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

McLoughlin, 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 McLoughlin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McLoughlin in America

McLoughlin is the 7174th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McLoughlin surname appeared 4,661 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname McLoughlin.

We can also compare 2010 data for McLoughlin 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 McLoughlin

The surname MCLOUGHLIN is of Irish origin, deriving from the Gaelic Mac Loughlin or McLoughlin, meaning "son of Loughlin." This name can be traced back to the 9th or 10th century in Ireland. The prefix "Mac" indicates "son of," and Loughlin was a common personal name at the time, derived from the Gaelic name Lochlann, meaning "from Norway" or "Viking."

The name MCLOUGHLIN was prominent among the Gaelic families of County Sligo in the province of Connacht. One of the earliest recorded bearers of this name was Gillachrist MacLoughlin, who was mentioned in the Annals of the Four Masters in 1033 as the Chief of Cenél Conaill. The Cenél Conaill was an influential kindred or dynasty in the region now known as County Donegal.

In the 12th century, the Annals of Inisfallen recorded a reference to Muircheartach MacLoughlin, who was the King of Aileach and ruled over a significant portion of Ulster from 1166 to 1196. He was a powerful figure during the Norman invasion of Ireland and was known for his resistance against the Anglo-Norman forces.

Another notable bearer of the name was Aodhagán Ó Loughlin, an Irish poet and historian who lived in the 14th century. He was a member of the learned family of Ó Loughlin from County Sligo and is known for his work on the history of the Uí Briúin dynasties.

In the 16th century, the MCLOUGHLIN name appears in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, which were records of appointments and grants made by the English Crown in Ireland. One such entry from 1586 mentions Patrick McLoughlin of County Sligo, who was granted a pardon for his participation in the Desmond Rebellions.

One of the most famous bearers of the MCLOUGHLIN name was James McLoughlin (1807-1876), an Irish-American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York. He was also involved in the construction of the Erie Canal and played a significant role in the development of transportation infrastructure in New York State.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McLoughlin

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!