularly in counties Donegal, Derry, and Antrim, where it has been deeply rooted for centuries. It is a name that reflects the rich cultural heritage and history of Ireland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Loughran
Among Census respondents with the surname Loughran, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Loughran 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 Loughran surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 2,353
- Two or more races3.1% · 79
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 26
- Black or African American0.4% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Loughran
Loughran 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
#10,844
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,937
+380 bearers (+14.9%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Up 489 places
2020
#11,811
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,535
-402 bearers (-13.7%)
Per 100,000 0.85
Rank movement Down 967 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,333 | 2,557 | 0.95 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,844 | 2,937 | 1.00 | +380 bearers (+14.9%) | Up 489 places |
| 2020 | #11,811 | 2,535 | 0.85 | -402 bearers (-13.7%) | Down 967 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 Loughran 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 | #10,844 | #11,811 | -8.9% |
| Count | 2,937 | 2,535 | -13.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.00 | 0.85 | -15.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Loughran bearers went from 2,937 to 2,535 (-13.7% change). The surname moved down 967 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,844 to #11,811.
FAQ
Loughran surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Loughran?
Name Census estimates that about 2,907 living Americans carry the surname Loughran. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 117,907 residents.
How common is Loughran?
Loughran ranks #11,811 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.85 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 2,535 people with the surname Loughran. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,907), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.85 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.85 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 Loughran.
Has Loughran become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Loughran went from 2,937 recorded bearers to 2,535. That is a decrease of 402 (-13.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,844 to #11,811.
What does the Census say about the background of Loughran?
Among Census respondents with the surname Loughran, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Loughran in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (2,353 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Loughran appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Loughran (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 Loughran mean?
An Irish surname derived from Ó Lochráin, meaning "descendant of Lochrán," a personal name meaning "light" or "bright." 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 Loughran (0.85 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 Loughran?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.