2000
#7,739
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,959
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.47
Rare Last name
Mcanally
Of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic "Mac an Fhailghigh," meaning "son of the poor man."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,393 Americans carry the last name Mcanally. That puts it at #8,277 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 78,023 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcanally 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 Mcanally with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.4K
1 in 78,023
Census rank
#8,277
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,831 bearers of the surname Mcanally in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8277th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcanally, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcanally
The surname McAnally is of Scottish origin, originating from the Gaelic name "Mac an Allaidh", which means "son of the hospitable one". The name is believed to have first appeared in the 12th century in the Highlands of Scotland, particularly in the regions of Argyll and Inverness-shire.
The name is derived from the Gaelic word "allaidh", meaning "hospitable" or "generous". This suggests that the original bearer of the name was known for their hospitality and generosity towards others. The prefix "Mac" is a common Scottish patronymic, meaning "son of".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a collection of homage pledges made to King Edward I of England by Scottish nobles and landowners. In these rolls, the name appears as "MacAnalye".
In the 16th century, the McAnallys were a prominent family in the Scottish Highlands, particularly in the area of Lochaber. One notable member of the family was John McAnally, who fought alongside the Earl of Argyll against the forces of King James IV at the Battle of Flodden in 1513.
Another notable McAnally was Robert McAnally, a Scottish poet and writer who lived in the 17th century. He is best known for his collection of poems titled "The Lays of the Gael", which celebrated the traditions and culture of the Scottish Highlands.
In the 18th century, the McAnally name spread beyond Scotland as many members of the clan emigrated to Ireland and the United States. One notable McAnally from this period was William McAnally, an Irish-born American soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
In the 19th century, James McAnally was a prominent Scottish artist and painter, known for his landscapes and portraits of Highland life. He was born in 1835 and died in 1910.
Another notable McAnally from this period was John McAnally, an Irish-born American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1883 to 1887, representing the state of Illinois.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcanally
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcanally, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcanally 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 Mcanally surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 3,462
- Two or more races4.4% · 167
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 122
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 21
- Black or African American0.3% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcanally
Mcanally 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
#7,997
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,136
+177 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 258 places
2020
#8,277
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,831
-305 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.28
Rank movement Down 280 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,739 | 3,959 | 1.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,997 | 4,136 | 1.40 | +177 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 258 places |
| 2020 | #8,277 | 3,831 | 1.28 | -305 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 280 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 Mcanally 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 | #7,997 | #8,277 | -3.5% |
| Count | 4,136 | 3,831 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.40 | 1.28 | -8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcanally bearers went from 4,136 to 3,831 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 280 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,997 to #8,277.
FAQ
Mcanally surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcanally?
Name Census estimates that about 4,393 living Americans carry the surname Mcanally. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 78,023 residents.
How common is Mcanally?
Mcanally ranks #8,277 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.28 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 3,831 people with the surname Mcanally. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,393), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.28 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 Mcanally.
Has Mcanally become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcanally went from 4,136 recorded bearers to 3,831. That is a decrease of 305 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,997 to #8,277.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcanally?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcanally, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Mcanally in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (3,462 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcanally appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Mcanally (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 Mcanally mean?
Of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic "Mac an Fhailghigh," meaning "son of the poor man." 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 Mcanally (1.28 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 people are called Mcanally?
Want to know how many people have the last name Mcanally? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.