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

Touhey, 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 Touhey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Touhey in America

Touhey is the 34427th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Touhey surname appeared 658 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Touhey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Touhey 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 Touhey

The surname Touhey originates from Ireland, specifically from County Mayo in the western region of the country. It is believed to have emerged sometime around the 12th or 13th century. The name is derived from the Old Irish Gaelic word "tuathach," which means "lay person" or "farmer."

Touhey is an Anglicized version of the original Irish spelling "Ó Tuathaigh" or "Ó Tuathacháin." This name is rooted in the Irish tradition of using patronymic surnames, which were initially based on the given name of the father or a notable ancestor. The prefix "Ó" means "descendant of" or "grandson of."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Touhey 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 Touhey O'Toole, who was involved in a battle against the English forces in 1548.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Touhey surname was predominantly concentrated in the counties of Mayo and Galway in the west of Ireland. Some of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname include Dermot Touhey (born c. 1620) and Patrick Touhey (born c. 1650), both of whom lived in County Mayo.

In the late 17th century, the Touhey family held lands in the townland of Cloonconnavne, located in the parish of Islandeady, County Mayo. This area is believed to be the ancestral homeland of the Touhey clan.

Notable individuals with the surname Touhey throughout history include:

1. John Touhey (1809-1866), an Irish-American politician who served as the 29th Mayor of Philadelphia from 1855 to 1858.
2. Michael Touhey (1837-1923), an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the Bishop of Providence, Rhode Island, from 1904 to 1923.
3. James Touhey (1893-1953), an American labor union leader and politician who served as the Secretary-Treasurer of the Massachusetts State Federation of Labor.
4. John Touhey (1907-1993), an Irish-born American prelate who served as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, from 1970 to 1983.
5. Patrick Touhey (1915-1979), an Irish hurler who played for the Offaly senior hurling team and won an All-Ireland medal in 1949.

While the Touhey surname has its roots in Ireland, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly through Irish immigration to countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Touhey

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

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

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

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