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

Sweeney, 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 Sweeney surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sweeney in America

Sweeney is the 651st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sweeney surname appeared 52,410 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 18 people would have the surname Sweeney.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sweeney 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 Sweeney

The surname Sweeney originated in Ireland and dates back to the 12th century. It is an anglicized form of the Gaelic name O'Suanaigh, which means "descendant of Suanach." The name Suanach itself is derived from the Gaelic word "suan," meaning "sleep" or "slumber."

Sweeney is a common surname found primarily in counties Cork, Kerry, and Limerick in the southwestern part of Ireland. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled at the monastery on Inisfallen Island in County Kerry.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Donnchadh O'Suanaigh, who was the Bishop of Limerick from 1207 to 1224. Another notable figure was Niall O'Suanaigh, who served as the Chief of the Name and Lord of Clonderlaw in County Clare in the 14th century.

The Sweeney family played a significant role in the wars between the Irish chieftains and the Anglo-Norman invaders in the 13th and 14th centuries. Several members of the family were noted warriors and leaders, including Dermot Sweeney, who was killed in battle against the English in 1369.

In the 16th century, the Sweeneys were among the Irish families who were dispossessed of their lands during the Plantations of Munster and Ulster. Some Sweeneys anglicized their name to Swayne or Swain to avoid persecution.

Notable individuals with the surname Sweeney include John Sweeney (1766-1839), an Irish-American author and journalist; Jane Sweeney (1815-1891), an Irish-American labor activist and advocate for women's rights; and John Cameron Sweeney (1900-1986), an American poet and literary critic.

Other famous Sweeneys include Francis Sweeney (1811-1890), an Irish-American Catholic priest and founder of the Sisters of Mercy in San Francisco, and John Sweeney (born 1934), an American labor leader who served as the president of the AFL-CIO from 1995 to 2009.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sweeney

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

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

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

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