O'Shea Surname

15,540th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 35,871 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
Ireland
Highest density in:
Ireland

O'Shea Surname Definition:

Ó Séaghdha Primarily a Kerry sept, but (as Shee) it is notable as the only Gaelic name among the “Ten Tribes of Kilkenny”. IF 266; MIF 274

O'Shea Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland14,2911:33040
England8,1741:6,816989
Australia5,5681:4,848703
United States4,4811:80,8889,194
Canada1,3961:26,3943,527
Wales6191:4,999543
New Zealand4731:9,5741,666
Scotland3411:15,7001,955
Northern Ireland1601:11,5311,740
Spain1071:436,93523,071
South Africa791:685,79449,549
Argentina491:872,31556,573
Luxembourg401:14,5143,173
Germany401:2,012,636110,053
France401:1,660,568152,033
Chile381:463,59112,075
Singapore341:161,9916,884
Netherlands261:649,50753,972
Sweden171:579,22142,433
Zimbabwe161:964,89061,721
Bermuda151:4,352690
Denmark101:564,47234,222
Philippines101:10,123,822213,993
Jersey101:9,9202,003
Thailand101:7,063,834426,148
Isle of Man91:9,5362,057
China81:170,915,1968,932
Finland81:687,08836,047
United Arab Emirates81:1,145,28440,289
Switzerland81:1,026,61463,315
Hong Kong81:916,9354,774
Qatar61:393,00055,922
Mexico51:24,825,24158,251
Belgium51:2,299,329106,824
Japan51:25,568,85950,629
India51:153,413,076951,030
South Korea41:12,810,0642,073
Cyprus41:221,2198,471
Saudi Arabia41:7,713,95437,548
Indonesia31:44,083,065698,220
Monaco31:12,3552,088
Czechia31:3,544,490144,714
Italy31:20,385,563143,117
United States Virgin Islands21:55,1886,229
Bahamas21:195,8761,708
Russia21:72,061,528727,117
Afghanistan21:16,076,59243,178
Jamaica11:2,869,94713,896
Bhutan11:616,0391,715
Algeria11:38,631,551130,422
Brazil11:214,074,3321,693,628
Costa Rica11:4,780,06913,345
Andorra11:83,8382,381
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
Ghana11:27,020,69223,742
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
Guernsey11:64,4392,137
Austria11:8,515,435118,036
Iceland11:380,09011,096
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Poland11:38,008,749231,653
Tanzania11:52,941,613123,716
Taiwan11:23,444,74693,622
Kazakhstan11:17,682,496204,010
Kenya11:46,179,900103,372
Malaysia11:29,494,225409,885
Morocco11:34,476,099111,471
Bahrain11:1,348,60810,432
Nicaragua11:6,021,0908,768
Serbia11:7,144,94838,459
Norway11:5,142,286129,201
Papua New Guinea11:8,153,717181,784
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland1,8851:2,350438
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England3511:69,4457,817
Wales341:46,1302,397
Scotland151:249,5488,553
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States1,3231:37,9584,502

O'Shea (69) may also be a first name.

O'Shea Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

Ó Séaghdha Primarily a Kerry sept, but (as Shee) it is notable as the only Gaelic name among the “Ten Tribes of Kilkenny”. IF 266; MIF 274

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

(Celtic) the Irish O'Seaghdha = Descendant of Seaghdha, i.e., Stately, Majestic [Irish seaghdha]

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

(Irish) Grandson of Seaghdha (majestic or learned).

Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

“Son of the Stately” in Erse (Seaghdha). See also Shaw.

South African Surnames (1965) by Eric Rosenthal

O'Shea Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name O'Shea Come From? nationality or country of origin

The last name O'Shea is more commonly found in Ireland than any other country/territory. It may be found as a variant:. For other possible spellings of this surname click here.

How Common Is The Last Name O'Shea? popularity and diffusion

It is the 15,540th most widespread last name internationally It is held by around 1 in 203,160 people. The surname O'Shea occurs mostly in Europe, where 67 percent of O'Shea live; 66 percent live in Northern Europe and 66 percent live in British Isles. It is also the 1,171,416th most numerous first name globally, held by 69 people.

