2000
#7,839
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,917
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.45
Rare Last name
Mulvey
Derived from the Irish Ó Maoil Mheadha, meaning "descendant of the devotee of the balance or scales."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,299 Americans carry the last name Mulvey. That puts it at #8,453 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 79,729 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mulvey 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 Mulvey with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.3K
1 in 79,729
Census rank
#8,453
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,749 bearers of the surname Mulvey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8453rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mulvey, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mulvey
The surname Mulvey originated in Ireland and is derived from the Gaelic name Maolmhuaidh, which means "servant of the shaved one" or "tonsured one". This likely referred to a person who was a monk or a devotee of a particular saint.
The name first appeared in the Irish annals around the 11th century and was primarily found in the counties of Roscommon and Mayo. Early spellings of the name included Mulvey, Mulvy, Mulvie, and Mulvaye.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is in the Annals of Ulster, which mention a Maolmhuaidh Ua Buighill, a monk who died in 1058. The Annals of the Four Masters also refer to a Maolmhuaidh Ua Lochlainn, who was the king of Cenél nEógain, a powerful dynasty in Ulster, in the 12th century.
The Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholders in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any references to the Mulvey name, as it was primarily an Irish surname.
Notable people with the Mulvey surname include:
1. John Mulvey (1892-1964), an Irish politician and member of the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence.
2. Charles Mulvey (1855-1931), an American businessman and politician who served as the mayor of Janesville, Wisconsin, from 1893 to 1895.
3. Michael Mulvey (born 1958), an American actor known for his roles in films such as "Bloodsport" and "Highlander".
4. Thomas Mulvey (1822-1892), an Irish-born American bishop who served as the second bishop of the Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware.
5. James Mulvey (1923-2013), an American mathematician and professor at New York University, known for his contributions to the field of probability theory.
While the Mulvey name has its roots in Ireland, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, due to Irish immigration.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mulvey
Among Census respondents with the surname Mulvey, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mulvey 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 Mulvey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 3,470
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 120
- Two or more races2.8% · 104
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 37
- Black or African American0.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mulvey
Mulvey 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
#8,389
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,945
+28 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement Down 550 places
2020
#8,453
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,749
-196 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 64 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,839 | 3,917 | 1.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,389 | 3,945 | 1.34 | +28 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 550 places |
| 2020 | #8,453 | 3,749 | 1.25 | -196 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 64 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 Mulvey 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 | #8,389 | #8,453 | -0.8% |
| Count | 3,945 | 3,749 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.34 | 1.25 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mulvey bearers went from 3,945 to 3,749 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 64 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,389 to #8,453.
FAQ
Mulvey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mulvey?
Name Census estimates that about 4,299 living Americans carry the surname Mulvey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 79,729 residents.
How common is Mulvey?
Mulvey ranks #8,453 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.25 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,749 people with the surname Mulvey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,299), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.25 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Mulvey.
Has Mulvey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mulvey went from 3,945 recorded bearers to 3,749. That is a decrease of 196 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,389 to #8,453.
What does the Census say about the background of Mulvey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mulvey, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Mulvey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (3,470 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mulvey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Hispanic (3.2%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Mulvey (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 Mulvey mean?
Derived from the Irish Ó Maoil Mheadha, meaning "descendant of the devotee of the balance or scales." 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 Mulvey (1.25 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 surname Mulvey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.