2000
#2,332
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,229
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.27
Uncommon Last name
Mulligan
An Irish occupational surname referring to a descendant of a miller or grinding machine operator.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 16,195 Americans carry the last name Mulligan. That puts it at #2,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.73 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 21,164 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mulligan surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mulligan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
16K
1 in 21,164
Census rank
#2,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 14,123 bearers of the surname Mulligan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.73 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mulligan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Black (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mulligan
The surname Mulligan originated in Ireland, with the earliest recorded examples dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be an Anglicized version of the Gaelic surname Ó Mullagáin, derived from the Irish word "mullach," meaning "summit" or "hilltop." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a hilltop or prominent hill.
The Mulligan surname was particularly prevalent in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, where it is associated with the Gaelic dynasty of the Maguires. Historical records show that the Mulligans were among the prominent families who supported the Maguires during their conflicts with the English crown in the 16th and 17th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded references to the Mulligan surname can be found in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of Irish legal documents from the 16th century. The name appears in various spellings, such as Mulligane, Mullygan, and Mullegan, reflecting the fluid nature of surname spellings in earlier times.
Notable individuals with the Mulligan surname include:
1. Thomas Mulligan (c. 1736-1783), an Irish-born soldier who served in the American Revolutionary War and was one of the first to join the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry.
2. James A. Mulligan (1830-1864), an Irish-American soldier who fought in the American Civil War and is remembered for his defense of Lexington, Missouri, in 1861.
3. Ada Mulligan (1869-1950), an Irish actress and singer who performed in England and the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
4. Hercules Mulligan (1740-1825), an Irish-American tailor and spy during the American Revolutionary War, known for his role in the Culper Ring, a spy network that provided valuable intelligence to General George Washington.
5. John Mulligan (1835-1919), an Irish-born prelate who served as the first Bishop of the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas, from 1874 to 1901.
While the Mulligan surname has spread across the globe due to Irish migration, its roots can be traced back to the rugged hills of Ireland, where it originally gained significance as a marker of place and identity.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mulligan
Among Census respondents with the surname Mulligan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Black (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Mulligan bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Mulligan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.9% · 12,554
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 529
- Black or African American3.3% · 460
- Two or more races2.9% · 403
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 131
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 46
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mulligan
Mulligan appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#2,469
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,590
+361 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 4.95
Rank movement Down 137 places
2020
#2,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,123
-467 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 4.73
Rank movement Down 26 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,332 | 14,229 | 5.27 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,469 | 14,590 | 4.95 | +361 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 137 places |
| 2020 | #2,495 | 14,123 | 4.73 | -467 bearers (-3.2%) | Down 26 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Mulligan surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,469 | #2,495 | -1.1% |
| Count | 14,590 | 14,123 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 4.95 | 4.73 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mulligan bearers went from 14,590 to 14,123 (-3.2% change). The surname moved down 26 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,469 to #2,495.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mulligan
FAQ
Mulligan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mulligan?
Name Census estimates that about 16,195 living Americans carry the surname Mulligan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 21,164 residents.
How common is Mulligan?
Mulligan ranks #2,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.73 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 14,123 people with the surname Mulligan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (16,195), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.73 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.73 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Mulligan.
Has Mulligan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mulligan went from 14,590 recorded bearers to 14,123. That is a decrease of 467 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,469 to #2,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Mulligan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mulligan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Black (3.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mulligan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (12,554 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mulligan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.9%), Hispanic (3.7%), Black (3.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Mulligan (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Mulligan mean?
An Irish occupational surname referring to a descendant of a miller or grinding machine operator. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Mulligan (4.73 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Mulligan?
Find out how many people have the last name Mulligan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.