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

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

Popularity of O'Bryan in America

O'Bryan is the 5433rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Bryan surname appeared 6,408 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname O'Bryan.

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

The surname O'Bryan originated in Ireland and is a variant of the more common Irish surname O'Brien. The name can be traced back to the 10th century and is derived from the Irish Gaelic Ó Briain, meaning "descendant of Brian."

The O'Briens were one of the most powerful and influential families in medieval Ireland, tracing their ancestry to Brian Boru, the High King of Ireland who reigned from 1002 to 1014 AD. Brian Boru was renowned for his military victories against the Vikings and his efforts to unify Ireland under his rule.

The O'Briens were based in the region of Munster, particularly in County Clare and County Limerick. They were kings and lords of Thomond, a historic territory that encompassed parts of these counties. The O'Bryans were a cadet branch of the O'Brien dynasty and held lands in the same general area.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the O'Bryan surname can be found in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. In the year 1317, the annals mention "Donal O'Bryan" as a leader who was involved in a conflict with the Earl of Ulster.

In the 16th century, during the Tudor conquest of Ireland, several members of the O'Bryan family are mentioned in historical records. One notable figure was Donough O'Bryan, who was executed in 1581 for his involvement in the Second Desmond Rebellion against English rule.

Another prominent individual with the surname was William O'Bryan (1778-1868), an Irish-American Catholic priest who was a pioneer of the Vincentian order in the United States. He established several churches and charitable organizations in the St. Louis area.

In the 19th century, Michael O'Bryan (1804-1887) was a prominent Irish-American businessman and politician in Detroit, Michigan. He served as the city's mayor from 1857 to 1859.

William Jennings O'Bryan (1860-1940) was an American lawyer and politician from Nebraska. He served as a United States Representative from 1899 to 1909 and was known for his support of progressive policies and labor rights.

Flora O'Bryan Keyes (1891-1977) was an American artist and illustrator who was particularly known for her portraiture and landscape paintings. She studied at the Art Students League in New York and had a successful career spanning several decades.

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

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

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'Bryan 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'Bryan 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'Bryan 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'Bryan, please contact us.

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