2000
#8,437
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,598
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.33
Rare Last name
Mcalpine
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "son of Alpin" in Gaelic.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,243 Americans carry the last name Mcalpine. That puts it at #8,540 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 80,781 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcalpine 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 Mcalpine with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.2K
1 in 80,781
Census rank
#8,540
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,700 bearers of the surname Mcalpine in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8540th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcalpine, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.7%) and Hispanic (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcalpine
The surname McAlpine is of Scottish origin, originating from the Gaelic "Mac Ailpein" meaning "son of Alpin" or "son of the great warrior". It is believed to have originated in the Kingdom of Dalriada, an ancient region spanning parts of western Scotland and northern Ireland, during the 6th to 9th centuries AD.
The name is thought to be derived from the ancient Scottish king Alpin, who ruled the Kingdom of Dalriada in the 8th century. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval Scottish records, such as the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which listed individuals who had sworn allegiance to King Edward I of England.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname McAlpine was Sir John McAlpine, a Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce during the Scottish Wars of Independence in the early 14th century. Another early figure was Duncan McAlpine, a 15th-century Scottish laird and chieftain of the McAlpine clan.
In the 16th century, the McAlpine family established themselves as notable landowners and prominent figures in the counties of Argyll and Ayr, with their ancestral lands centered around the area of Loch Fyne. A notable figure from this period was Sir John McAlpine of Kenmore, who played a significant role in the Reformation in Scotland.
As the name spread beyond its Scottish origins, it also took on various spellings, such as MacAlpine, McAlpin, and McAlpine. One notable bearer of the name in the 17th century was Sir Robert McAlpine, a Scottish merchant and landowner who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1668 to 1670.
In more recent history, the McAlpine family has produced several notable figures, including Sir Robert McAlpine (1847-1934), the founder of the construction company Sir Robert McAlpine & Sons, and his grandson Sir William McAlpine (1936-2018), who served as a Conservative Member of Parliament and was a successful businessman.
Other notable individuals with the surname McAlpine include the Scottish-Canadian author and poet Alistair MacAlpine (1850-1924), the British actor Ian McAlpine (1909-2003), and the Australian cricketer Rodney McAlpine (1960-2001).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcalpine
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcalpine, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.7%) and Hispanic (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcalpine 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 Mcalpine surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.5% · 2,795
- Black or African American15.7% · 580
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 149
- Two or more races3.6% · 135
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcalpine
Mcalpine 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
#8,814
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,714
+116 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Down 377 places
2020
#8,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,700
-14 bearers (-0.4%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Up 274 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,437 | 3,598 | 1.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,814 | 3,714 | 1.26 | +116 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 377 places |
| 2020 | #8,540 | 3,700 | 1.24 | -14 bearers (-0.4%) | Up 274 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 Mcalpine 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 | #8,814 | #8,540 | 3.1% |
| Count | 3,714 | 3,700 | -0.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.26 | 1.24 | -1.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcalpine bearers went from 3,714 to 3,700 (-0.4% change). The surname moved up 274 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,814 to #8,540.
FAQ
Mcalpine surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcalpine?
Name Census estimates that about 4,243 living Americans carry the surname Mcalpine. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 80,781 residents.
How common is Mcalpine?
Mcalpine ranks #8,540 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.24 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 3,700 people with the surname Mcalpine. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,243), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.24 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 Mcalpine.
Has Mcalpine become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcalpine went from 3,714 recorded bearers to 3,700. That is a decrease of 14 (-0.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,814 to #8,540.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcalpine?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcalpine, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.7%) and Hispanic (4.0%). 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 Mcalpine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.5% (2,795 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcalpine appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.5%), Black (15.7%), Hispanic (4.0%). 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 Mcalpine (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 Mcalpine mean?
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "son of Alpin" in Gaelic. 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 Mcalpine (1.24 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 Mcalpine?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Mcalpine at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.