NameCensus.

UK surname

Donlan

A surname of Irish origin meaning "descendant of the brown or tawny one."

In the 1881 census there were 207 people recorded with the Donlan surname, ranking it #12,555 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 508, ranked #9,877, up from #12,555 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Halifax, Eccles and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Kirklees, Warrington and Cornwall.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Donlan is 546 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 145.4%.

1881 census count

207

Ranked #12,555

Modern count

508

2016, ranked #9,877

Peak year

2010

546 bearers

Map years

8

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Donlan had 207 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,555 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 508 in 2016, ranked #9,877.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 284 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Donlan surname distribution map

The map shows where the Donlan surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Donlan surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Donlan over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 44 #25,328
1861 historical 127 #17,469
1881 historical 207 #12,555
1891 historical 211 #14,366
1901 historical 284 #12,093
1911 historical 284 #11,862
1997 modern 494 #9,384
1998 modern 492 #9,715
1999 modern 506 #9,574
2000 modern 504 #9,575
2001 modern 489 #9,629
2002 modern 522 #9,349
2003 modern 506 #9,404
2004 modern 505 #9,453
2005 modern 503 #9,405
2006 modern 518 #9,232
2007 modern 514 #9,376
2008 modern 509 #9,513
2009 modern 523 #9,530
2010 modern 546 #9,408
2011 modern 540 #9,420
2012 modern 525 #9,526
2013 modern 534 #9,564
2014 modern 520 #9,803
2015 modern 513 #9,836
2016 modern 508 #9,877

Geography

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Where Donlans are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Halifax, Eccles, Manchester, Liverpool and Walsall. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Kirklees, Warrington and Cornwall. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Halifax Yorkshire, West Riding
2 Eccles Lancashire
3 Manchester Lancashire
4 Liverpool Lancashire
5 Walsall Staffordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Kirklees 016 Kirklees
2 Kirklees 005 Kirklees
3 Warrington 008 Warrington
4 Cornwall 018 Cornwall
5 Cornwall 021 Cornwall

Forenames

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First names often paired with Donlan

These lists show first names that appear often with the Donlan surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Donlan

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Donlan, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Donlan surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Donlan household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Donlan is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Donlan is most concentrated in decile 9 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

9
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Donlan falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Donlan is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - Irish

This describes the area pattern most associated with Donlan, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Donlan

The surname DONLAN is an anglicized form of the ancient Irish Gaelic name Ó Donnalláin, which originated in County Limerick, Ireland. The name likely derives from the Gaelic words "donn" meaning brown or dark, and "lán" meaning full or complete, suggesting it may have referred to someone with a dark complexion or hair color.

DONLAN is a variant spelling of the more common Irish surnames Donnellan and Donellan. Some of the earliest records of this name appear in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, dating back to the 12th century. The name is also found in the Pipe Rolls of County Limerick from the 13th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the DONLAN surname is found in the 1659 Census of Ireland, where a Michael Donlan was listed as residing in County Limerick. The name also appears in various land and property records from the 17th and 18th centuries in Counties Limerick and Clare.

Notable individuals with the DONLAN surname include:

1. Patrick Donlan (1849-1923), an Irish-American politician who served as the 44th Governor of Idaho from 1923 to 1927. 2. James Donlan (1872-1949), an Irish-American labor leader and co-founder of the United Mine Workers of America. 3. Mary Donlan (1878-1954), an Irish-born American vaudeville performer and actress. 4. Thomas Donlan (1891-1968), an Irish-American artist and illustrator known for his works depicting scenes of rural Ireland. 5. Michael Donlan (1925-2010), an Irish-American author and historian who wrote extensively on the Irish diaspora in America.

The DONLAN surname has also been associated with various place names in Ireland, particularly in counties Limerick and Clare, such as Donlanstown and Donlansfort, which may have been named after early bearers of the name who settled in those areas.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Donlan families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Donlan surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Lancashire leads with 122 Donlans recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.09x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 122 5.09x
Staffordshire 40 5.87x
Cheshire 15 3.37x
Yorkshire 12 0.60x
Derbyshire 10 3.16x
Middlesex 3 0.15x
Caernarfonshire 1 1.22x
Devon 1 0.24x
Dunbartonshire 1 1.84x
Durham 1 0.17x
Warwickshire 1 0.20x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Manchester in Lancashire leads with 31 Donlans recorded in 1881 and an index of 28.77x.

Place Total Index
Manchester 31 28.77x
Barton Upon Irwell 17 94.24x
Walsall Foreign 17 48.28x
Widnes 15 86.81x
Newcastle Under Lyme 14 116.09x
Warrington 13 45.77x
Mottram 10 495.05x
Ludworth 9 604.03x
Chorlton Cum Hardy 7 440.25x
Everton 7 9.17x
Blackburn 6 9.41x
Hulme 6 12.00x
Great Barr 4 512.82x
Handsworth 4 75.61x
Liverpool 4 2.75x
Pennington In Leigh 4 86.96x
Worsley 4 27.08x
Salford 3 4.26x
Trentham 3 51.72x
Bradford 2 4.13x
Grappenhall 2 370.37x
Huddersfield 2 6.86x
Brandon Byshottles 1 13.28x
Brightside Bierlow 1 2.55x
Burtonwood 1 113.64x
Clerkenwell London 1 2.10x
Conway 1 63.29x
Coventry St Michael 1 6.11x
Derby St Werburgh 1 5.48x
Hampstead London 1 3.18x
Hoyland Nether 1 20.37x
Hyde 1 7.60x
Kirkdale 1 2.48x
Leftwich 1 50.51x
Lidford 1 52.91x
Lymm 1 30.86x
Middlesbrough 1 3.84x
Openshaw 1 8.91x
Penkridge 1 56.82x
Preston 1 1.56x
Row 1 14.25x
West Derby 1 1.43x
Whitechapel London 1 5.03x
Whittington 1 71.94x
York St Denis In 1 113.64x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Donlan surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 22
Bridget 10
Catherine 9
Margaret 8
Ellen 5
Annie 4
Sarah 4
Agnes 3
Ann 3
Kate 3
Anne 2
Elizabeth 2
Jane 2
Anna 1
Cathrine 1
Eliza 1
Ellin 1
Evangeline 1
Hannah 1
Harriet 1
Honor 1
Honoria 1
Lavina 1
Lucy 1
Magaret 1
Margret 1
Margt. 1
Maria 1
Martin 1
Maud 1
Rose 1
Roseann 1
Sabina 1
Selina 1
Teresa 1
Winifred 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Donlan surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
John 30
James 20
Thomas 14
Patrick 9
Michael 8
Martin 3
Peter 3
Andrew 1
Bernard 1
Charles 1
Denis 1
Edward 1
Francis 1
George 1
Henry 1
J.W. 1
Jacob 1
Joseph 1
Keerin 1
Luke 1
Mathias 1
Matthias 1
Patsey 1
William 1

FAQ

Donlan surname: questions and answers

How common was the Donlan surname in 1881?

In 1881, 207 people were recorded with the Donlan surname. That placed it at #12,555 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Donlan surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 508 in 2016. That gives Donlan a modern rank of #9,877.

What does the Donlan surname mean?

A surname of Irish origin meaning "descendant of the brown or tawny one."

What does the Donlan map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Donlan bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.