2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mcclaurin
A Scottish surname derived from the Gaelic Mac Labhruinn, meaning "son of the freckled or tawny one".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Mcclaurin. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcclaurin 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
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Mcclaurin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcclaurin, the largest self-reported group is Black at 84.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.7%) and White (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcclaurin
The surname McClaurin is of Scottish origin and dates back to the 16th century. It originates from the Gaelic words "mac" meaning "son of" and "Lauhrens" which is a variant of the common Scottish name Laurence or Lawrence. The name likely evolved from the Gaelic "Mac Labhruinn" meaning "son of Laurence".
The McClaurin name is closely associated with Argyllshire in western Scotland, particularly the areas around Inveraray and Loch Fyne. The earliest known record of the name appears in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1612, where a "Johne McClaurin" is mentioned as being from the parish of Kilfinnan in Argyllshire.
In the 17th century, the McClaurin clan played a role in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, supporting the Royalist cause during the English Civil War. A notable McClaurin from this period was Sir John McClaurin (c.1595-1664), a Scottish soldier and Royalist who fought for King Charles I and was later captured at the Battle of Worcester in 1651.
As the McClaurin name spread beyond Argyllshire in the 18th and 19th centuries, variations in spelling emerged, including McClaren, McCloren, and McClure. One prominent bearer of the name was John McClaurin (1693-1759), a Presbyterian minister and educator who served as the first president of the College of New Jersey, which later became Princeton University.
Other notable McClaurins throughout history include William McClaurin (1810-1872), a Scottish-born politician and judge who served as a member of the Legislative Council of Victoria, Australia in the mid-19th century. Sir Norman McClaurin (1864-1945) was a New Zealand businessman and philanthropist who made significant donations to the University of Auckland.
In the field of literature, Dame Ethel McClaurin (1876-1967) was a Scottish novelist and playwright known for her works depicting rural Scottish life. More recently, John McClaurin (1931-2004) was an African-American mathematician and educator who made important contributions to the field of differential geometry.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcclaurin
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcclaurin, the largest self-reported group is Black at 84.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.7%) and White (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcclaurin 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 Mcclaurin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American84.6% · 88
- Two or more races7.7% · 8
- White4.8% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcclaurin
Mcclaurin 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
#126,765
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 135
+15 bearers (+12.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 3,678 places
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-31 bearers (-23.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 26,825 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #126,765 | 135 | 0.05 | +15 bearers (+12.5%) | Up 3,678 places |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -31 bearers (-23.0%) | Down 26,825 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 Mcclaurin 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 | #126,765 | #153,590 | -21.2% |
| Count | 135 | 104 | -23.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.03 | -30.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcclaurin bearers went from 135 to 104 (-23.0% change). The surname moved down 26,825 positions in the national ranking, going from #126,765 to #153,590.
FAQ
Mcclaurin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcclaurin?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Mcclaurin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Mcclaurin?
Mcclaurin ranks #153,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 104 people with the surname Mcclaurin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Mcclaurin.
Has Mcclaurin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcclaurin went from 135 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 31 (-23.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #126,765 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcclaurin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcclaurin, the largest self-reported group is Black at 84.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.7%) and White (4.8%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mcclaurin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.6% (88 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcclaurin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (84.6%), Two or More Races (7.7%), White (4.8%). 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 Mcclaurin (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 Mcclaurin mean?
A Scottish surname derived from the Gaelic Mac Labhruinn, meaning "son of the freckled or tawny one". 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 Mcclaurin (0.03 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 Mcclaurin?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.