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

Neenan, 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 Neenan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Neenan in America

Neenan is the 40745th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Neenan surname appeared 536 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 Neenan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Neenan 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 Neenan

The surname Neenan originated in Ireland and is believed to have derived from the Irish Gaelic word "Ó Niadháin," which means "descendant of Niadhán." Niadhán is thought to be a personal name derived from the word "niadh," meaning "warrior" or "champion." The name is associated with County Galway and County Mayo in the western part of Ireland.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, where it mentions a certain "Niadan" in the year 1081. The name also appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, another important source of Irish history, in the 13th century.

In the 16th century, a prominent figure named Dermot Neenan was a member of the Irish Parliament and served as the Chief Justice of Connacht, a province in the west of Ireland. He played a significant role in the political and legal affairs of the region during that time.

The name Neenan has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history, including:

1. Patrick Neenan (1853-1924), an Irish-American labor leader and politician who served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
2. Thomas Neenan (1819-1884), an Irish-born American Catholic priest and educator who served as the second president of the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts.
3. Edward Neenan (1871-1946), an Irish-born Australian Labor Party politician who served as a member of the Australian Senate.
4. Michael Neenan (1847-1927), an Irish-born Canadian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the House of Commons of Canada.
5. John Neenan (1834-1906), an Irish-born American Catholic priest and educator who served as the second bishop of the Diocese of Marquette in Michigan.

The name has also been associated with various place names, such as Neenane, a townland in County Galway, Ireland, and Neenan, a small community in Alberta, Canada, which was likely named after an early settler with the surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Neenan

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

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

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

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