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

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

Popularity of O'Gorman in America

O'Gorman is the 12842nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Gorman surname appeared 2,397 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'Gorman.

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

The surname O'Gorman originates from Ireland and can be traced back to ancient Gaelic roots. It is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name "Ó Gormáin," which means "descendant of Gormán." Gormán was a personal name derived from the Old Irish word "gorm," meaning "blue" or "brilliant."

The O'Gorman clan was prominent in County Clare and County Limerick, with their ancestral homeland located in the territory of Ibrickan, near Quin in County Clare. The name first appeared in Irish annals and records as early as the 11th century, with several notable members of the O'Gorman family mentioned throughout the Middle Ages.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of Inisfallen, which mention a chieftain named Gormán mac Duibdabairenn, who ruled over the Uí Cormaic territory in County Clare in the 11th century. Another notable figure was Mathghamhain Ó Gormáin, who served as the Bishop of Killaloe from 1279 to 1293.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the O'Gorman clan played a significant role in the Irish Confederate Wars, with several members serving as leaders and military commanders. One such figure was Donogh O'Gorman, who was appointed as the Colonel of the Irish Infantry in 1642 during the Irish Rebellion of 1641.

In the 18th century, John O'Gorman (1723-1804) was a prominent Irish Catholic priest and writer who advocated for Catholic rights and participated in the Irish Patriot movement. He served as the president of the Irish College in Paris and was a vocal supporter of the French Revolution.

Another notable figure was Nicholas Purcell O'Gorman (1785-1857), an Irish-born American politician who served as the Secretary of the Navy under President James K. Polk from 1845 to 1849. He played a crucial role in the Mexican-American War and the acquisition of California and the Southwest territories.

The O'Gorman name has also been associated with various place names in Ireland, such as Ballygurman, Gormansmill, and Gormanbeg, which were derived from the original Gaelic form of the surname.

Throughout history, the O'Gorman family has produced numerous scholars, writers, politicians, and military leaders, contributing significantly to the cultural and historical legacy of Ireland and beyond.

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

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

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'Gorman 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'Gorman 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'Gorman 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'Gorman, 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!