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

McCann, 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 McCann surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McCann in America

McCann is the 983rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McCann surname appeared 35,408 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 12 people would have the surname McCann.

We can also compare 2010 data for McCann 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 McCann

The surname McCann is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic surname Mac Cana or Mac Cathan, which means "son of Cana" or "son of Cathan." The name Cana or Cathan was a personal name derived from the Old Irish word "cath," meaning "battle" or "warrior."

The McCann surname can be traced back to the 11th century in Ireland, particularly in the counties of Armagh, Monaghan, and Fermanagh. It was originally a Gaelic clan name associated with the territories of East Ulster and the ancient kingdom of Airgíalla.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the McCann surname is found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which mentions a "Gilla Patraic Mac Cathan" in the year 1167. The surname is also found in the Annals of the Four Masters, another important source of Irish history, which refers to a "Maolmuire Mac Cana" in the year 1237.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the McCann surname appeared in various legal and administrative records, such as the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns and the Hearth Money Rolls. One notable example is Sir Séon McCann (c. 1570-1635), a prominent Irish soldier and landowner from County Armagh, who served in the Spanish Army of Flanders.

During the Plantation of Ulster in the early 17th century, the McCann name became more widespread in the northern counties of Ireland, as families were granted lands and settled in areas like County Antrim and County Down. The surname is also associated with several place names in Ireland, such as Ballymacann (from the Irish "Baile Mhic Cana," meaning "townland of the sons of Cana") and Drumacann (from the Irish "Druim Mhic Cana," meaning "ridge of the sons of Cana").

Notable individuals with the McCann surname include:

1. Bernard McCann (1736-1798), an Irish revolutionary and United Irishman who participated in the Irish Rebellion of 1798.
2. Colum McCann (born 1965), an Irish novelist and writer, best known for his novels "Let the Great World Spin" and "TransAtlantic."
3. John McCann (1905-1980), an Irish Franciscan friar and historian who wrote extensively on Irish history and the Irish Franciscan tradition.
4. Joshua McCann (c. 1777-1846), an Irish-American soldier and pioneer who fought in the War of 1812 and was one of the founders of the city of Chicago, Illinois.
5. Marie McCann (born 1984), an Irish long-distance runner and Olympian who represented Ireland in the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McCann

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

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

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

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