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

O'Bannon, 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 O'Bannon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of O'Bannon in America

O'Bannon is the 11716th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Bannon surname appeared 2,675 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname O'Bannon.

We can also compare 2010 data for O'Bannon 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 O'Bannon

The surname OBANNON is of Irish origin, tracing its roots back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Gaelic name "O'Banain," which translates to "descendant of Banan." The prefix "O'" was a common Gaelic naming convention, indicating a patronymic or ancestral lineage.

The earliest records of the OBANNON name can be found in historical documents from County Cork, Ireland, where the family is thought to have originated. Some of the earliest known bearers of the name include Diarmaid OBANNON, born around 1325, who was mentioned in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of medieval Irish history.

The OBANNON name was also present in the Fiants of the Tudor conquest of Ireland, which were legal records compiled during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Mary I. In these documents, dated around the 16th century, several individuals with the surname OBANNON are listed as receiving land grants or pardons.

During the 17th century, the OBANNON family played a role in the Irish Rebellion of 1641 and the subsequent Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. Seán OBANNON, born around 1605, was a prominent figure in the rebellion, leading forces against the English forces in County Cork.

As the Irish diaspora spread across the globe in the 18th and 19th centuries, the OBANNON name traveled with it. In the United States, one notable bearer of the name was Michael OBANNON, born in 1789, who fought in the War of 1812 and later settled in Pennsylvania.

Another prominent figure was Bridget OBANNON, born in 1837 in County Cork, Ireland. She emigrated to Australia in the late 1850s and became a respected community leader and philanthropist in Melbourne, establishing several charitable organizations and advocating for the rights of Irish immigrants.

In the literary realm, the Irish writer and poet Seamus OBANNON, born in 1901, gained recognition for his works that explored themes of Irish identity, history, and culture. His collection of poems, "The Harp of Banba," published in 1935, is considered a significant contribution to Irish literature.

The OBANNON surname has also been associated with various place names in Ireland, such as Ballyobannon and Killobannon, which may have influenced the spelling variations of the name over time. While the exact origins and meanings of these place names are unclear, they likely reflect the presence of OBANNON families in those areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name O'Bannon

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname O'Bannon.

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 O'Bannon 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 O'Bannon 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 O'Bannon was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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