Find out how popular the last name Rourke is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Rourke.

Rourke, 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 Rourke surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rourke in America

Rourke is the 8728th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rourke surname appeared 3,757 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 Rourke.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rourke 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 Rourke

The surname ROURKE is an anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Ruairc, which originated in County Leitrim, Ireland. The name derives from the old Irish word "ruarc," meaning a champion or hero.

In the early medieval period, the Ó Ruairc clan was one of the most powerful and influential families in the province of Connacht. They ruled over a large territory centered around the modern-day counties of Leitrim and Roscommon.

The name ROURKE appears in several Irish annals and chronicles dating back to the 12th century. One notable bearer of the name was Tighernan Ua Ruairc, a 12th-century king of Breifne, who is mentioned in the Annals of Ulster and the Annals of the Four Masters.

The first recorded instance of the anglicized spelling "ROURKE" dates back to the 16th century, when the English administration in Ireland began standardizing Irish surnames. The name appears in various records, such as the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns and the 1659 Census of Ireland.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname ROURKE. One of the earliest was John Rourke (c. 1570-1628), an Irish Catholic priest and writer who served as the Bishop of Killaloe from 1619 until his death.

Another prominent bearer of the name was John Patrick Rourke (1835-1909), an Irish-American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York from 1893 to 1895.

In the field of literature, the name is associated with the Irish-American novelist and short story writer Mary Rourke (1853-1938), who wrote under the pen name "The Nun of Kenmare."

In more recent times, the surname has been carried by notable figures such as the American actor Mickey Rourke (born 1952), known for his roles in films like "The Wrestler" and "Sin City," and the Irish-American baseball player John Rourke (1909-1976), who played for the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Athletics.

The name ROURKE has also been associated with several place names in Ireland, such as Rourke's Drift in County Leitrim, which was named after a prominent member of the Ó Ruairc clan.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rourke

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Rourke.

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 Rourke 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 Rourke 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 Rourke was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Rourke, please contact us.

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