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

Manus, 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 Manus surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Manus in America

Manus is the 11882nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Manus surname appeared 2,635 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Manus.

We can also compare 2010 data for Manus 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 Manus

The surname Manus originated in Ireland, where it was first recorded in the 12th century. It is derived from the Irish Gaelic word "manus," which means "hand" or "tongs." This name is believed to have been originally a nickname for a person with a distinctive or skilled hand.

In early Irish records, the name was sometimes spelled as "Manuis" or "Mannus." One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, where a person named Manus O'Cahan is mentioned in the year 1199.

The Manus surname was particularly prevalent in the northern counties of Ireland, such as Donegal and Derry. It was also found in parts of Scotland, where some Irish families had settled. One notable historical figure with this surname was Manus O'Donnell (c. 1532-1563), an Irish chieftain and leader of the O'Donnell clan in Donegal.

In the 16th century, a branch of the Manus family migrated to County Antrim, where they adopted the anglicized spelling "Manus." This version of the name can be found in various records from that time period, including the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of government documents from the reign of the Tudor monarchs in England and Ireland.

Another notable figure with the Manus surname was Sir John Manus (c. 1590-1649), an Irish lawyer and Member of Parliament who was involved in the Irish Confederate Wars. He was a prominent landowner in County Antrim and played a significant role in the political affairs of his time.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Manus surname spread further across Ireland and beyond. One example is John Manus (1788-1859), an Irish-born writer and journalist who immigrated to the United States and became a prominent figure in the literary circles of New York City.

Throughout its history, the Manus surname has been associated with various place names in Ireland, such as Manusmore and Manusfields, which are derived from the original Gaelic form of the name. While not as widely distributed as some other Irish surnames, Manus has left its mark on the historical records and cultural heritage of Ireland and the Irish diaspora.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Manus

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

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

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

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