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

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

Popularity of O'Laughlin in America

O'Laughlin is the 17398th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The O'Laughlin surname appeared 1,622 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'Laughlin.

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

The surname OLAUGHLIN originated in Ireland and is a variant of the Irish Gaelic Ó Lochlainn, meaning "descendant of Lochlainn". The name is derived from the Old Norse name Lochlainn, which means "from Norway" or "Norse Viking". This suggests that the original bearer of the name was a descendant of a Norse Viking who settled in Ireland during the Norse invasions of the 9th and 10th centuries.

The OLAUGHLIN surname is most commonly found in counties Donegal, Mayo, and Sligo in the northwest of Ireland. It is believed that the name first appeared in these areas as the descendants of Norse Vikings intermarried with the native Irish population. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which dates back to the 15th century.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the OLAUGHLIN surname was Domhnall Ó Lochlainn, who was the King of Ailech and ruled over the northern part of Ireland in the late 11th century. Another notable figure was Muircheartach Ó Lochlainn, who was the King of Ailech from 1156 to 1166 and is known for his military campaigns against the Anglo-Norman invaders.

In the 16th century, the OLAUGHLIN name was also found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a historical chronicle of medieval Irish history. One of the individuals mentioned in this chronicle is Niall Ó Lochlainn, who was the Chief of the Cenél Eoghain, a powerful Irish clan in Ulster.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, many Irish families, including those with the OLAUGHLIN surname, were forced to leave Ireland due to the political and religious turmoil caused by the English conquest of Ireland. As a result, the OLAUGHLIN name can be found in various parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Some notable individuals with the OLAUGHLIN surname include Michael O'Loughlin (1858-1938), an Irish-American businessman and philanthropist; Edna O'Loughlin (1896-1985), an American actress and film producer; and John O'Loughlin (1923-2004), an American lawyer and politician who served as the Attorney General of New York.

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

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

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'Laughlin 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'Laughlin 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'Laughlin 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'Laughlin, please contact us.

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