The Looney surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 12,910 people carried this name — #2,795 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 22,800 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (12,955).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Looney surname

Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Luanaigh (“descendant of Luanach”), a personal name based on Middle Irish lúan (“light, warrior's halo, warrior”).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Looney» (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 23 births for the Looney name in 1890.

Most were registered in Munster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 1,000 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: “Cork and Clare.”

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

Where they were born, 1890

Munster 23

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

In print

Looney in American newspapers,
1888–1894.

Newspaper page from Barton County Democrat carrying the name Looney
Barton County Democrat 1888-10-18
Newspaper page from Barton County Democrat carrying the name Looney
Barton County Democrat 1888-10-18
Newspaper page from The Portland Daily Press carrying the name Looney
The Portland Daily Press 1894-12-07

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,761 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Looney in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

5,638 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Looney. The most, 955, date from the 1900s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 2.0 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 2,485
New South Wales 2,291
South Australia 294
Western Australia 231
Queensland 202
Tasmania 126
ACT (Canberra) 5
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Looney,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Looney 1782–1846
  • Jesse Walton Looney 1801–1869
  • Robert F. Looney 1824–1899 · military officer
  • Elizabeth Looney 1843–1933
  • B. F. Looney 1859–1951 · politician
  • Mary Looney 1886–1961 · nurse

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Looney,
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 States1,475 records

1,475 records of the Looney name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 499
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 356
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 279
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 183
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 60
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 57
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 30
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 8
  • Sacramento County historic burials 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Edward Michael Looney

    Born 1948; from New York, New York. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1967 in Binh Dinh, South Vietnam. Buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    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 Udell C. Looney

    Born 1916 in Missouri. Enlisted 1942 at Jefferson Barracks; bookblack from Greene County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1984, buried at Springfield National Cemetery, Missouri.

    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 Ellen Looney

    Arrived at New York in 1882 aboard the Germanic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 23; servant. From Queenstown, Ireland; bound for New York.

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

Showing 3 of 1,475 records for Looney in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · 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 · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). 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).

Australia314 records

314 records of the Looney name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 176
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 80
  • Tasmanian Names Index 32
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 16
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 7
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 3
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Mary Looney

    Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1854. Married 1854 in Richmond, Tasmania, aged 18.

    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 Patrick Looney

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Blenheim, arriving 1834; ticket of leave 1839. Native of Cork.

    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 John Looney

    Arrived in Victoria in 1857 aboard the Merrie England, aged 28; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 314 records for Looney in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (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).

United Kingdom7 records

7 records of the Looney name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 5
  • Welsh wills index cards 1
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Michael Looney

    Will proved in 1926; of Swansea.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record J. Looney

    Royal Berkshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    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 D. Looney

    Royal Munster Fusiliers. 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 Looney in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Canada2 records

2 records of the Looney name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 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 Timothy Looney

    Died in service in 1920.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Birth record Arthur Looney

    Born 1922 in North Sydney, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

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

Counts: Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

New Zealand2 records

2 records of the Looney name in New Zealand
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Patrick Looney

    Died 1971, aged 70; buried at Memorial Park Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Livre d’or of the French war dead, Paris
    Example: roll of the war dead
    War record J. Looney

    New Zealand, Infantry. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

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

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · 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); Livre d’or of the war dead, Paris, Ministère des pensions, Archives nationales (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Looney.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Looney 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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