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

McCloskey, 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 McCloskey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McCloskey in America

McCloskey is the 3336th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McCloskey surname appeared 10,756 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname McCloskey.

We can also compare 2010 data for McCloskey 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 McCloskey

The surname McCloskey has its origins in Ireland, specifically in the northern counties of Ulster. It is derived from the Irish Gaelic name Mac Bhloscaidh, which means "son of the freckled or speckled one." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone with a freckled or spotted complexion.

The earliest recorded instances of the name McCloskey can be traced back to the 16th century in Ulster. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Ferdoragh McCloskey, who was mentioned in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, in the year 1536.

In the 17th century, the McCloskey name appeared in several historical records, such as the Hearth Money Rolls of 1663-1665, which were tax records compiled in Ireland. These records provide valuable insights into the distribution of the name across various counties in Ulster during that time period.

One notable figure bearing the McCloskey surname was Sir Andrew McCloskey (1700-1778), an Irish politician and landowner from County Derry. He served as a member of the Irish House of Commons and was involved in local administration and philanthropic endeavors.

Another prominent McCloskey was John McCloskey (1810-1885), an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the first American-born cardinal. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and became the Archbishop of New York in 1864, before being elevated to the cardinalate in 1875.

In the 19th century, the McCloskey name became more widespread in the United States due to Irish immigration. One notable bearer was John McCloskey (1834-1901), an American attorney and politician from New York who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives.

The name McCloskey has also been associated with various place names in Ireland, such as McCloskey's Bridge in County Donegal and McCloskey's Lane in County Antrim. These place names reflect the historical presence of the McCloskey family in these areas.

Throughout history, the McCloskey surname has undergone various spellings, including McCluskey, MacCloskey, and McClushkey, among others. These variations likely resulted from regional dialects and the phonetic interpretations of the name by record-keepers and scribes.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McCloskey

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

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

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

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