The Sullivan surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 220,990 people carried this name — #105 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,330 people counted. That is up 2% from 215,640 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Sullivan surname
Clipping of O'Sullivan. From Irish Ó Súilleabháin.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Sullivan» (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 839 births for the Sullivan 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 37,200 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. One of them was indexed under another spelling of the name.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born, 1890
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 393 people named Sullivan 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.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
90 people named Sullivan live in Switzerland.
They live in 8 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 68 people named Sullivan.
Most of them — 42 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 4 départements, most often Pas-de-Calais.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In the Nordic population registers
125 people named Sullivan are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
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) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Sullivan in American newspapers,
1885–1938.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,614,469 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Sullivan,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Jeremiah Sullivan 1794–1870 · judge -
Yankee Sullivan 1811–1856 · boxer -
Barry Sullivan 1821–1891 · actor -
Algernon Sydney Sullivan 1826–1887 · lawyer -
Timothy Daniel Sullivan 1827–1914 · poet
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 214 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Sullivan.
- Suel 224 · U.S. census
- Sugg 2,568 · U.S. census
- Suhr 2,717 · U.S. census
- Suire 1,108 · U.S. census
- Suissa 180 · U.S. census
- Sulkowski 769 · U.S. census
- Sully 757 · U.S. census
- Sultan 3,363 · U.S. census
- Sultana 3,471 · U.S. census
- Sulzer 839 · U.S. census
- Sum 1,482 · U.S. census
- Sun 24,058 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Sullivan 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.