The Regan surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 21,951 people carried this name — #1,642 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,400 people counted. That is up 2% from 21,624 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Regan surname

A surname from Irish from Irish Ó Riagáin, variant of Reagan.

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

As a surname in the United Kingdom

Harrison classes it as a Celtic name: ‘Kinglet’.

From the Irish Riagán: rí, “a king”, with a double diminutive.

From Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. II (London: The Morland Press, 1918), p. 108 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 219 births for the Regan name in 1890.

They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Munster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 9,700 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Cork, Roscommon, and Mayo.”

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they were born, 1890

Munster 110
Connacht 80
Leinster 20
Ulster 9

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

In Argentina’s national register

At least 60 people named Regan live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

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

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 60

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 23 people named Regan.

8 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 6 départements, most often Côtes-d’Armor.

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

Where they were born

Born outside France 8
Côtes-d’Armor 8
Bouches-du-Rhône 2
Gard 2
Haute-Garonne 1
Morbihan 1
Rhône 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In Scotland’s registers today

Regan was recorded 23 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 1041st most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 20. 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 the first U.S. census, 1790

54 families named Regan, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 289 people lived in those households, 5.4 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 13 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

North Carolina 22
Virginia 9
South Carolina 9
Pennsylvania 8
Maryland 5
New York 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 258 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Regan in American newspapers,
1910–1922.

Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Regan
Daily Kennebec Journal 1922-06-22
Newspaper page from The Chicago Citizen carrying the name Regan
The Chicago Citizen 1910-11-05
Newspaper page from The Port Gibson Reveille carrying the name Regan
The Port Gibson Reveille 1911-09-07

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 3,366 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Regan in Australian newspapers,
1830s–2000s.

40,617 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Regan. The most, 7,323, date from the 1930s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in New South Wales, at 1.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 19,815
Victoria 5,886
Western Australia 4,603
Queensland 4,419
South Australia 3,265
Tasmania 2,085
ACT (Canberra) 440
Northern Territory 43

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

Who carried it

People named Regan,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Warren Regan
    John Warren Regan 1833– · politician
  • Frank S. Regan
    Frank S. Regan 1862–1944 · businessperson
  • Bill Regan
    Bill Regan 1873–1934 · association football player
  • Charles Tate Regan
    Charles Tate Regan 1878–1943 · zoologist
  • John E. Regan, Sr.
    John E. Regan, Sr. 1883–1946 · politician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped — Bill Regan: Thebees1889, CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0); John E. Regan, Sr.: Unknown authorUnknown author, CC BY 3.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0); the others are in the public domain or CC0 · 213 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Regan,
in the records of 9 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 States8,107 records

8,107 records of the Regan name in the United States
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 2,744
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 2,582
  • Other U.S. records 2,781
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Robert W. Regan

    Born 1931; from Suffolk County, Massachusetts. U.S. Army, light weapons infantryman; killed in action 1950 in South Korea. Buried at Woodlawn 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 George F. Regan

    Born 1913 in Connecticut. Enlisted 1942 at Hartford; policeman from Fairfield County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1999, buried at Massachusetts National Cemetery, Massachusetts.

    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 Julia Regan

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the City of Berlin from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 19; servant. From Kerry, Ireland; bound for New York.

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

Showing 3 of 8,107 records for Regan in the United States.

Counts: 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. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · 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) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (public domain). 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).

Australia1,508 records

1,508 records of the Regan name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 630
  • Tasmanian Names Index 350
  • Other Australian records 528
  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 Eliza Jane Regan

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Midlothian, sailing from Kingston in 1852. Native of Armagh. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1856. Married 1856 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 20.

    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 John Regan

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Duke of Richmond, sailing from Kingston in 1843. Native of Cork. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1850.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. 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 Mary Regan

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Australasia, sailing from Dublin in 1849. Native of Cork. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1852. Married 1852 in Bothwell, Tasmania, aged 23.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 1,508 records for Regan 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) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0). 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).

Canada217 records

217 records of the Regan name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 155
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 18
  • Other Canadian records 44
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record John Regan

    Came to Ontario in 1873 aboard the Prussian, landing at Quebec, bound for Petrolia, Ontario; Scotch.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Bruce Regan

    Killed in 1891 at the Springhill Mine, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Janet Ure Regan

    Buried in 1971 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 57.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 217 records for Regan 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. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom43 records

43 records of the Regan name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 33
  • Stirling Council burial records 5
  • Other British records 5
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Helen Regan

    Died 1971, aged 50; buried at Dunblane Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Julia Theresa Regan

    Will proved in 1927; of Carmarthen, Carmarthen.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  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. Regan

    King's Own Scottish Borderers. 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 43 records for Regan 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. · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); 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).

New Zealand20 records

20 records of the Regan name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 14
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 5
  • 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 Olive Maytel Regan

    Died 1982, aged 78; buried at Ruru Lawn, 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 John Davis Regan

    Buried in 1933 at Buffalo Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 73.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Livre d’or of the French war dead, Paris
    Example: roll of the war dead
    War record L. Regan

    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 20 records for Regan in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · 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); Livre d’or of the war dead, Paris, Ministère des pensions, Archives nationales (CC0).

France10 records

10 records of the Regan 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 Daryl Norman Regan

    Born 1962 in Great Britain; died 1998 in Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Marie Marguerite Regan

    Born 1913 in Plouguernével; died 1991 in Rostrenen (Côtes-d'Armor).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 10 records for Regan in France.

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).

Ireland8 records

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

    Died 1993, aged 39; buried at Clonburn, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mary Regan

    Died 1998, aged 52; buried at Mountbellew, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 8 records for Regan in Ireland.

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).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Regan name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Magriet Regan

    Buried in 1704 in Bergen op Zoom.

    Open Archives, West Brabants Archief (CC BY 4.0)

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

Germany1 record

1 record of the Regan name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Kaspar Regan

    From Oberwittelsbach, Schwaben. Reported wounded in the Bavarian casualty list of 18 December 1914 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 17).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Regan.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Regan 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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