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

McAlister, 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 McAlister surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McAlister in America

McAlister is the 3078th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McAlister surname appeared 11,665 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname McAlister.

We can also compare 2010 data for McAlister 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 McAlister

The surname McAlister originated in Scotland during the medieval period. It is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name "Mac Alasdair," meaning "son of Alasdair." Alasdair is the Scottish Gaelic form of the name Alexander, which ultimately derives from the Greek name "Alexandros," meaning "defender of men."

The McAlister surname is associated with the Scottish clan MacAlister, which traces its roots to the Hebrides islands off the western coast of Scotland. The clan's traditional territory was centered on the island of Arran, where they held lands and influenced as early as the 13th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the McAlister name appears in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from 1264, which mentions a "Gillascop MacAleister." The name is also found in various other medieval Scottish records, including the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which includes the names of Scottish landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England.

The McAlister surname has a long and storied history in Scotland, with many notable individuals bearing the name. One of the most prominent was Sir Archibald McAlister, who served as Lord High Treasurer of Scotland in the 15th century. Another notable figure was John McAlister (1790-1869), a Scottish-born businessman who became one of the wealthiest landowners in Australia.

Other historical figures with the McAlister surname include:

1. Angus McAlister (1809-1897), a Scottish-born Canadian politician and businessman.
2. William McAlister (1891-1956), a Scottish footballer who played for Rangers and the Scottish national team.
3. Loughlin McAlister (1777-1853), an Irish-born Catholic priest and educator in the United States.
4. Robert McAlister (1675-1743), a Scottish minister and writer who authored several theological works.
5. Sir John McAlister (1837-1913), a British colonial administrator who served as Lieutenant Governor of Punjab in India.

Over time, the McAlister surname has spread beyond Scotland to various parts of the world, including England, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and the United States, as members of the clan and their descendants migrated and settled in new territories.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McAlister

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

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 McAlister 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 McAlister 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 McAlister was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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