2000
#177
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 139,335
First available Census row
Per 100,000 51.65
Common Last name
Ryan
An Irish occupational surname referring to a descendant of Rian, meaning "little king."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 157,788 Americans carry the last name Ryan. That puts it at #201 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 46.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,172 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ryan 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 Ryan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
158K
1 in 2,172
Census rank
#201
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
46.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
138K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 137,599 bearers of the surname Ryan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 46.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 201st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ryan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ryan
The surname Ryan is an anglicized form of the ancient Irish name Ó Riain or Ó Mulriain, which means "descendant of Rían" or "descendant of Mulrían." It originated in County Tipperary, Ireland, and is derived from the old Irish name "Rían," meaning "little king" or "kinglet."
The earliest recorded bearer of the name was Mulrian, who was the chief of the Hy Feran tribe in Tipperary in the 10th century. The variant Ó Mulriain was first recorded in 1172 when Muircheartach Ó Mulriain, the bishop of Emly, signed a charter granting lands to the monastery of Cambuskenneth in Scotland.
The Ryan surname is believed to have been first anglicized in the late 16th century during the Tudor conquest of Ireland. One of the earliest recorded instances of the anglicized spelling was in 1601 when Donell O'Ryan, a member of the Milesian Irish nobility, was pardoned by Queen Elizabeth I.
In the 17th century, the Ryan surname spread throughout Ireland, particularly in the provinces of Munster and Leinster. Notable bearers of the name from this period include Barnaby Ryan (1628-1700), a Catholic priest and prolific writer, and John Ryan (1640-1695), a Catholic bishop and supporter of the Jacobite cause.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, many Irish Ryans emigrated to America, Canada, and other parts of the British Empire due to political and economic upheaval in Ireland. Among the notable Ryans from this period were Jeremiah Ryan (1768-1847), an Irish-American businessman and philanthropist, and Abram Joseph Ryan (1838-1886), a Catholic priest and poet known as the "Poet-Priest of the Confederacy."
Other famous individuals with the Ryan surname include Mary Ryan (1779-1847), an Irish immigrant to Australia who became the first female settler in the colony of Victoria, and Thomas Fortune Ryan (1851-1928), an American businessman and financier who founded the Equitable Life Assurance Society.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ryan
Among Census respondents with the surname Ryan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Ryan 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 Ryan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.9% · 122,260
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 5,031
- Two or more races3.1% · 4,326
- Black or African American3.0% · 4,068
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1,370
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 544
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ryan
Ryan 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
#193
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 143,452
+4,117 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 48.63
Rank movement Down 16 places
2020
#201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 137,599
-5,853 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 46.04
Rank movement Down 8 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #177 | 139,335 | 51.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #193 | 143,452 | 48.63 | +4,117 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 16 places |
| 2020 | #201 | 137,599 | 46.04 | -5,853 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 8 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 Ryan 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 | #193 | #201 | -4.1% |
| Count | 143,452 | 137,599 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 48.63 | 46.04 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ryan bearers went from 143,452 to 137,599 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 8 positions in the national ranking, going from #193 to #201.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Ryan
FAQ
Ryan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ryan?
Name Census estimates that about 157,788 living Americans carry the surname Ryan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,172 residents.
How common is Ryan?
Ryan ranks #201 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 46.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 46 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 137,599 people with the surname Ryan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (157,788), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 46.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 46.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 46 of them to have the surname Ryan.
Has Ryan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ryan went from 143,452 recorded bearers to 137,599. That is a decrease of 5,853 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #193 to #201.
What does the Census say about the background of Ryan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ryan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) 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 Ryan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (122,260 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ryan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.9%), Hispanic (3.7%), 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 Ryan (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 Ryan mean?
An Irish occupational surname referring to a descendant of Rian, meaning "little king." 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 Ryan (46.04 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 Americans have the surname Ryan?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.