2000
#1,360
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,926
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.87
Uncommon Last name
Mccauley
Derived from the Gaelic "Mac Amhalghaidh," meaning "son of Amhalghaidh," a personal name of uncertain origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 26,509 Americans carry the last name Mccauley. That puts it at #1,505 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.73 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 12,930 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mccauley 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 Mccauley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
27K
1 in 12,930
Census rank
#1,505
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
23K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 23,117 bearers of the surname Mccauley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.73 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1505th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccauley, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mccauley
The surname McCauley is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic name Mac Amhalghaidh, meaning "son of Amhalgaidh". The name Amhalgaidh is thought to be a compound of the Old Irish elements "amhal" meaning "bright" and "gaidh" meaning "dangerous".
The McCauley name can be traced back to the ancient Irish kingdom of Ui Fiachrach Aidne, located in what is now County Galway, Ireland. The name is first recorded in the Irish Annals in the 12th century, with references to various chieftains and noblemen bearing the name.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the McCauley surname is found in the Annals of the Four Masters, an extensive chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. It mentions a McCauley chieftain named Conchobhar Mac Amhalghaidh, who was killed in battle in 1184.
In the 16th century, the McCauleys were among the leading families of the Gaelic nobility in County Galway. They were prominent in the Irish confederacy that sought to resist the English conquest of Ireland during the Nine Years' War (1594-1603). A notable figure from this period was Cormac McCauley, a gallowglass (elite mercenary) who fought alongside the Irish chieftain Hugh O'Donnell.
Another significant figure in McCauley history was Donough McCauley, who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was a landowner and leader of the McCauley clan in County Galway. In 1607, he was among the Irish leaders who attended the Flight of the Earls, a pivotal event in which several Gaelic lords fled Ireland in the face of increasing English control.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, many McCauleys were forced to surrender their lands as a result of the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland and the subsequent Penal Laws against Catholics. Some McCauleys emigrated to continental Europe, while others joined the Irish diaspora in countries like France, Spain, and Austria, where they served in the Irish Brigades of various European armies.
One celebrated McCauley was Edward Francis McCauley (1783-1864), an Irish-born sculptor who worked in London and Rome. He was renowned for his neoclassical sculptures and busts, including works depicting British nobility and prominent figures like Lord Byron.
As the McCauley surname spread beyond Ireland, it acquired various spellings such as McCawley, Macaulay, and Macauley. However, the original Irish form of McCauley remains prominent and is still widely used today, both in Ireland and among the Irish diaspora around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mccauley
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccauley, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Mccauley 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 Mccauley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 18,608
- Black or African American10.2% · 2,369
- Two or more races4.0% · 918
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 821
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 222
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 179
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mccauley
Mccauley 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
#1,442
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 24,743
+817 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 8.39
Rank movement Down 82 places
2020
#1,505
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,117
-1,626 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 7.73
Rank movement Down 63 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,360 | 23,926 | 8.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,442 | 24,743 | 8.39 | +817 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 82 places |
| 2020 | #1,505 | 23,117 | 7.73 | -1,626 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 63 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 Mccauley 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 | #1,442 | #1,505 | -4.4% |
| Count | 24,743 | 23,117 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 8.39 | 7.73 | -7.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mccauley bearers went from 24,743 to 23,117 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 63 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,442 to #1,505.
FAQ
Mccauley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mccauley?
Name Census estimates that about 26,509 living Americans carry the surname Mccauley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 12,930 residents.
How common is Mccauley?
Mccauley ranks #1,505 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.73 per 100,000 residents, which is about 8 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 23,117 people with the surname Mccauley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (26,509), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.73 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.73 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 8 of them to have the surname Mccauley.
Has Mccauley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mccauley went from 24,743 recorded bearers to 23,117. That is a decrease of 1,626 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,442 to #1,505.
What does the Census say about the background of Mccauley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccauley, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (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 Mccauley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (18,608 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mccauley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Black (10.2%), Two or More Races (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 Mccauley (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 Mccauley mean?
Derived from the Gaelic "Mac Amhalghaidh," meaning "son of Amhalghaidh," a personal name of uncertain origin. 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 Mccauley (7.73 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 Mccauley?
See how many Americans have the surname Mccauley on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.