# O'Sullivan (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/osullivan/  
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) | 11,818 |
| US rank (2010) | 3,032 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 26,125 people |
| Change since 2000 | +8.6% (10,879 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /oʊˈsʌl.əv.ən/, 4 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From Irish Ó Súilleabháin.

## Who carries it

Share of people named O'Sullivan 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) | 94% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 1.7% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.3% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.8% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.2% |
| Two or more races | 1.2% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named O'Sullivan in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Cisleithania.

## People named O'Sullivan

- Richard O'Sullivan, British actor (1944–2026)
- John L. O'Sullivan, American politician (1813-1895)
- Anthony O'Sullivan, American actor and director (1855-1920)
- Timothy H. O'Sullivan, American photographer (1840–1882)
- Patrick O'Sullivan, American ice hockey player
- Shawn O'Sullivan, boxer
- Pat Sullivan, Australian animator (1887–1933)
- Charlotte Wolter, Austrian actress (1834-1897)

## Similar surnames

Ogilvie, Ogilvy.

## 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.