McGlynn last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of McGlynn

An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Giolla Fhiontóg," meaning "son of the servant of St. Fhiontóg."

McGlynn, 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 McGlynn surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McGlynn in America

McGlynn is the 7880th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McGlynn surname appeared 4,200 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 McGlynn.

We can also compare 2010 data for McGlynn 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 7880 7927 -0.59%
Count 4,200 3,872 8.13%
Proportion per 100k 1.42 1.44 -1.40%

The history of the last name McGlynn

The surname McGlynn is of Irish origin, originating from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Fhinn" or "son of the descendant of Finn". Finn was a revered warrior in Irish mythology, and this name suggests descent from one of his descendants.

The name is believed to have emerged in the 10th or 11th century in Ireland, particularly in the northern counties of Ulster and Donegal. Variations in spelling include McGlinn, MacGlynn, and McGlinn.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name is in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the late 15th century. The entry for the year 1197 mentions a "Mac Gille Fhinn" in relation to a land dispute in County Donegal.

In the 16th century, the McGlynn name appears in the Fiants of the Tudor Conquest, a collection of administrative records from the English conquest of Ireland. A notable figure from this period is Turlough McGlynn, a chieftain in County Donegal who led resistance against English forces in the 1590s.

During the 17th century, several McGlynns were recorded in the Hearth Money Rolls, a tax record from the 1660s. One entry mentions a Toirdhealbhach McGlynn from County Tyrone.

In the 18th century, James McGlynn (1696-1772) was a prominent Catholic priest and poet from County Donegal. He wrote in both Irish and English and was known for his satirical works critiquing the Anglo-Irish establishment.

Another notable figure was Patrick McGlynn (1757-1847), a United Irishman and revolutionary who fought in the Irish Rebellion of 1798. He was later imprisoned for his role in the uprising.

In the 19th century, John McGlynn (1837-1900) was an Irish-American priest who gained notoriety for advocating labor rights and criticizing the treatment of workers by wealthy industrialists. He had a public feud with the Archbishop of New York, which led to his excommunication for a time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McGlynn

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

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 McGlynn was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.74% 3,979
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.12% 5
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.74% 31
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.19% 8
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.43% 60
Hispanic Origin 2.79% 117

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 McGlynn has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.74% 96.23% -1.56%
Black 0.12% 0.15% -22.22%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.74% 0.49% 40.65%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.19% 0.23% -19.05%
Two or More Races 1.43% 1.37% 4.29%
Hispanic 2.79% 1.52% 58.93%

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

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

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"McGlynn last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/mcglynn-surname-popularity/.

"McGlynn last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/mcglynn-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

McGlynn last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/mcglynn-surname-popularity/.

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