2000
#8,312
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,666
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.36
Rare Last name
Horgan
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Ó hArgáin, meaning "descendant of Argán" (a personal name of unknown meaning).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,098 Americans carry the last name Horgan. That puts it at #8,810 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,639 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Horgan 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 Horgan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.1K
1 in 83,639
Census rank
#8,810
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,574 bearers of the surname Horgan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8810th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Horgan, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Horgan
The surname Horgan is of Irish origin, originating in County Cork, Ireland, during the medieval period. It is derived from the Irish Gaelic name "O'hUrgain," which means "descendant of Urgan." Urgan was a personal name that may have referred to someone who lived near a marsh or a peat bog.
The name Horgan first appeared in historical records in the 13th century, when it was recorded as "O'hUrgain" in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. The surname is believed to have evolved from this original spelling over time, with various spellings such as "O'Hurgan," "O'Hurgen," and "O'Horgan" appearing in different historical documents.
In the 16th century, the Horgan family held lands in the baronies of Ibane and Barryroe in County Cork. Some notable members of the Horgan family from this time period include Donough Horgan, a landowner and chieftain who lived in the late 16th century, and Dermot Horgan, a Catholic priest and scholar who was active in the early 17th century.
The earliest recorded example of the surname spelled as "Horgan" dates back to the 17th century, when it appeared in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of official documents from the reign of the Tudor monarchs in England and Ireland.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Horgan. One of the most famous was Thomas Horgan (1770-1816), an Irish-born lawyer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania.
Another notable Horgan was James Horgan (1845-1925), an Irish-born prelate who served as the Bishop of Cloyne and Ross in County Cork from 1904 to 1925. He was known for his efforts in promoting education and social welfare initiatives in his diocese.
In the 20th century, John Horgan (1911-1995) was a prominent Irish politician who served as the Minister for Lands in the Irish government from 1957 to 1973. He was also a member of the Irish parliament (Dáil Éireann) for several decades.
Joseph Horgan (1917-2003) was an American author and journalist who wrote extensively about World War II and the Vietnam War. He is best known for his book "The Irish Tinkers: The Urbanization of an Itinerant People," which explored the lives of Irish Travellers.
Finally, John Horgan (born 1964) is a contemporary American science journalist and author who has written for publications such as Scientific American and The New York Times. He is known for his books exploring topics in science and religion, including "The End of Science" and "The Undiscovered Mind."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Horgan
Among Census respondents with the surname Horgan, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Horgan 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 Horgan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 3,277
- Two or more races3.2% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 85
- Black or African American1.7% · 59
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Horgan
Horgan 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
#7,875
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,202
+536 bearers (+14.6%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Up 437 places
2020
#8,810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,574
-628 bearers (-14.9%)
Per 100,000 1.20
Rank movement Down 935 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,312 | 3,666 | 1.36 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,875 | 4,202 | 1.42 | +536 bearers (+14.6%) | Up 437 places |
| 2020 | #8,810 | 3,574 | 1.20 | -628 bearers (-14.9%) | Down 935 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 Horgan 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 | #7,875 | #8,810 | -11.9% |
| Count | 4,202 | 3,574 | -14.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.42 | 1.20 | -15.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Horgan bearers went from 4,202 to 3,574 (-14.9% change). The surname moved down 935 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,875 to #8,810.
FAQ
Horgan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Horgan?
Name Census estimates that about 4,098 living Americans carry the surname Horgan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,639 residents.
How common is Horgan?
Horgan ranks #8,810 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.20 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,574 people with the surname Horgan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,098), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.20 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Horgan.
Has Horgan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Horgan went from 4,202 recorded bearers to 3,574. That is a decrease of 628 (-14.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,875 to #8,810.
What does the Census say about the background of Horgan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Horgan, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Horgan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (3,277 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Horgan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Two or More Races (3.2%), Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Horgan (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 Horgan mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Ó hArgáin, meaning "descendant of Argán" (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 Horgan (1.20 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 Horgan?
See how many people are called Horgan on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.