Surnames by county · Munster
Most common surnames in County Cork
O'Sullivan was the commonest surname in Co. Cork in 1911: 15,797 people, about one resident in 25. It was followed by Murphy, McCarthy, Donovan and O'Mahony.
Counts are people living in the county on census night, with spelling variants combined (Sullivan and O'Sullivan count as one name).
The 25 commonest names, 1911
| # | Surname | People | Per 10,000 | 1901 | 1926 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | O'Sullivan | 15,797 | 402 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Murphy | 14,107 | 359 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | McCarthy | 10,680 | 272 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Donovan | 7,250 | 184 | 4 | 4 |
| 5 | O'Mahony | 6,583 | 168 | 5 | 5 |
| 6 | O'Brien | 5,957 | 152 | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | O'Leary | 5,320 | 135 | 7 | 7 |
| 8 | Walsh | 5,151 | 131 | 8 | 8 |
| 9 | O'Callaghan | 4,514 | 115 | 11 | 11 |
| 10 | Driscoll | 4,484 | 114 | 9 | 10 |
| 11 | O'Connell | 4,460 | 114 | 10 | 12 |
| 12 | O'Connor | 4,378 | 111 | 14 | 9 |
| 13 | Barry | 4,321 | 110 | 12 | 14 |
| 14 | Collins | 4,270 | 109 | 13 | 13 |
| 15 | Crowley | 4,022 | 102 | 15 | 15 |
| 16 | Cronin | 3,806 | 97 | 16 | 17 |
| 17 | Buckley | 3,769 | 96 | 17 | 16 |
| 18 | Sheehan | 3,540 | 90 | 18 | 18 |
| 19 | Daly | 3,462 | 88 | 19 | 21 |
| 20 | O'Regan | 3,338 | 85 | 21 | 20 |
| 21 | O'Keeffe | 3,317 | 84 | 20 | 19 |
| 22 | Lynch | 3,102 | 79 | 23 | 24 |
| 23 | Riordan | 3,100 | 79 | 25 | 23 |
| 24 | Kelleher | 3,001 | 76 | 22 | 22 |
| 25 | Hurley | 2,921 | 74 | 24 | 26 |
The 1901 and 1926 columns give the name's rank in the county in that year; a dash means it was outside the top 40. Linked names have a full page with meaning, Irish forms and history.
Names most typical of Cork
Among the 100 commonest Irish surnames, these were the most over-represented in Co. Cork in 1911, compared with their share of Ireland's population as a whole.
- Donovan 8.52× 7,250 people · 184 per 10,000
- O'Mahony 6.68× 6,583 people · 168 per 10,000
- O'Leary 6.04× 5,320 people · 135 per 10,000
- McCarthy 5.91× 10,680 people · 272 per 10,000
- Barry 5.17× 4,321 people · 110 per 10,000
- Sheehan 5.02× 3,538 people · 90 per 10,000
- O'Regan 4.99× 3,338 people · 85 per 10,000
- O'Sullivan 4.88× 15,797 people · 402 per 10,000
- O'Keeffe 4.75× 3,317 people · 84 per 10,000
- O'Callaghan 4.58× 4,514 people · 115 per 10,000
Questions about surnames in Cork
What is the most common surname in County Cork?
In the 1911 census the most common surname in Co. Cork was O'Sullivan, with 15,797 people, or about one resident in 25. The next most common were Murphy, McCarthy, Donovan and O'Mahony. O'Sullivan was still the commonest name in 1926.
Which surnames are most typical of County Cork?
Compared with Ireland as a whole, the names most over-represented in Co. Cork in 1911 (among the 100 commonest Irish surnames) were Donovan (8.52× the national rate), O'Mahony (6.68× the national rate), O'Leary (6.04× the national rate).
Ancestors from County Cork?
Browse every townland and household in Co. Cork in the 1901, 1911 and 1926 censuses.