2000
#14,168
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,945
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.72
Rare Last name
Ohanlon
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó hAnnluain, meaning "descendant of Annluain" (a personal name of unknown meaning).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,408 Americans carry the last name Ohanlon. That puts it at #13,787 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,340 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ohanlon surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Ohanlon with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 142,340
Census rank
#13,787
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,100 bearers of the surname Ohanlon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13787th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohanlon, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ohanlon
The surname OHANLON is of Irish origin, tracing its roots back to the ancient Gaelic kingdom of Bréifne in what is now County Leitrim, Ireland. The name dates back to the 11th century and is derived from the Gaelic personal name Ó hAnluain, meaning "descendant of Anluain."
The OHANLON clan was part of the Uí Briúin dynasty, which ruled over the northern part of Bréifne. They were a prominent and influential family in the region, holding significant landholdings and playing a crucial role in the political and military affairs of the area.
The name OHANLON appears in various historic records and manuscripts, including the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century. One notable entry mentions Giolla Íosa Ó hAnluain, who died in 1337 and was described as the "most distinguished man of his tribe for hospitality and nobility."
Another early reference to the name can be found in the Annals of Ulster, which mention Tadhg Ó hAnluain, a prominent chieftain who died in 1395. The name is also recorded in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of documents from the 16th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name OHANLON is found in the Annals of Lough Cé, which mention Ruaidhri Ó hAnluain, who was killed in a battle in 1256. The name is also associated with several place names in County Leitrim, such as Ballinahanlon and Drumhawnlon, reflecting the clan's historical presence in the area.
Notable individuals bearing the OHANLON surname throughout history include:
1. Redmond O'Hanlon (c. 1640-1681), an Irish military commander who fought for the Catholic Confederation of Kilkenny during the Irish Confederate Wars.
2. John O'Hanlon (1821-1905), an Irish priest and ecclesiastical historian known for his extensive writings on the lives of Irish saints.
3. Michael O'Hanlon (1788-1862), an Irish politician and Member of Parliament for County Monaghan from 1837 to 1841.
4. Redmond O'Hanlon (1896-1916), an Irish rebel who fought in the Easter Rising of 1916, a pivotal event in the Irish Revolutionary period.
5. Rory O'Hanlon (born 1953), a British explorer and travel writer, known for his expeditions to the remote regions of South America and Asia.
The OHANLON surname has a rich history deeply rooted in the ancient Gaelic kingdoms of Ireland, reflecting the clan's prominence and influence in the region over several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ohanlon
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohanlon, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ohanlon bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Ohanlon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 1,911
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 97
- Two or more races3.0% · 64
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 18
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ohanlon
Ohanlon appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#14,474
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,063
+118 bearers (+6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Down 306 places
2020
#13,787
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,100
+37 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 687 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,168 | 1,945 | 0.72 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,474 | 2,063 | 0.70 | +118 bearers (+6.1%) | Down 306 places |
| 2020 | #13,787 | 2,100 | 0.70 | +37 bearers (+1.8%) | Up 687 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Ohanlon surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #14,474 | #13,787 | 4.7% |
| Count | 2,063 | 2,100 | 1.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.70 | 0.70 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ohanlon bearers went from 2,063 to 2,100 (+1.8% change). The surname moved up 687 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,474 to #13,787.
FAQ
Ohanlon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ohanlon?
Name Census estimates that about 2,408 living Americans carry the surname Ohanlon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,340 residents.
How common is Ohanlon?
Ohanlon ranks #13,787 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,100 people with the surname Ohanlon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,408), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Ohanlon.
Has Ohanlon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ohanlon went from 2,063 recorded bearers to 2,100. That is an increase of 37 (+1.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,474 to #13,787.
What does the Census say about the background of Ohanlon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohanlon, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Ohanlon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (1,911 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ohanlon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Hispanic (4.6%), Two or More Races (3.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Ohanlon (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Ohanlon mean?
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó hAnnluain, meaning "descendant of Annluain" (a personal name of unknown meaning). The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Ohanlon (0.70 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Ohanlon?
You can see how many people have the last name Ohanlon on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.