Find out how popular the last name O'Boyle 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'Boyle.

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

Popularity of O'Boyle in America

O'Boyle is the 9859th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Boyle surname appeared 3,281 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'Boyle.

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

The surname OBOYLE is an anglicized version of the ancient Irish Gaelic name Ó Báoill. It originated in County Mayo, Ireland, and dates back to the 11th century. The prefix Ó denotes a male descendant, while Báoill is believed to be derived from the Old Irish word "badhbh," which means "dangerous" or "hostile."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the OBOYLE name can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. The annals mention an OBOYLE chieftain named Donnchadh Ó Báoill, who was slain in battle in 1170.

The OBOYLE surname is also associated with the Barony of Erris, a historical territory located in northwestern County Mayo. This region was once ruled by the OBOYLE clan, who held significant power and influence during the Middle Ages.

In the 16th century, Tadhg Ó Báoill, an OBOYLE chieftain, is mentioned in the Compositions of Connacht, a record of land ownership and taxation in the province of Connacht. This document provides insight into the clan's landholdings and social status during that period.

Notable individuals bearing the OBOYLE surname include:

1. Seán Ó Báoill (1587-1642), an Irish scholar and historian who wrote extensively on the genealogy and history of Irish clans.
2. Máire Nic Ó Báoill (1773-1845), a renowned Irish poet and songwriter from County Mayo.
3. Michael O'Boyle (1880-1958), an Irish-American prelate who served as the Bishop of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
4. Patrick O'Boyle (1896-1987), an American Catholic prelate who served as the Archbishop of Washington, D.C.
5. Brendan O'Boyle (1924-2001), an American politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States House of Representatives.

Throughout its history, the OBOYLE surname has undergone various spellings, including Ó Báoill, O'Boyle, O'Boile, and O'Boyll, reflecting regional variations and anglicization over time.

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

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

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'Boyle 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'Boyle 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'Boyle 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'Boyle, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!