2000
#411
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 71,175
First available Census row
Per 100,000 26.38
Uncommon Last name
Brady
An Irish occupational surname referring to a spirited or broad-minded person, derived from the Gaelic "Ó Brádaigh."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 80,325 Americans carry the last name Brady. That puts it at #465 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 23.44 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,267 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brady 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 Brady with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
80K
1 in 4,267
Census rank
#465
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
23.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
70K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 70,047 bearers of the surname Brady in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 23.44 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 465th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brady, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.8%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brady
The surname Brady originates from Ireland and is derived from the Irish Gaelic word "bráidhe," which means "literally spirited" or "ill-tempered." It is believed to have first emerged in County Cavan, an area in the northern half of Ireland, during the 12th century.
The name Brady is thought to have evolved from the ancient Irish personal name "Bráidhé," which was commonly used in the region. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name appear in medieval Irish annals and manuscripts, such as the Annals of Ulster and the Book of Leinster, dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Brady was Giolla na Naomh Ó Brádaigh, a 14th-century Irish poet and historian from County Cavan. He is renowned for his work "Tóruigheacht Dhiarmada agus Ghráinne," a retelling of the ancient Irish legend of Diarmuid and Gráinne.
In the 16th century, the Brady family became prominent landowners in County Cavan, particularly in the area of Fermanagh. Notable members of this lineage include Sir Hugh Brady (1559-1635), an Irish landowner and member of the Irish Parliament, and Sir Francis Brady (1590-1667), a soldier who fought for the English Parliamentarians during the English Civil War.
Another distinguished figure with the surname Brady was Nicholas Brady (1659-1726), an Anglican clergyman and poet who co-authored the famous metrical version of the Psalms, known as the "Brady and Tate Psalter." This work was widely used in Anglican churches throughout the British Isles for over two centuries.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, many Irish families with the name Brady immigrated to various parts of the British Empire, including North America, due to political unrest and economic hardships in their homeland. This led to the widespread dispersal of the name across different regions of the world.
Other notable individuals with the surname Brady include Mathew Brady (1822-1896), an American photographer renowned for his documentation of the American Civil War, and James Buchanan Brady (1856-1917), an American businessman and philanthropist who played a significant role in the development of the modern entertainment industry.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brady
Among Census respondents with the surname Brady, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.8%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Brady 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 Brady surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 59,096
- Black or African American6.8% · 4,770
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 2,627
- Two or more races3.5% · 2,445
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 611
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 498
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brady
Brady 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
#450
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 73,145
+1,970 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 24.80
Rank movement Down 39 places
2020
#465
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 70,047
-3,098 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 23.44
Rank movement Down 15 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #411 | 71,175 | 26.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #450 | 73,145 | 24.80 | +1,970 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 39 places |
| 2020 | #465 | 70,047 | 23.44 | -3,098 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 15 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 Brady 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 | #450 | #465 | -3.3% |
| Count | 73,145 | 70,047 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 24.80 | 23.44 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brady bearers went from 73,145 to 70,047 (-4.2% change). The surname moved down 15 positions in the national ranking, going from #450 to #465.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Brady
FAQ
Brady surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brady?
Name Census estimates that about 80,325 living Americans carry the surname Brady. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,267 residents.
How common is Brady?
Brady ranks #465 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 23.44 per 100,000 residents, which is about 23 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 70,047 people with the surname Brady. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (80,325), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 23.44 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 23.44 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 23 of them to have the surname Brady.
Has Brady become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brady went from 73,145 recorded bearers to 70,047. That is a decrease of 3,098 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #450 to #465.
What does the Census say about the background of Brady?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brady, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.8%) and Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Brady in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (59,096 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brady appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.4%), Black (6.8%), Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Brady (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 Brady mean?
An Irish occupational surname referring to a spirited or broad-minded person, derived from the Gaelic "Ó Brádaigh." 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 Brady (23.44 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 Brady?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.