How common is the surname O'Donnell?

43,460 people in the United States had the surname O'Donnell in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 7,104 Americans. It ranked 795th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname O'Donnell?

In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named O'Donnell identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

Who is the most famous person named O'Donnell?

Rosie O'Donnell, American comedian, producer, actress, and television personality, followed by Chris O'Donnell.

Where is the surname O'Donnell most common?

Wikidata records people named O'Donnell in the United States, Argentina and Australia.

Is the surname O'Donnell getting more or less common?

More common. 42,802 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 43,460 in 2010, up 1.5%.

The surname O'Donnell

An Irish surname, carried by 43,460 people in the United States.

3 syllables Soundex O354

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

Origin

Irish origin

From Irish Ó Dónaill, Ó Domhnaill (“of Domhnall”).

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 43,460 people named O'Donnell in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 7,104 Americans. That is up 1.5% since 2000, when the Census counted 42,802.

#795

rank among US surnames

43,460

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+1.5%

change since 2000 (was #728)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#786	McIntyre	43,842	7,042
#787	Blankenship	43,830	7,044
#788	Gaines	43,821	7,046
#789	Palacios	43,798	7,049
#790	Cuevas	43,701	7,065
#791	Bartlett	43,648	7,074
#792	Durham	43,635	7,076

Who is named O'Donnell

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

95% of people named O'Donnell identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.2% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 95%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 1.2%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%
Black (not Hispanic) 0.5%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.3%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous O'Donnells

15 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Rosie O'Donnell
American comedian, producer, actress, and television personality, born 1962
Chris O'Donnell
American actor, born 1970
Lawrence O'Donnell
American television presenter, born 1951
Cathy O'Donnell
American actress (1923–1970)
Keir O'Donnell
Australian–American actor, born 1978
Norah O'Donnell
American television journalist who is currently a senior correspondent on CBS News and con, born 1974
Christine O'Donnell
American Tea Party politician and former Republican Party candidate, born 1969
Martin O'Donnell
American video game composer, born 1955
Guillermo O'Donnell
Argentine academic, political scientist and writer (1936-2011)
Kenneth O'Donnell
American political aide (1924-1977)
Spec O'Donnell
Actor (1911-1986)
Joe O’Donnell
American photographer (1922-2007)

Notable O'Donnells come mostly from the United States (12), Argentina (1) and Australia (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like O'Donnell

O'Daniel

O'Donnell has the Soundex code O354, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code O354.

Other Irish surnames

All 880 Irish surnames

Questions

Where does the surname O'Donnell come from?: From Irish Ó Dónaill, Ó Domhnaill (“of Domhnall”).
How common is the surname O'Donnell?: 43,460 people in the United States had the surname O'Donnell in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 7,104 Americans. It ranked 795th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname O'Donnell?: In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named O'Donnell identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
Who is the most famous person named O'Donnell?: Rosie O'Donnell, American comedian, producer, actress, and television personality, followed by Chris O'Donnell.
Where is the surname O'Donnell most common?: Wikidata records people named O'Donnell in the United States, Argentina and Australia.
Is the surname O'Donnell getting more or less common?: More common. 42,802 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 43,460 in 2010, up 1.5%.