# Cavanaugh (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/cavanaugh/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname from Irish.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Irish |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 17,577 |
| US rank (2010) | 2,049 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 17,565 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.6% (17,137 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

Variant of Kavanagh.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Cavanaugh in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 91% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 2.7% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.3% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.7% |
| Two or more races | 1.6% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Cavanaugh in the United States.

## People named Cavanaugh

- Christine Cavanaugh, American voice actress (1963–2014)
- Hobart Cavanaugh, American actor (1886-1950)
- Chris Cavanaugh, American swimmer, Olympic gold medalist, world champion, former world record-holder
- Michael Cavanaugh, American actor
- Tyler Cavanaugh, American basketball player (born 1994)
- James M. Cavanaugh, American politician (1823-1879)

## Similar surnames

Cavanagh, Cavin, Cavan, Covington, Caviness, Cabanas, Coppinger, Cavins, Cobbins, Cabaniss, Chaffins.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.