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

Ruane, 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 Ruane surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ruane in America

Ruane is the 13427th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ruane surname appeared 2,270 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 Ruane.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ruane 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 Ruane

The surname Ruane is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic name Ó Ruadháin, meaning "descendant of Ruadhán." The name Ruadhán itself is derived from the Old Irish word "ruadh," meaning "red-haired" or "red-complexioned."

One of the earliest recorded references to the name can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which mentions a Ruadhán of Lorrha in the 6th century. The name was particularly prevalent in County Tipperary and County Offaly, where many bearers of the name were recorded in historical documents.

In the 14th century, a notable figure named Ruadhán Ó Ruadháin is mentioned in the Annals of Connacht as a learned scholar and poet. This suggests that the surname Ruane was associated with literary and scholarly pursuits during that time period.

Over the centuries, the name has undergone various spellings, including Rowan, Ruan, Ruan, and Ruane. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and the anglicization of the name by English-speaking record keepers.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the Ruane spelling can be found in the 17th century, when a Thomas Ruane is mentioned in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of English royal records.

A famous bearer of the Ruane surname was Jeremiah Ruane (1799-1863), an Irish politician and lawyer who served as a Member of Parliament for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Another notable individual with the Ruane surname was Katharine Ruane-Dickson (1870-1935), an Irish-born American businesswoman and philanthropist who co-founded the Dickson-Ruane Corporation, a successful manufacturing company.

William Ruane (1925-2005) was an American investment manager and philanthropist, known for co-founding the investment firm Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb and for his generous support of educational institutions.

The Ruane surname is also associated with several place names in Ireland, such as Ruan, a village in County Clare, and Ruane, a townland in County Mayo, further reflecting the name's Irish origins.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ruane

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

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

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

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