2000
#13,641
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,040
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Mcateer
An Irish surname derived from Mac an tSaoir, meaning "son of the craftsman" or "son of the carpenter."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,448 Americans carry the last name Mcateer. That puts it at #13,595 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 140,014 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcateer 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 Mcateer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 140,014
Census rank
#13,595
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,135 bearers of the surname Mcateer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13595th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcateer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.3%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcateer
The surname McAteer is of Scottish origin and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name "Mac an t-Saoir," which means "son of the carpenter" or "son of the skilled worker." The name is believed to have originated in the areas around Ayrshire and Lanarkshire, where it was common for families to adopt occupational surnames.
In historical records, the name appears with various spellings, including McAtyre, McAttor, and McAter. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which lists a "Johannes McAtoure" from Roxburghshire. This document contains the names of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England during the Wars of Scottish Independence.
The McAteer name has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Patrick McAteer (c. 1520-1592), a Scottish Catholic priest who was a prominent figure during the Scottish Reformation. He served as the vicar of Dreghorn and was known for his opposition to the Protestant reforms of John Knox.
Another significant figure was Sir William McAteer (1749-1813), a Scottish merchant and landowner from Ayrshire. He played an active role in the Scottish Enlightenment and was a member of the Literary Society of Glasgow, where he rubbed shoulders with luminaries such as Adam Smith and James Watt.
In the 19th century, John McAteer (1815-1891) was a Scottish-born Australian explorer and surveyor. He is best known for his role in the exploration of the Gippsland region of Victoria, where he helped establish several towns and settlements.
James McAteer (1838-1912) was a prominent Irish-American politician and lawyer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate and was a prominent figure in the Democratic Party.
More recently, Michael McAteer (1932-2008) was a Scottish actor and writer best known for his roles in television shows like "Taggart" and "Tutti Frutti." He was also a prolific writer of plays and screenplays, many of which explored his working-class roots in Glasgow.
The McAteer name has been associated with various place names in Scotland, including McAteer's Flow, a wetland area in Ayrshire, and McAteer's Farm, a historical site in Dumfries and Galloway. These place names reflect the long-standing presence of the McAteer family in these regions and their contributions to the local communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcateer
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcateer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.3%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcateer 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 Mcateer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 2,012
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 50
- Two or more races2.3% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 14
- Black or African American0.2% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcateer
Mcateer 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
#14,148
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,124
+84 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 507 places
2020
#13,595
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,135
+11 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Up 553 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,641 | 2,040 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,148 | 2,124 | 0.72 | +84 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 507 places |
| 2020 | #13,595 | 2,135 | 0.71 | +11 bearers (+0.5%) | Up 553 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 Mcateer 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 | #14,148 | #13,595 | 3.9% |
| Count | 2,124 | 2,135 | 0.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.71 | -0.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcateer bearers went from 2,124 to 2,135 (+0.5% change). The surname moved up 553 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,148 to #13,595.
FAQ
Mcateer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcateer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,448 living Americans carry the surname Mcateer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 140,014 residents.
How common is Mcateer?
Mcateer ranks #13,595 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 2,135 people with the surname Mcateer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,448), 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 Mcateer.
Has Mcateer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcateer went from 2,124 recorded bearers to 2,135. That is an increase of 11 (+0.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,148 to #13,595.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcateer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcateer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.3%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Mcateer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (2,012 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcateer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Hispanic (2.3%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Mcateer (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 Mcateer mean?
An Irish surname derived from Mac an tSaoir, meaning "son of the craftsman" or "son of the carpenter." 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 Mcateer (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 many people are called Mcateer?
Want to know how many people have the surname Mcateer? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.