How common is the surname Conway?

44,320 people in the United States had the surname Conway in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 6,966 Americans. It ranked 779th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Conway?

Tim Conway, American actor and comedian (1933–2019), followed by Lynn Conway.

Where is the surname Conway most common?

Wikidata records people named Conway in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and 2 other countries.

How do you pronounce Conway?

Conway is /ˈkɒnweɪ/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Conway getting more or less common?

More common. 43,395 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 44,320 in 2010, up 2.1%.

Is Conway also a first name?

Yes. Conway is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Conway

A Welsh place surname, carried by 44,320 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈkɒnweɪ/ 2 syllables Soundex C500 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Conway is more common than 99.5% of them.

Origin

Welsh origin

Anglicization of Welsh Conwy

Conway is a place surname: taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.

One of 60 Welsh surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 44,320 people named Conway in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 6,966 Americans. That is up 2.1% since 2000, when the Census counted 43,395.

#779

rank among US surnames

44,320

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+2.1%

change since 2000 (was #719)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#770	Bullock	44,740	6,901
#771	Kerr	44,711	6,905
#772	Leach	44,581	6,925
#773	Meadows	44,500	6,938
#774	Orr	44,388	6,956
#776	Whitehead	44,373	6,958
#777	Pruitt	44,365	6,959

Who is named Conway

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

82% of people named Conway identified as white (not Hispanic), 12% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 82%
Black (not Hispanic) 12%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.5%
Two or more races 1.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Conways

25 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Tim Conway
American actor and comedian (1933–2019)
Lynn Conway
American computer scientist and electrical engineer (1938–2024)
Jack Conway
American film director and actor (1887–1952)
Kevin Conway
American actor (1942–2020)
Hollis Conway
American high jumper, born 1967
Tom Conway
British actor (1904-1967)
Gerry Conway
American comic book writer (1952–2026)
Gary Conway
American actor and screenwriter, born 1936
Rob Conway
American professional wrestler, born 1974
Morgan Conway
American actor (1903-1981)
James Sevier Conway
1st governor of Arkansas (1798–1855)
Jon Conway
American soccer player, born 1977

Notable Conways come mostly from the United States (19), the United Kingdom (2) and Australia (2).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Conway

Conway has the Soundex code C500, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code C500.

Other Welsh surnames

All 60 Welsh surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Conway come from?: Anglicization of Welsh Conwy
How common is the surname Conway?: 44,320 people in the United States had the surname Conway in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 6,966 Americans. It ranked 779th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Conway?: In the 2010 Census, 82% of people named Conway identified as white (not Hispanic), and 12% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Conway?: Tim Conway, American actor and comedian (1933–2019), followed by Lynn Conway.
Where is the surname Conway most common?: Wikidata records people named Conway in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and 2 other countries.
How do you pronounce Conway?: Conway is /ˈkɒnweɪ/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Conway?: Conway is a place surname, taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.
Is the surname Conway getting more or less common?: More common. 43,395 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 44,320 in 2010, up 2.1%.
Is Conway also a first name?: Yes. Conway is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.