This surname is most commonly used in Ireland, where it is held by 14,291 people, or 1 in 330. In Ireland it is mostly concentrated in: Munster, where 56 percent reside, Leinster, where 31 percent reside and Connaught, where 3 percent reside. Not including Ireland this surname occurs in 71 countries. It also occurs in England, where 23 percent reside and Australia, where 16 percent reside.

O'Shea Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of O'Shea has changed over time. In Ireland the number of people carrying the O'Shea last name expanded 758 percent between 1901 and 2014; in England it expanded 2,329 percent between 1881 and 2014; in The United States it expanded 339 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Wales it expanded 1,821 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Scotland it expanded 2,273 percent between 1881 and 2014.

O'Shea Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those carrying the last name is primarily Catholic (100%) in Ireland.

In The United States O'Shea are 53.23% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 100% being registered to vote for the party.

The amount O'Shea earn in different countries varies greatly. In United States they earn 59.79% more than the national average, earning $68,949 USD per year and in Canada they earn 7.35% more than the national average, earning $53,333 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
O'Sheea922/
Oshea9112,368/
O'Sea913/
O'Sha913/
O'She911/
O'Shea's862/
Goshea83139/
Osheha83117/
O'Shee83106/
Hoshea8365/
O'Shay8342/
O'Shei8331/
Oschea8312/
O'Shae838/
O'Shey837/
Osheap834/
Oshiea832/
Oishea832/
Ooshea831/
Osheae831/
Osheas831/
Osheea831/
O'Chea831/
O'Sheh831/
O'Shed830/
O'Sher830/
Osha805,466/
Osea801,804/
Oshe801,542/
O'Se8030/
O'Sa8014/
Hosea7330,903/
Ochea736,630/
Oishe735,499/
Oyshe731,985/
Oshie731,953/
Goshe731,753/
Ousha731,537/
Osher731,477/
Oosha73526/
Osche73487/
Hosha73479/
Oshaa73397/
Hoshe73325/
Oshai73255/
Oseas73186/
Oshei73142/
Oshay73106/
Ossea7387/
Gosea7385/
Oshet7355/
Oshee7348/
Otsea7333/
Oisha7330/
Oshey7321/
Oshoa7321/
Osuha7318/
Oscha7317/
Ousea7315/
Ashea739/
Osheh735/
Osehe734/
Osheu733/
Ohsea733/
Oshep732/
O'See732/
Oushe732/
Osihe731/
Oshaj731/
O'Seh731/
O'Che731/
Ohsha731/
Oshes730/
Oscea730/
O'Sheehy712/
O'Scheid711/
Osa6716,334/
Ose6713,739/
Oishee676,490/
Hosher672,424/
Hossea671,184/
Oyshee671,081/
Hosheh67580/
Goshai67536/
Gosche67532/
Goshay67447/
Goshey67126/
Oichea67101/
Otchea6778/
Ossher6775/
Ashead6739/
Goushe6724/
Oishei6721/
Hoscha6721/
Oysher6717/
Hoseas6717/
Oschee6717/
O'Chee6713/
Osahie6713/
Oschep6712/
Hosche6712/
Housea6710/
Gosheh679/
Hoosha679/
Oisher678/
Oshaya678/
Gooshe677/
Housha677/
Oshaia676/
Houshe675/
Hoscea675/
Hoshie674/
Gousea673/
Oschoa673/
Ashiea673/
Osouha673/
Osioha673/
Goshei673/
Osseas673/
O'Chay673/
Ousaha673/
Hoshay672/
Oshaid672/
Goshee672/
Hotshe672/
Ouchea672/
Hochea672/
Aashea672/
Hosiea672/
Ayshea672/
Hoisha672/
Oushey671/
Oschay671/
Oshsie671/
Aishea671/
Oshais671/
Osejhe671/
Oschie671/
Otsehe671/
Hosead671/
Hoshaj671/
Oszoha671/
Osshie671/
Oshche671/
Oschey671/
Oshieh671/
Oishie671/
Asheat671/
Asheea671/
Osahee671/
Oshuha671/
Osiehe671/
Oschse671/
Oshaja671/
Osuuha671/
Ossehe671/
Oshher671/
Oshaha671/
Oushaa671/
Hoshey670/
Osheid670/

Search for Another Surname

The name statistics are still in development, sign up for information on more maps and data

By signing up to the mailing list you will only receive emails specifically about name reference on Forebears and your information will not be distributed to 3rd parties.

Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to O'Shea
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis