Scanlon
An Irish surname, usually treated as a shortened or altered form of an older Gaelic name related to Scanlan.
The #3,101 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 26,593 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Scanlon is generally taken as an anglicized form of the Irish name Scanláin or a related Scanlan form. Older writers often connected it with a Gaelic element meaning “disgrace” or “shame,” but that kind of moralizing interpretation is not secure and should be treated cautiously. In practice, the name is best understood as part of the Scanlan/Scanlon family of Irish surnames, with the English spelling shaped by regional pronunciation and anglicization.
History
The name appears in Irish records and later in English-language surname lists in several spellings, including Scanlan, Scanlon, Scanlin, and Scanlone-like forms. The excerpts show it as established in Ireland by the 19th century, with Matheson recording it among Irish surnames and Woulfe grouping Scanlon with Scanlan variants. It is now especially associated with Ireland and the Irish diaspora, including the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
19th-century surname writers sometimes tried to derive Scanlon from a Gaelic phrase meaning “disgraced region,” but modern readers should treat that as a speculative old etymology, not a settled fact.
From the historical record
“nell. 6 ScATinlAin, Scanlan, Scanlon, Scandlon, etc. 0 SCAt5Ail, Scahill, Skahill, Schaill.”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames