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

Malarkey, 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 Malarkey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Malarkey in America

Malarkey is the 31960th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Malarkey surname appeared 722 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Malarkey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Malarkey 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 Malarkey

The surname Malarkey is of Irish origin, originating in the early 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Irish Gaelic words "mala" meaning "bag" and "raic" meaning "contention" or "dispute", likely referring to an itinerant merchant or peddler who carried their wares in a bag.

The name was first recorded in County Cork, Ireland, where it was initially rendered as "Mullarkey" and "Mullarky". Over time, the spelling evolved to its modern form of Malarkey. Records from the 16th and 17th centuries show the name concentrated in the southern counties of Ireland, particularly Cork, Kerry, and Limerick.

One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of official records from the Irish Court of Chancery. In 1564, a Dermot Mullarkey is mentioned in a land grant in County Cork. In the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, a Donnchadh Malarkey is recorded as an Irish chieftain in the early 17th century.

Notable individuals with the surname Malarkey include John Malarkey (1733-1808), an Irish-born soldier who served in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Pennsylvania. In the 19th century, Patrick Malarkey (1836-1912) was a prominent politician and Member of Parliament in New Zealand, representing the Hutt constituency.

Another well-known figure was Michael Malarkey (1875-1935), an Irish writer and journalist who was active in the Irish literary renaissance of the early 20th century. He was a close friend of the poet W.B. Yeats and contributed to several Irish publications.

In more recent times, actor and musician Sam Malarkey (born 1988) has gained recognition for his roles in television series such as "Outlander" and "Penny Dreadful". He is also the lead singer of the rock band "Mighty Reckless".

While the name has evolved over centuries, its origins can be traced back to the Irish merchants and peddlers who carried their wares in bags, reflecting the resourcefulness and entrepreneurial spirit of its bearers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Malarkey

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

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

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

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