2000
#13,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,058
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Mcadam
Son of Adam, a patronymic surname of Scottish and Irish origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,437 Americans carry the last name Mcadam. That puts it at #13,656 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 140,646 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcadam 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 Mcadam with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 140,646
Census rank
#13,656
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,125 bearers of the surname Mcadam in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13656th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcadam, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcadam
The surname MCADAM originated in Scotland, with the earliest recorded examples dating back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Scottish Gaelic name "MacAidh," which means "son of Adam." The name is believed to have originated in Argyll and the surrounding areas of western Scotland.
The MCADAM name first appeared in written records in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which recorded the names of Scottish nobles and landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. In the Ragman Rolls, the name appeared as "McAdam" and "McAdame," which were early spelling variations.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the MCADAM surname was John McAdam, who lived in the late 14th century and was a prominent landowner in Ayrshire. Another notable MCADAM was Robert McAdam, who was born in 1491 and served as the Provost of Edinburgh in the early 16th century.
The MCADAM name is also associated with several place names in Scotland, such as the village of McAdamstown in Renfrewshire, which was likely named after a local landowner with the MCADAM surname.
One of the most famous individuals with the MCADAM surname was John Loudon McAdam (1756-1836), a Scottish engineer and road builder. He is credited with developing the "macadamized" road construction technique, which involved using layers of compacted crushed stone to create smooth and durable road surfaces.
Another notable MCADAM was Sir Robert McAdam (1865-1953), a British civil engineer and architect who was involved in the construction of several notable buildings and infrastructure projects, including the Admiralty Citadel in Plymouth and the Port of Liverpool.
William McAdam (1831-1877) was a Scottish-born American politician who served as the Mayor of Brooklyn, New York, in the late 19th century. He was also a prominent businessman and landowner in the area.
The MCADAM surname has also been associated with other historical figures, such as James McAdam (1838-1916), a Scottish-born Australian engineer and railway builder, and Thomas McAdam (1836-1908), a Scottish-born Australian politician and businessman.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcadam
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcadam, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcadam 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 Mcadam surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.8% · 1,865
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 90
- Two or more races2.9% · 61
- Black or African American2.6% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 45
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcadam
Mcadam 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
#14,184
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,117
+59 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 644 places
2020
#13,656
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,125
+8 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Up 528 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,540 | 2,058 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,184 | 2,117 | 0.72 | +59 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 644 places |
| 2020 | #13,656 | 2,125 | 0.71 | +8 bearers (+0.4%) | Up 528 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 Mcadam 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 | #14,184 | #13,656 | 3.7% |
| Count | 2,117 | 2,125 | 0.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.71 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcadam bearers went from 2,117 to 2,125 (+0.4% change). The surname moved up 528 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,184 to #13,656.
FAQ
Mcadam surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcadam?
Name Census estimates that about 2,437 living Americans carry the surname Mcadam. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 140,646 residents.
How common is Mcadam?
Mcadam ranks #13,656 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,125 people with the surname Mcadam. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,437), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Mcadam.
Has Mcadam become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcadam went from 2,117 recorded bearers to 2,125. That is an increase of 8 (+0.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,184 to #13,656.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcadam?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcadam, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Mcadam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.8% (1,865 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcadam appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.8%), Hispanic (4.2%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Mcadam (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 Mcadam mean?
Son of Adam, 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 Mcadam (0.71 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 common is the surname Mcadam?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Mcadam, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.