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

Mullarkey, 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 Mullarkey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mullarkey in America

Mullarkey is the 22000th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mullarkey surname appeared 1,179 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Mullarkey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mullarkey 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 Mullarkey

The surname MULLARKEY is of Irish origin, traced back to the early 17th century in County Mayo, Ireland. It is derived from the Irish Gaelic words 'mullach' meaning 'summit' or 'top' and 'reidh' meaning 'plain' or 'level'. The name likely referred to someone who lived on a high, flat area or plateau.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name MULLARKEY can be found in the Hearth Money Rolls of 1665, which were tax records for County Mayo. The spelling variations at the time included Mullarkie, Mullarky, and Mullarke. The name was concentrated in the parishes of Kilmovee and Aghamore, located in the Barony of Carra.

In the 19th century, several notable individuals bore the MULLARKEY name. Patrick Mullarkey (1835-1908) was an Irish Catholic priest who served as the Bishop of Dromore from 1895 until his death. James Mullarkey (1843-1920) was an Irish-born American politician who served as the 16th Mayor of San Francisco from 1897 to 1900.

Another prominent MULLARKEY was Thomas Mullarkey (1847-1925), an Irish-born Canadian businessman and politician. He served as a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1891 to 1896, representing the district of North Wellington, Ontario.

In more recent history, John J. Mullarkey (1922-2003) was an American lawyer and judge who served on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1981 to 1994. He was born in New York City to Irish immigrants.

One of the earliest recorded uses of the MULLARKEY name in literature can be found in the 1904 novel "The Valley of the Squinting Windows" by Brinsley MacNamara, which mentions a character named Michael Mullarkey, a farmer from County Mayo.

Overall, the surname MULLARKEY has its roots in the Irish counties of Mayo and Sligo, with various spellings emerging in historical records from the 17th century onwards. It has been borne by several notable individuals across different fields, particularly in Ireland, the United States, and Canada.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mullarkey

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

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

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

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