Maclin
Son of devotion or servant of St. Moclinus.
Name Census estimates that about 414 living Americans carry the first name Maclin. It is a predominantly male name (97.4% of registrations). The average person named Maclin today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Maclin births was 2018 (42 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Maclin. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
414
~ 1 in 827,909 Americans
Peak year
2018
42 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,159
Tracked since 1996
Gender
Gender distribution for Maclin
Maclin leans heavily male at 97.4% of total registrations, but 11 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Maclin as a male name
- Ranked #5,159 in 2024
- 19 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2018 (42 births)
Maclin as a female name
- Ranked #17,429 in 2017
- 5 female births in 2017
- Peak: 2015 (6 births)
Popularity
Maclin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Maclin from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 257 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Maclin remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Maclin by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Maclin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Maclins live
Origin
Meaning and history of Maclin
The name Maclin is believed to have its origins in the Gaelic language spoken in the British Isles, particularly in Scotland and Ireland. It is thought to be a variant of the name Macklin, which itself is derived from the Gaelic surname Mac Lochlainn, meaning "son of the Norwegian."
This suggests that the name may have originated among families of Norse or Viking descent who settled in the Scottish Highlands or the Irish countryside during the medieval period. Some linguists also theorize that the name could be a diminutive or shortened form of names like Macculloch or Macalister, which have similar Gaelic roots.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Maclin can be found in the Scottish Clan histories from the 16th century, where it appears as a variant spelling of Macklin. During this time, the name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Argyll and the Western Isles of Scotland.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Maclin. One such figure was John Maclin (1604-1676), a Scottish clergyman and author who served as the Minister of Campsie parish in Stirlingshire. Another was Robert Maclin (1710-1784), a Scottish mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics.
In the realm of literature, the name Maclin appears in the works of Sir Walter Scott, the renowned Scottish novelist and poet. One of his lesser-known works, "The Bridal of Triermain," features a character named Maclin, likely inspired by the historical connections of the name to Scotland.
Crossing the Atlantic, one of the earliest recorded instances of the name Maclin in North America was that of William Maclin (1735-1819), a Scottish immigrant who settled in Virginia and fought in the American Revolutionary War.
Another notable figure was Samuel Maclin (1820-1901), an American educator and abolitionist who founded several schools for African American students in the Southern United States during the Reconstruction era after the Civil War.
While the name Maclin has its roots in the Gaelic cultures of the British Isles, it has since spread to various parts of the world, carried by families of Scottish, Irish, and sometimes even English descent. However, its historical origins and connections to the Highlands and the Western Isles of Scotland remain an integral part of its etymology and cultural significance.
People
Maclin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Maclin as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Maclin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Maclin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 414 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Maclin going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 827,909 US residents.
Is Maclin a common name?
We classify Maclin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 417 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Maclin most popular?
The single biggest year for Maclin was 2018, when 42 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Maclin is about 9 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Maclin a male name?
Yes, 97.4% of people registered as Maclin in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.