2000
#5,969
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,310
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.97
Rare Last name
Scanlan
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Ó Scannláin, meaning "descendant of Scannlán," a personal name meaning "contention" or "scandal."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,097 Americans carry the last name Scanlan. That puts it at #6,175 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,217 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Scanlan 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 Scanlan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.1K
1 in 56,217
Census rank
#6,175
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,317 bearers of the surname Scanlan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6175th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Scanlan, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (5.3%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Scanlan
The surname Scanlan originates from Ireland, specifically the western province of Connacht. It is derived from the Gaelic word "Scannlán," which means "tall or thin person." The name is believed to have emerged in the 11th or 12th century.
Scanlan is an Anglicized version of the original Irish surname Ó Scannláin or Ó Scannlán. The prefix "Ó" signifies "descendant of" or "grandson of" in Irish. The name was initially associated with the area around County Sligo and County Mayo.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Scanlan can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. It mentions a notable figure named Giolla na Naomh Ó Scannláin, who was the Bishop of Raphoe in County Donegal in the early 13th century.
In the 14th century, the Scanlan name appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Cloyne, a record of land transactions and taxes in the Diocese of Cloyne, County Cork. This suggests that the Scanlan family had established a presence in the southern part of Ireland by that time.
Notable individuals with the surname Scanlan throughout history include:
1. Michael Scanlan (1844-1914), an Irish-American journalist and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri.
2. Patrick Scanlan (1856-1939), an Irish-born prelate who served as the Bishop of Salt Lake City from 1915 to 1927.
3. John Scanlan (1869-1957), an Irish-born prelate who served as the Bishop of Lincoln, Nebraska, from 1917 to 1931.
4. Lawrence Scanlan (1898-1969), an Irish-born prelate who served as the Bishop of Las Cruces, New Mexico, from 1958 to 1969.
5. Lawrence Scanlan (born 1944), a Canadian writer and journalist best known for his books on various aspects of Canadian culture and history.
The name Scanlan has also been associated with several place names in Ireland, such as Scanlon's Gap, a mountain pass in County Sligo, and Scanlon's Bay, a coastal area in County Mayo. These place names likely derived from the presence of Scanlan families in those regions historically.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Scanlan
Among Census respondents with the surname Scanlan, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (5.3%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Scanlan 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 Scanlan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 4,486
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.3% · 283
- Two or more races4.5% · 240
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 239
- Black or African American1.0% · 54
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Scanlan
Scanlan 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
#6,068
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,654
+344 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 1.92
Rank movement Down 99 places
2020
#6,175
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,317
-337 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 1.78
Rank movement Down 107 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,969 | 5,310 | 1.97 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,068 | 5,654 | 1.92 | +344 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 99 places |
| 2020 | #6,175 | 5,317 | 1.78 | -337 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 107 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 Scanlan 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 | #6,068 | #6,175 | -1.8% |
| Count | 5,654 | 5,317 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.92 | 1.78 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Scanlan bearers went from 5,654 to 5,317 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 107 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,068 to #6,175.
FAQ
Scanlan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Scanlan?
Name Census estimates that about 6,097 living Americans carry the surname Scanlan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,217 residents.
How common is Scanlan?
Scanlan ranks #6,175 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.78 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,317 people with the surname Scanlan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,097), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.78 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Scanlan.
Has Scanlan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Scanlan went from 5,654 recorded bearers to 5,317. That is a decrease of 337 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,068 to #6,175.
What does the Census say about the background of Scanlan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Scanlan, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (5.3%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Scanlan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (4,486 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Scanlan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.3%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Scanlan (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 Scanlan mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Ó Scannláin, meaning "descendant of Scannlán," a personal name meaning "contention" or "scandal." 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 Scanlan (1.78 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 many people share the surname Scanlan?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.