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

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

Popularity of O'Day in America

O'Day is the 8878th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Day surname appeared 3,688 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'Day.

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

The surname ODAY originated in Ireland, with the earliest recorded examples dating back to the 12th century. It is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name "O'Dáith," which means "descendant of Dáith." The name Dáith is thought to be derived from the Old Irish word "dáth," meaning "poet" or "learned person."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ODAY 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 individual named "Domhnall O'Dáith" who lived in the 13th century and was a member of the bardic family of O'Dáith in County Westmeath, Ireland.

In the 16th century, the name ODAY appeared in various Irish records, such as the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, which were legal documents issued by the English Crown in Ireland. One notable individual from this time was Edmond ODAY, who was granted lands in County Cavan in 1584.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the ODAY surname was found in various parts of Ireland, particularly in Counties Westmeath, Cavan, and Longford. One prominent figure was Patrick ODAY (1670-1747), a Catholic priest who served as the Archbishop of Armagh from 1726 until his death.

In the 19th century, the name ODAY became more widespread, with families bearing the surname found in various regions of Ireland and beyond. John ODAY (1805-1877) was a notable Irish politician and journalist who served as a Member of Parliament for County Cavan in the mid-1800s.

Another individual of note was Thomas ODAY (1848-1922), an Irish-born American politician who served as the Mayor of San Francisco from 1895 to 1897. He played a significant role in the city's reconstruction efforts following the devastating earthquake and fire of 1906.

Throughout its history, the surname ODAY has undergone various spelling variations, including O'Day, O'Dea, and O'Dee, reflecting the anglicization of the original Irish Gaelic name. While the name has been found in various parts of the world due to Irish emigration, its roots can be traced back to the poetic and learned families of Ireland's ancient bardic tradition.

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

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

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'Day 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'Day 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'Day 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'Day, please contact us.

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