2000
#685
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 45,782
First available Census row
Per 100,000 16.97
Uncommon Last name
Macdonald
Son of Donald, a patronymic surname of Scottish and Irish origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 51,747 Americans carry the last name Macdonald. That puts it at #752 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 15.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Macdonald surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Macdonald with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
52K
1 in 6,624
Census rank
#752
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
15.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
45K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 45,126 bearers of the surname Macdonald in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 15.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 752nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Macdonald, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Macdonald
The surname MacDonald has its origins in Scotland, where it first appeared in the 13th century. The name is derived from the Gaelic "Mac Dhòmhnaill," meaning "son of Donald." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name were descendants of a man named Donald.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, which mention a "Donald MacDonald" in 1292. The name was also present in other medieval Scottish records, such as the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which lists several individuals with the surname MacDonald who swore fealty to King Edward I of England.
The MacDonalds were a powerful clan in the Western Isles of Scotland, and their history is closely intertwined with the region's turbulent past. In the 14th century, the clan was led by John MacDonald, who was granted the title of Lord of the Isles by King Robert II. This marked the beginning of the MacDonalds' prominence as a dominant force in the region.
Notable historical figures bearing the MacDonald surname include:
1. Somerled MacDonald (c. 1100-1164), a Norse-Gaelic military leader and progenitor of the Clan Donald.
2. John MacDonald, Lord of the Isles (c. 1337-1386), a powerful Scottish nobleman and chief of the Clan Donald.
3. Flora MacDonald (1722-1790), a Scottish heroine who famously aided Bonnie Prince Charlie's escape after the Battle of Culloden in 1746.
4. Ramsay MacDonald (1866-1937), a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on two occasions.
5. John A. MacDonald (1815-1891), a Canadian statesman and the first Prime Minister of Canada.
The name MacDonald has also been associated with various place names, particularly in Scotland, such as Islay, where the Clan Donald had a strong presence. Over time, the spelling of the name has evolved, with variations like McDonald, MacDonell, and McDonnell emerging in different regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Macdonald
Among Census respondents with the surname Macdonald, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Macdonald bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Macdonald surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 40,826
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 1,613
- Two or more races3.2% · 1,428
- Black or African American1.3% · 603
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 476
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 180
Timeline
Historical Census data for Macdonald
Macdonald appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#744
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 46,717
+935 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 15.84
Rank movement Down 59 places
2020
#752
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 45,126
-1,591 bearers (-3.4%)
Per 100,000 15.10
Rank movement Down 8 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #685 | 45,782 | 16.97 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #744 | 46,717 | 15.84 | +935 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 59 places |
| 2020 | #752 | 45,126 | 15.10 | -1,591 bearers (-3.4%) | Down 8 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Macdonald surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #744 | #752 | -1.1% |
| Count | 46,717 | 45,126 | -3.4% |
| Per 100K | 15.84 | 15.10 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Macdonald bearers went from 46,717 to 45,126 (-3.4% change). The surname moved down 8 positions in the national ranking, going from #744 to #752.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Macdonald
FAQ
Macdonald surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Macdonald?
Name Census estimates that about 51,747 living Americans carry the surname Macdonald. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,624 residents.
How common is Macdonald?
Macdonald ranks #752 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 15.10 per 100,000 residents, which is about 15 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 45,126 people with the surname Macdonald. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (51,747), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 15.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 15.10 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 15 of them to have the surname Macdonald.
Has Macdonald become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Macdonald went from 46,717 recorded bearers to 45,126. That is a decrease of 1,591 (-3.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #744 to #752.
What does the Census say about the background of Macdonald?
Among Census respondents with the surname Macdonald, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Macdonald in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (40,826 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Macdonald appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (3.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Macdonald (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Macdonald mean?
Son of Donald, a patronymic surname of Scottish and Irish origin. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Macdonald (15.10 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Macdonald?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Macdonald on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.