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

Ryans, 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 Ryans surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ryans in America

Ryans is the 14669th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ryans surname appeared 2,027 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 Ryans.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ryans 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 Ryans

The surname Ryans originated in Ireland and is derived from the Gaelic personal name Rian, meaning "little king". This name first appeared in records as early as the 10th century in the counties of Tipperary and Waterford.

The Ryans were a prominent family in the Barony of Iverk in County Kilkenny, with their ancestral seat at the Ryan Court near the village of Idrone. The name is also associated with the townland of Ryanstown in County Westmeath, which was named after the Ryan family who held lands there in the Middle Ages.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Domhnall O'Riain, who was the Bishop of Lismore from 1163 to 1186. Another notable figure was Dermot Ryan, a 14th-century Irish chieftain who led a rebellion against the English in Tipperary.

The name Ryans can be found in various historical records, including the Annals of the Four Masters, which mentions several individuals with this surname in the 16th and 17th centuries. It is also present in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of official documents from the reign of the Tudor monarchs in England.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Ryan (c. 1500 - 1580), a prominent landowner and military commander in County Tipperary during the Tudor Conquest of Ireland. Sir Redmond Ryan (1540 - 1612) was another notable figure who served as Lord Chancellor of Ireland under Queen Elizabeth I.

In the 17th century, Patrick Ryan (1630 - 1696) was a Catholic priest and Franciscan friar who played a significant role in preserving Irish culture and learning during the Penal Laws. Richard Ryan (1698 - 1768) was a notable Irish-born Anglican clergyman who served as the Bishop of Killaloe and Clonfert.

The name Ryans has also been associated with several notable figures in more recent history, such as John Ryan (1773 - 1847), an Irish Catholic priest and author, and Sir Andrew Ryan (1837 - 1920), an Irish industrialist and philanthropist who founded the Ryan Institute in Dublin.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ryans

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

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

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

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