2000
#93,427
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 182
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Mccagg
From the Gaelic "Mac Cuige" meaning "son of the brewer or alemaker."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 180 Americans carry the last name Mccagg. That puts it at #117,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,904,191 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mccagg 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.
Bearers in the US
180
1 in 1,904,191
Census rank
#117,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
157
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 157 bearers of the surname Mccagg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 117309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccagg, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.0%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mccagg
The surname McCagg is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic form of the name "MacCaige" or "MacCague". It is believed to have originated in the Highland region of Scotland, particularly in the areas around Argyll, during the 12th or 13th century.
The name McCagg is thought to be an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name "Mac Caidh", which means "son of the shaggy or hairy person". This nickname likely referred to an ancestor with a distinctively shaggy or hairy appearance. Variations in spelling include McCague, McCage, and McKeag.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the McCagg surname can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the late 14th century, where a person named "Gillecrist McGhee" is mentioned. This is believed to be an early variant spelling of the surname.
In the 16th century, there are records of a family named McCagg residing in the parish of Kilmichael Glassary, in Argyllshire. A notable member of this family was John McCagg, born in 1587, who served as a minister in the Church of Scotland.
Another prominent individual with the McCagg surname was Robert McCagg, born in 1674 in Inveraray, Argyllshire. He was a respected landowner and served as a magistrate in the local community.
In the 18th century, the McCagg name appears in various Scottish records, including the Old Parish Registers and the Census Records. One notable figure was Alexander McCagg, born in 1712 in Dunoon, Argyllshire, who was a successful merchant and landowner.
During the 19th century, as many Scottish families emigrated to other parts of the world, the McCagg surname began to spread beyond Scotland. One notable individual was James McCagg, born in 1822 in Glasgow, who emigrated to Canada and became a prominent businessman and community leader in Ontario.
Throughout its history, the McCagg surname has been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as Kilmichael Glassary, Inveraray, and Dunoon, reflecting the areas where the name originated and where families with this surname have resided for generations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mccagg
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccagg, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.0%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mccagg 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 Mccagg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.5% · 139
- Two or more races7.0% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mccagg
Mccagg 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
#99,845
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 181
-1 bearers (-0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 6,418 places
2020
#117,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 157
-24 bearers (-13.3%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 17,464 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #93,427 | 182 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #99,845 | 181 | 0.06 | -1 bearers (-0.5%) | Down 6,418 places |
| 2020 | #117,309 | 157 | 0.05 | -24 bearers (-13.3%) | Down 17,464 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 Mccagg 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 | #99,845 | #117,309 | -17.5% |
| Count | 181 | 157 | -13.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.05 | -12.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mccagg bearers went from 181 to 157 (-13.3% change). The surname moved down 17,464 positions in the national ranking, going from #99,845 to #117,309.
FAQ
Mccagg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mccagg?
Name Census estimates that about 180 living Americans carry the surname Mccagg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,904,191 residents.
How common is Mccagg?
Mccagg ranks #117,309 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 157 people with the surname Mccagg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (180), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Mccagg.
Has Mccagg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mccagg went from 181 recorded bearers to 157. That is a decrease of 24 (-13.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #99,845 to #117,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Mccagg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccagg, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.0%) 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 Mccagg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.5% (139 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mccagg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.5%), Two or More Races (7.0%), 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 Mccagg (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 Mccagg mean?
From the Gaelic "Mac Cuige" meaning "son of the brewer or alemaker." 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 Mccagg (0.05 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 have the surname Mccagg?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.