2000
#3,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,481
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.14
Rare Last name
Tully
Derived from the Irish Ó Taithligh, meaning "descendant of Taithleach," a personal name suggesting a peaceful or quiet person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,607 Americans carry the last name Tully. That puts it at #4,112 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 35,678 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tully 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 Tully with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.6K
1 in 35,678
Census rank
#4,112
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,378 bearers of the surname Tully in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4112th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tully, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tully
The surname Tully is of Anglo-Norman origin, derived from the Old French word "tuellit" or "tuillit," meaning a tile or brick maker. It is believed to have originated in the 11th century when many Norman families settled in England following the Norman Conquest of 1066.
The name Tully is thought to have first appeared in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and tenants commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This early record suggests that the name was initially associated with individuals who worked as tile or brick makers, a valuable trade during the construction of Norman castles and churches.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Tully surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1195, where a certain William Tuillit is mentioned. This spelling variation highlights the name's evolution over time, reflecting the changes in pronunciation and written forms.
The Tully name has also been linked to various place names throughout England, such as Tullylease in Gloucestershire and Tullytown in Buckinghamshire. These place names likely derived from individuals bearing the Tully surname who settled or owned land in those areas.
Prominent figures with the Tully surname include Sir Thomas Tully (c. 1620-1676), an English lawyer and politician who served as the Recorder of Gloucester and represented the city in Parliament during the 17th century. Another notable bearer of the name was John Tully (1638-1701), an Irish Catholic priest and historian who wrote extensively on the history of Ireland.
Other historical figures with the Tully surname include Richard Tully (1535-1608), an English Catholic priest and martyr who was executed during the Elizabethan era for his religious beliefs, and John Tully (1813-1864), an American politician who served as the 12th Governor of Kansas from 1861 to 1863.
In more recent times, the Tully surname has been associated with various prominent individuals, such as Jim Tully (1886-1947), an American writer and journalist known for his novels and memoirs depicting life in the American Midwest, and Tom Tully (1908-1982), an American character actor who appeared in numerous films and television shows throughout his career.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tully
Among Census respondents with the surname Tully, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Tully 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 Tully surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 7,563
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 333
- Two or more races3.1% · 257
- Black or African American1.1% · 92
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 78
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 55
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tully
Tully 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
#3,911
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,081
+600 bearers (+7.1%)
Per 100,000 3.08
Rank movement Down 64 places
2020
#4,112
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,378
-703 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 2.80
Rank movement Down 201 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,847 | 8,481 | 3.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,911 | 9,081 | 3.08 | +600 bearers (+7.1%) | Down 64 places |
| 2020 | #4,112 | 8,378 | 2.80 | -703 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 201 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 Tully 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 | #3,911 | #4,112 | -5.1% |
| Count | 9,081 | 8,378 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 3.08 | 2.80 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tully bearers went from 9,081 to 8,378 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 201 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,911 to #4,112.
FAQ
Tully surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tully?
Name Census estimates that about 9,607 living Americans carry the surname Tully. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 35,678 residents.
How common is Tully?
Tully ranks #4,112 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.80 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,378 people with the surname Tully. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,607), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.80 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Tully.
Has Tully become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tully went from 9,081 recorded bearers to 8,378. That is a decrease of 703 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,911 to #4,112.
What does the Census say about the background of Tully?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tully, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Tully in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (7,563 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tully appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Tully (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 Tully mean?
Derived from the Irish Ó Taithligh, meaning "descendant of Taithleach," a personal name suggesting a peaceful or quiet person. 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 Tully (2.80 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 Americans have the surname Tully?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.