Find out how popular the last name Mac is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Mac.

Mac, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Mac surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mac in America

Mac is the 13171st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mac surname appeared 2,321 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Mac.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mac to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Mac

Mac is a prefix that originated from the Scottish Gaelic language, derived from the word 'mac' which means 'son of'. This prefix was commonly used in Scottish and Irish surnames to indicate the paternal lineage of an individual.

The surname Mac has its roots in the Highlands of Scotland, where clans and families would use this prefix to denote their ancestral ties. It is believed to have emerged as early as the 12th century, during the rise of the feudal system in Scotland.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Mac can be found in the Ragman Rolls, a series of parchment rolls that documented the swearing of fealty to King Edward I of England by Scottish nobles and landowners in the late 13th century. Several individuals with the surname Mac, or variations of it, are listed in these rolls.

The Mac surname is also closely associated with various Scottish place names, such as Macbeth (from the town of Beith), Macdonald (from the Gaelic 'Domhnall'), and Macgregor (from the Gaelic 'Griogair'). These place names often reflected the origins or territories of the clans bearing these surnames.

Notable individuals throughout history who have borne the surname Mac include:

1. Alasdair Mac Colla (c. 1610-1647), a Scottish military leader during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.
2. Flora Macdonald (1722-1790), a Scottish Jacobite heroine who assisted Bonnie Prince Charlie in his escape after the Battle of Culloden.
3. John Macadam (1756-1836), a Scottish engineer and road builder who pioneered the use of crushed stone for road construction, leading to the term 'macadamized road'.
4. George Macartney (1737-1806), an Irish diplomat and statesman who served as the Governor of the British territories in West Africa and the Caribbean.
5. Andrew Macbeth (c. 1604-1657), a Scottish minister and author who wrote a notable work on the Scottish Reformation.

The surname Mac has undergone various spelling variations throughout history, such as Mack, Mc, and M', reflecting regional dialectal differences and personal preferences. However, the core meaning and significance of the prefix have remained intact, representing a powerful connection to Scottish and Irish heritage and ancestry.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mac

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Mac.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Mac was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Mac has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Mac was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Mac, please contact us.

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