2000
#5,106
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,306
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.34
Rare Last name
Boylan
An Irish surname derived from Ó Baoigheallán, meaning "descendant of Baoigheallán," a personal name of unknown meaning.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,989 Americans carry the last name Boylan. That puts it at #5,504 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,042 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boylan 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 Boylan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.0K
1 in 49,042
Census rank
#5,504
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,095 bearers of the surname Boylan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5504th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boylan, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boylan
The surname Boylan is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic surname Ó Baoigheallain, meaning "descendant of Baoigheallan." This name is a diminutive of the old Irish personal name Baoigheall, which means "fair-headed" or "fair-browed." The name is believed to have originated in the 10th or 11th century in Ireland.
The Boylan surname was first concentrated in County Mayo, particularly in the baronies of Erris and Gallen. It was also found in parts of County Sligo and County Roscommon. The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 13th and 14th centuries, appearing in various annals and manuscripts from that period.
One notable historical figure bearing the Boylan surname was Domnall Ó Baoigheallain, who was the Bishop of Raphoe in County Donegal in the 14th century. Another early individual was Tadhg Ó Baoigheallain, a prominent poet and scholar who lived in the 16th century.
In the 17th century, during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, many Boylan families were dispossessed of their lands and forced to seek refuge in other parts of the country. This led to the spread of the surname beyond its original strongholds.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Boylan surname gained prominence in various fields. John Boylan (1741-1805) was an Irish politician and landowner from County Meath. William Boylan (1775-1853) was a successful businessman and banker in Dublin. Patrick Boylan (1783-1867) was a prominent Catholic prelate who served as the Archbishop of Armagh.
In the 19th century, Mary Boylan (1815-1886) was a renowned Irish writer and journalist, known for her contributions to the Irish nationalist movement. Thomas Boylan (1854-1924) was a prominent Irish-American politician who served as the Mayor of Chicago from 1923 to 1927.
The Boylan surname has also been found in various anglicized forms, such as Boland, Boylen, and Bolan, reflecting the diverse spellings and pronunciations that emerged over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boylan
Among Census respondents with the surname Boylan, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Boylan 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 Boylan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.6% · 5,462
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 213
- Two or more races3.4% · 206
- Black or African American2.6% · 157
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 46
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boylan
Boylan 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
#5,533
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,280
-26 bearers (-0.4%)
Per 100,000 2.13
Rank movement Down 427 places
2020
#5,504
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,095
-185 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 2.04
Rank movement Up 29 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,106 | 6,306 | 2.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,533 | 6,280 | 2.13 | -26 bearers (-0.4%) | Down 427 places |
| 2020 | #5,504 | 6,095 | 2.04 | -185 bearers (-2.9%) | Up 29 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 Boylan 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 | #5,533 | #5,504 | 0.5% |
| Count | 6,280 | 6,095 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 2.13 | 2.04 | -4.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boylan bearers went from 6,280 to 6,095 (-2.9% change). The surname moved up 29 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,533 to #5,504.
FAQ
Boylan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boylan?
Name Census estimates that about 6,989 living Americans carry the surname Boylan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,042 residents.
How common is Boylan?
Boylan ranks #5,504 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.04 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 6,095 people with the surname Boylan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,989), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.04 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 Boylan.
Has Boylan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boylan went from 6,280 recorded bearers to 6,095. That is a decrease of 185 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,533 to #5,504.
What does the Census say about the background of Boylan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boylan, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Boylan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (5,462 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boylan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.6%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Boylan (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 Boylan mean?
An Irish surname derived from Ó Baoigheallán, meaning "descendant of Baoigheallán," a personal name of unknown meaning. 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 Boylan (2.04 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 are called Boylan?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Boylan, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.