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

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

Popularity of O'Donnell in America

O'Donnell is the 49999th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Donnell surname appeared 419 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 O'Donnell.

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

The surname ODONELL originated in Ireland during the medieval period. It is an anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Domhnaill, which means "descendant of Domhnall" or "son of Domhnall". Domhnall was a popular personal name derived from the Old Irish words "domun" meaning "world" and "val" meaning "rule" or "might".

The name Ó Domhnaill first appeared in records as the surname of a powerful clan based in Donegal, a county in the northern part of Ireland. They were descendants of the ancient Cenél Conaill dynasty that ruled the region for centuries. The ODONELL clan held significant power and influence in Donegal during the Middle Ages.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ODONELL can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled by monks in the 15th century. The annals mention several members of the ODONELL clan, including Domhnall Óg Ó Domhnaill, who died in 1281.

Another notable figure was Niall Garbh Ó Domhnaill (c. 1380-1439), a powerful chieftain of the ODONELL clan who played a significant role in the politics of 15th century Ireland. He is mentioned in various historical records and manuscripts from that period.

In the 16th century, Red Hugh O'Donnell (c. 1572-1602) was a famous Irish military leader and one of the principal figures in the Nine Years' War against English rule in Ireland. He led a rebellion against the English and is remembered as a hero in Irish history.

The surname ODONELL also appeared in other parts of Ireland, such as County Mayo, where it was sometimes spelled as O'Donnell or McDonnell. One notable bearer was Aodh Dubh Ó Domhnaill (c. 1572-1629), a chieftain of the ODONELL clan in Mayo who fought against English forces during the Irish Confederate Wars.

Another prominent figure was Sir Niall Garve O'Donnell (c. 1560-1626), a Scottish military commander who served in the Swedish and Danish armies during the Thirty Years' War. He was born in Ireland but spent much of his life in continental Europe.

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

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

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'Donnell 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'Donnell 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'Donnell 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'Donnell, please contact us.

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