How common is the surname Houlihan?

3,958 people in the United States had the surname Houlihan in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 78,005 Americans. It ranked 8,365th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Houlihan?

In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named Houlihan identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

Who is the most famous person named Houlihan?

Shelby Houlihan, American middle- and long-distance runner.

Where is the surname Houlihan most common?

Wikidata records people named Houlihan in the United States.

Is the surname Houlihan getting more or less common?

Less common. 4,040 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 3,958 in 2010, down 2.0%.

What are other spellings of Houlihan?

Holahan, Holihan, Holohan, Hoolahan, Hoolihan and Houlahan.

The surname Houlihan

An Irish patronymic surname, carried by 3,958 people in the United States.

3 syllables Soundex H450

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Houlihan is more common than 94.8% of them.

Origin

Irish origin

Anglicized form of Irish Ó hUallacháin (“descendant of Uallachán”), a personal name derived from a diminutive of uallach (“proud, arrogant”).

Houlihan is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 880 Irish surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 3,958 people named Houlihan in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 78,005 Americans. That is down 2.0% since 2000, when the Census counted 4,040.

#8,365

rank among US surnames

3,958

people in 2010

1.3

per 100,000 Americans

-2%

change since 2000 (was #7,590)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#8,359	Brunk	3,961	77,946
#8,361	Mounts	3,960	77,966
#8,364	Taliaferro	3,959	77,986
#8,365	Schade	3,958	78,005
#8,368	Popovich	3,957	78,025
#8,369	Bressler	3,956	78,045

Who is named Houlihan

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

95% of people named Houlihan identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.4% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 95%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.6%
Two or more races 1.4%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.8%
Black (not Hispanic) 0.4%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.2%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Houlihans

1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

Shelby Houlihan
American middle- and long-distance runner, born 1993

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Holahan
Holihan
Holohan
Hoolahan
Hoolihan
Houlahan
Hulahan
Hulihan
Hoolan

Surnames that sound like Houlihan

Houlihan has the Soundex code H450, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code H450.

Other Irish surnames

All 880 Irish surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Houlihan come from?: Anglicized form of Irish Ó hUallacháin (“descendant of Uallachán”), a personal name derived from a diminutive of uallach (“proud, arrogant”).
How common is the surname Houlihan?: 3,958 people in the United States had the surname Houlihan in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 78,005 Americans. It ranked 8,365th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Houlihan?: In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named Houlihan identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
Who is the most famous person named Houlihan?: Shelby Houlihan, American middle- and long-distance runner.
Where is the surname Houlihan most common?: Wikidata records people named Houlihan in the United States.
What type of surname is Houlihan?: Houlihan is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Houlihan getting more or less common?: Less common. 4,040 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 3,958 in 2010, down 2.0%.
What are other spellings of Houlihan?: Holahan, Holihan, Holohan, Hoolahan, Hoolihan and Houlahan.