2000
#5,310
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,037
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.24
Rare Last name
Shaughnessy
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Seachnasaigh, meaning "descendant of Seachnasach," derived from "seachnach," meaning "to avoid."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,883 Americans carry the last name Shaughnessy. That puts it at #5,592 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.01 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,797 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shaughnessy 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 Shaughnessy with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.9K
1 in 49,797
Census rank
#5,592
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,002 bearers of the surname Shaughnessy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.01 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5592nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shaughnessy, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shaughnessy
The surname Shaughnessy is of Irish origin, originating in County Mayo and County Galway. It is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Seachnasaigh, which means "descendant of Seachnasach." Seachnasach is derived from the Old Irish word "seachnasach," meaning "prosperous" or "plentiful."
The name can be traced back to the 12th century in Ireland. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which mentions a Domhnall Ó Seachnasaigh in the year 1220.
In the 16th century, the Shaughnessy family held lands in the baronies of Carra and Erris in County Mayo. During this period, the name was also spelled as Shaughnessy, Shaughnesy, and Shaughnesie.
One of the earliest known Shaughnessy individuals was Conor Shaughnessy, who lived in County Mayo in the late 16th century. He was a prominent member of the clan and is mentioned in various historical records from that time.
In the 17th century, during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, many members of the Shaughnessy family were displaced from their lands. Some fled to other parts of Ireland, while others emigrated to countries like France and Spain.
A notable figure from this period was Roderick Shaughnessy (c. 1630-1695), who served as a colonel in the Irish Brigade of the French Army under King Louis XIV. He fought in several battles during the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession.
In the 18th century, the Shaughnessy family began to spread more widely throughout Ireland and beyond. One prominent individual was Patrick Shaughnessy (1742-1826), an Irish-born Catholic priest who served as the first Bishop of Killaloe, County Clare.
Another notable Shaughnessy was Thomas Shaughnessy (1853-1923), a Canadian railway administrator who served as the president of the Canadian Pacific Railway from 1899 to 1918. He was instrumental in the development of Canada's transcontinental railway system.
During the 19th and 20th centuries, many Shaughnessys emigrated from Ireland to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, where the name continues to be found today.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shaughnessy
Among Census respondents with the surname Shaughnessy, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Shaughnessy 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 Shaughnessy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 5,590
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 198
- Two or more races2.3% · 137
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 48
- Black or African American0.3% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shaughnessy
Shaughnessy 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
#5,672
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,117
+80 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 2.07
Rank movement Down 362 places
2020
#5,592
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,002
-115 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 2.01
Rank movement Up 80 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,310 | 6,037 | 2.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,672 | 6,117 | 2.07 | +80 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 362 places |
| 2020 | #5,592 | 6,002 | 2.01 | -115 bearers (-1.9%) | Up 80 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 Shaughnessy 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 | #5,672 | #5,592 | 1.4% |
| Count | 6,117 | 6,002 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 2.07 | 2.01 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shaughnessy bearers went from 6,117 to 6,002 (-1.9% change). The surname moved up 80 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,672 to #5,592.
FAQ
Shaughnessy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shaughnessy?
Name Census estimates that about 6,883 living Americans carry the surname Shaughnessy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,797 residents.
How common is Shaughnessy?
Shaughnessy ranks #5,592 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.01 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 6,002 people with the surname Shaughnessy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,883), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.01 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.01 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 Shaughnessy.
Has Shaughnessy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shaughnessy went from 6,117 recorded bearers to 6,002. That is a decrease of 115 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,672 to #5,592.
What does the Census say about the background of Shaughnessy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shaughnessy, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Shaughnessy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (5,590 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shaughnessy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Shaughnessy (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 Shaughnessy mean?
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Seachnasaigh, meaning "descendant of Seachnasach," derived from "seachnach," meaning "to avoid." 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 Shaughnessy (2.01 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 have the surname Shaughnessy?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.