The Breslin surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,490 people carried this name — #7,418 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 65,800 people counted. That is up 4% from 4,326 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Breslin surname

Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Breisláin (“descendant of Breisleán”), a diminutive of the personal name Breasal.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Breslin» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 43 births for the Breslin name in 1890.

Most were registered in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 1,900 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. One of them was indexed under another spelling of the name. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Donegal.”

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born, 1890

Ulster 29
Leinster 13
Munster 1

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In the Nordic population registers

40 people named Breslin is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 40

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

In Scotland’s registers today

Breslin was recorded 10 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 1929th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 27. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In print

Breslin in American newspapers,
1911–1920.

Newspaper page from The Bennington Evening Banner carrying the name Breslin
The Bennington Evening Banner 1911-04-25
Newspaper page from Essex County Herald carrying the name Breslin
Essex County Herald 1913-06-27
Newspaper page from The Chattanooga News carrying the name Breslin
The Chattanooga News 1920-11-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 15,993 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Breslin in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1980s.

2,410 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Breslin. The most, 865, date from the 1910s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Queensland, at 3.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 1,746
New South Wales 267
Victoria 164
South Australia 131
Western Australia 66
Tasmania 20
ACT (Canberra) 7

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Breslin.

Who carried it

People named Breslin,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John G. Breslin
    John G. Breslin 1824–1889 · politician
  • Herbert Breslin
    Herbert Breslin 1924–2012 · opinion journalist
  • Edward Breslin 1882–1914 · politician
  • Cormac Breslin 1902–1978 · politician
  • Cormac Breslin 1902–1978 · politician
  • Padraic Breslin 1907–1942 · translator

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Breslin,
in the records of 5 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States1,353 records

1,353 records of the Breslin name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 665
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 190
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 172
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 121
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 97
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 61
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 42
  • Sacramento County historic burials 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Leonard J. Breslin

    Born 1907 in California. Enlisted 1942 at Minter Field Bakersfield; checker. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1997, buried at San Francisco National Cemetery, California.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Ellen Breslin

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Germanic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 22; domestic. From Belfast, Ireland; bound for Chicago.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Patrick John Breslin

    Born 1952; from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. U.S. Army, aircraft maintenance apprentice; died in an accident 1971 in Quang Tin, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 1,353 records for Breslin in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia119 records

119 records of the Breslin name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 63
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 37
  • Tasmanian Names Index 9
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 6
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 2
  • Canberra cemetery and marriage records 1
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 1
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record James Breslin

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Navarino, sailing from Kingston in 1842. Native of Fermanagh.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Sarah Breslin

    Arrived in Queensland in 1871 aboard the Indus, aged 21.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record John Patrick Breslin

    Computer programmer of Aspendale, Victoria; died 1994.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 119 records for Breslin in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

United Kingdom8 records

8 records of the Breslin name in the United Kingdom
  • Stirling Council burial records 4
  • Scottish rolls of honour, First World War 3
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record George Breslin

    Died 1984, aged 76; buried at St Thomas Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record James Breslin

    Died 1916. Named in the roll of honour (1926).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record G. Breslin

    Northumberland Fusiliers. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 8 records for Breslin in the United Kingdom.

Counts: Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Canada7 records

7 records of the Breslin name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 5
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record John Arthur Breslin

    Died in service in 1918.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  2. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record John Breslin

    Died in service in 1944.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  3. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record D. Breslin

    British Columbia Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 7 records for Breslin in Canada.

Counts: Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Breslin name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Christiaen Breslin

    Married in 1702 in Grave.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Breslin.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Breslin is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See the Breslin volume
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