2000
#441
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 67,154
First available Census row
Per 100,000 24.89
Uncommon Last name
Mack
A shortened form of Irish and Scottish surnames beginning with "Mac," meaning "son of."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 80,014 Americans carry the last name Mack. That puts it at #468 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 23.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,284 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mack 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 Mack with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
80K
1 in 4,284
Census rank
#468
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
23.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
70K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 69,776 bearers of the surname Mack in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 23.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 468th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mack, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.5%. The next largest groups are White (43.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mack
The surname Mack originated in Scotland and is an Anglicized form of the Scottish Gaelic name MacAoidh or MacAoidheachd, meaning "son of Aodh" or "son of Hugh". Aodh was a common personal name in medieval Scotland, derived from the Old Irish name Áed, meaning "fire" or "ardent".
The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 12th century in various charters and documents from Scotland. One notable early bearer of the name was Gillebride Mac Aoidh, who was a witness to a charter granted by Willelmus, son of Earl Henry of Atholl, in the late 12th century.
The surname Mack appeared in various spellings throughout history, including MacAoidh, MacAidh, MacAth, and MacKay, before eventually settling on the modern Anglicized form of Mack. Many of these early variations were influenced by the different dialects and regional pronunciations of Scottish Gaelic.
The Mack surname was particularly prevalent in the northern and western regions of Scotland, including the Highlands and Islands, where the Clan MacKay was based. The Clan MacKay was a powerful highland clan that traced its ancestry back to the 13th century.
One of the earliest documented references to the Mack surname can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the 14th century, which recorded payments made to individuals with the surname Mack or MacAoidh.
Notable historical figures with the surname Mack include:
1. Donald Mack (c. 1390-1450), a Scottish nobleman and chief of the Clan MacKay.
2. John Mack (1668-1714), a Scottish Presbyterian minister and author of several theological works.
3. William Mack (1787-1857), a Scottish-born Canadian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada.
4. Gwendolyn Mack (1878-1962), an American artist and sculptor known for her portraiture and monument works.
5. Connie Mack (1862-1956), an American baseball player and manager whose real name was Cornelius McGillicuddy, but who became known by his nickname Mack.
The Mack surname has a rich history rooted in medieval Scotland, with connections to prominent clans and individuals throughout the centuries. Its origins can be traced back to the personal name Aodh, reflecting the strong Celtic and Gaelic influences on Scottish naming traditions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mack
Among Census respondents with the surname Mack, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.5%. The next largest groups are White (43.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Mack 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 Mack surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American47.5% · 33,114
- White43.4% · 30,307
- Two or more races4.4% · 3,096
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 2,301
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 599
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 359
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mack
Mack 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
#468
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 71,056
+3,902 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 24.09
Rank movement Down 27 places
2020
#468
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 69,776
-1,280 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 23.34
Rank movement No rank change
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #441 | 67,154 | 24.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #468 | 71,056 | 24.09 | +3,902 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 27 places |
| 2020 | #468 | 69,776 | 23.34 | -1,280 bearers (-1.8%) | No rank change |
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 Mack 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 | #468 | #468 | 0.0% |
| Count | 71,056 | 69,776 | -1.8% |
| Per 100K | 24.09 | 23.34 | -3.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mack bearers went from 71,056 to 69,776 (-1.8% change). The surname held its position in the national ranking, remaining at #468.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mack
FAQ
Mack surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mack?
Name Census estimates that about 80,014 living Americans carry the surname Mack. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,284 residents.
How common is Mack?
Mack ranks #468 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 23.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 23 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 69,776 people with the surname Mack. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (80,014), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 23.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 23.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 23 of them to have the surname Mack.
Has Mack become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mack went from 71,056 recorded bearers to 69,776. That is a decrease of 1,280 (-1.8%). In the national ranking it stayed at #468.
What does the Census say about the background of Mack?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mack, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.5%. The next largest groups are White (43.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mack in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.5% (33,114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mack appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (47.5%), White (43.4%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Mack (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 Mack mean?
A shortened form of Irish and Scottish surnames beginning with "Mac," meaning "son of." 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 Mack (23.34 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 Americans have the surname Mack?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.