The Gaffney surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 12,805 people carried this name — #2,819 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 23,000 people counted. That is up 3% from 12,469 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Gaffney surname

Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Gamhna (“descendant of Gamhain”), a byname from gamhain (“calf”).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Gaffney» (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 68 births for the Gaffney name in 1890.

They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Leinster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 3,000 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they were born, 1890

Leinster 29
Ulster 20
Connacht 17
Munster 2

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

In Scotland’s registers today

Gaffney was recorded 29 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 845th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 41. 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

Gaffney in American newspapers,
1886–1913.

Newspaper page from The New North-west carrying the name Gaffney
The New North-west 1886-01-15
Newspaper page from The New North-west carrying the name Gaffney
The New North-west 1886-01-08
Newspaper page from Evening Times-republican carrying the name Gaffney
Evening Times-republican 1913-05-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 84,087 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Gaffney in Australian newspapers,
1830s–2000s.

21,923 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Gaffney. The most, 4,049, date from the 1930s. Queensland has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Tasmania, at 3.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 5,751
New South Wales 5,423
Tasmania 4,929
Victoria 4,005
South Australia 1,144
Western Australia 554
ACT (Canberra) 52
Northern Territory 39

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

Who carried it

People named Gaffney,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Miles Michael Gaffney
    Miles Michael Gaffney 1828–1902
  • John Gaffney
    John Gaffney 1855–1913 · baseball player
  • James E. Gaffney
    James E. Gaffney 1868–1932 · baseball player
  • Frank Gaffney
    Frank Gaffney 1883–1948 · military personnel
  • Henry Michael Gaffney
    Henry Michael Gaffney 1895–1974 · writer

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 180 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Gaffney,
in the records of 8 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 States4,283 records

4,283 records of the Gaffney name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 1,738
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 950
  • Other U.S. records 1,595
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Edward Albert Gaffney

    Born 1947; from Baltimore, Maryland. U.S. Army, tactical wire operations specialist; killed in action 1968 in Thua Thien, South Vietnam. Buried at Baltimore National Cemetery, Maryland.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Martin J. Gaffney

    Born 1909 in New York. Enlisted 1943 at New York City; bookkeeper from Queens County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1977, buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

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

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the City of New York from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 25; servant. From Meath, Ireland; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 4,283 records for Gaffney 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, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia681 records

681 records of the Gaffney name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 252
  • Tasmanian Names Index 198
  • Other Australian records 231
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Susan Frances Gaffney

    Died 1899 in Deloraine, Tasmania, aged 32. Will registered in Tasmania in 1899.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. 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 Peter Gaffney

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Earl St Vincent, arriving 1823.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Edward Gaffney

    Arrived in Victoria in 1885 aboard the Iberia, aged 51; Irish.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 681 records for Gaffney in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); 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).

Canada22 records

22 records of the Gaffney name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 10
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 4
  • Other Canadian records 8
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Thos Gaffney

    Came to Ontario in 1871 aboard the Niger, landing at Quebec, bound for Malton, Ontario; Irish.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Myles Joseph Gaffney

    Buried in 1990 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 62.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Shawn Gaffney

    Died 1960 in Dartmouth, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 22 records for Gaffney in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom16 records

16 records of the Gaffney name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 15
  • Stirling Council burial records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James Gaffney

    Buried in 1964 at Strathblane Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 59.

    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 T. Gaffney

    Royal Irish Rifles. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1919.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (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 M. Gaffney

    Army Service Corps. 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 16 records for Gaffney in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. 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).

New Zealand7 records

7 records of the Gaffney name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Matthew James Gaffney

    Died 1947, aged 34; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Julia Gaffney

    Died 1960, aged 77; buried at Memorial Park Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Patrick John Gaffney

    Died 1968, aged 75; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 7 records for Gaffney in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Netherlands2 records

2 records of the Gaffney name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 1
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 1
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Esther Mary Gaffney

    Married in 1937 in Rotterdam.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Esther Mary Gaffney

    In a population register.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (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); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Ireland1 record

1 record of the Gaffney name in Ireland County Galway graveyard records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Catherine Gaffney

    Died 1997; buried at Dunmore, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France1 record

1 record of the Gaffney name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Marcelline Gaffney

    Born 1895 in Argentina; died 1997 in Le Bois-Plage-en-Ré (Charente-Maritime).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Gaffney.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Gaffney 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.

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