2000
#96,918
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 174
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Macleish
A Scottish surname derived from a Gaelic personal name meaning "son of the poet" or "son of the gray one".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 209 Americans carry the last name Macleish. That puts it at #104,723 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,639,973 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Macleish 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.
Bearers in the US
209
1 in 1,639,973
Census rank
#104,723
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
182
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 182 bearers of the surname Macleish in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 104723rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Macleish, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.3%. The next largest groups are Black (8.8%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Macleish
The surname MACLEISH has its origins in Scotland, emerging in the late medieval period. It is derived from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Iosa," meaning "son of the servant of Jesus." This name likely originated in the western Highlands and Islands of Scotland, where Gaelic culture and naming traditions were prevalent.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the 16th century, with a reference to a Donald McLeish in the records of the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish heraldic authority, in 1542. In this document, the spelling was rendered as "McLeisch."
The MACLEISH surname has also been associated with various place names in Scotland, particularly in the regions of Argyll and Bute. For instance, the island of Islay was once known as "Ileish" or "Ileaish," which may have influenced the surname's development.
During the 17th century, several notable individuals bearing the MACLEISH surname emerged. One such figure was Archibald Macleish (1592-1668), a prominent Scottish minister who served as the moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1647.
In the 18th century, the name gained further recognition with the birth of William Macleish (1738-1818), a Scottish poet and writer who was celebrated for his works exploring Scottish culture and traditions.
Another notable figure was Sir Archibald Macleish (1795-1879), a Scottish businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of Glasgow's infrastructure and educational institutions.
Moving into the 19th century, the name MACLEISH continued to be associated with prominent individuals, such as Archibald Macleish (1836-1912), a Scottish politician and advocate for workers' rights, who served as a Member of Parliament for Glasgow.
Lastly, one of the most renowned individuals with this surname was Archibald Macleish (1892-1982), an American poet, playwright, and public servant who served as the Librarian of Congress from 1939 to 1944 and won several prestigious literary awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1959.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Macleish
Among Census respondents with the surname Macleish, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.3%. The next largest groups are Black (8.8%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Macleish 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 Macleish surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.3% · 157
- Black or African American8.8% · 16
- Two or more races2.7% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Macleish
Macleish 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
#94,311
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 194
+20 bearers (+11.5%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 2,607 places
2020
#104,723
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 182
-12 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 10,412 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #96,918 | 174 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #94,311 | 194 | 0.07 | +20 bearers (+11.5%) | Up 2,607 places |
| 2020 | #104,723 | 182 | 0.06 | -12 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 10,412 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 Macleish 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 | #94,311 | #104,723 | -11.0% |
| Count | 194 | 182 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.06 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Macleish bearers went from 194 to 182 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 10,412 positions in the national ranking, going from #94,311 to #104,723.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Macleish
FAQ
Macleish surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Macleish?
Name Census estimates that about 209 living Americans carry the surname Macleish. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,639,973 residents.
How common is Macleish?
Macleish ranks #104,723 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 182 people with the surname Macleish. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (209), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Macleish.
Has Macleish become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Macleish went from 194 recorded bearers to 182. That is a decrease of 12 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #94,311 to #104,723.
What does the Census say about the background of Macleish?
Among Census respondents with the surname Macleish, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.3%. The next largest groups are Black (8.8%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Macleish in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.3% (157 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Macleish appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.3%), Black (8.8%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Macleish (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 Macleish mean?
A Scottish surname derived from a Gaelic personal name meaning "son of the poet" or "son of the gray one". 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 Macleish (0.06 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 Macleish?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.