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

Slane, 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 Slane surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Slane in America

Slane is the 17392nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Slane surname appeared 1,623 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 Slane.

We can also compare 2010 data for Slane 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 Slane

The surname Slane originates from Ireland, where it has a long and rich history dating back to ancient times. It is derived from the Irish Gaelic word "Sláine," which means "health" or "wholeness."

In the early medieval period, the Slane surname was particularly prevalent in County Meath, where it was associated with the Hill of Slane. This hill was a significant location in Irish history, as it was the site where St. Patrick famously lit the Paschal fire in defiance of the pagan High King Laoghaire in the 5th century.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Slane surname can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. The text refers to the Uí Sláine, a prominent Irish clan who claimed descent from the ancient kings of Meath.

In the 12th century, the Slane family played a notable role in the Norman invasion of Ireland. During this period, a member of the family named Richard de Slane was granted lands in County Meath by King John of England.

Throughout the centuries, several notable individuals have borne the Slane surname. One of the earliest was Muircheartach Ua Sláine (fl. 10th century), an Irish poet and historian from Meath. Another was Patrick Sarsfield, 1st Earl of Lucan (c. 1660-1693), a renowned Irish Jacobite soldier who fought in the Williamite War in Ireland.

Other notable bearers of the Slane surname include Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753), an Irish physician and naturalist who founded the British Museum, and Sir Hector Sloane (1591-1646), a Scottish soldier and landowner who served as Chamberlain to King Charles I.

In more recent times, the Slane surname has been associated with the Marquesses of Slane, a noble Irish family whose ancestral seat is Slane Castle in County Meath. The current Marquess of Slane is Henry Conyngham (born 1974), who has played a role in promoting the famous Slane Concert, a long-running music festival held in the grounds of the castle.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Slane

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

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

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

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