Find out how popular the last name McClean is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named McClean.

McClean, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the McClean surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McClean in America

McClean is the 10125th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McClean surname appeared 3,183 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname McClean.

We can also compare 2010 data for McClean to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name McClean

The surname McClean is of Scottish origin, deriving from the Gaelic "Mac Lìomhain" meaning "son of the lithi (grey) one". It is believed to have originated in the region of Argyll, Scotland in the late 12th century. Early records show various spellings such as MacLean, MacClean, and McLean.

One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of homage rolls rendered to King Edward I of England. The document lists several individuals with the surname McClean from the Argyll region. Another historical record, the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from 1264, mentions a "Gilliemore MacLean" from the same area.

The McClean surname is closely associated with the Clan MacLean, a powerful Highland clan that played a significant role in Scottish history. The clan's ancestral lands were centered around the island of Mull and the surrounding areas. One notable bearer of the name was Lachlan Mor McLean (c.1510-1598), a prominent chief of the Clan MacLean.

In the 16th century, the McClean name began to spread beyond Scotland as members of the clan migrated to other parts of the British Isles and eventually to the Americas. For example, Sir Allan McClean (1573-1661) was a Scottish soldier who served in the English army and later settled in Ireland.

Another distinguished bearer of the McClean surname was John McClean (1761-1825), a Scottish-born British naval officer who rose to the rank of Admiral of the Red. He served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars.

In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the McClean name can be found in the records of the Virginia Colony in the late 17th century. Thomas McClean (c.1670-1738) was a Scottish immigrant who settled in Virginia and became a prominent landowner and politician.

Throughout history, the McClean surname has been associated with various professions, including military leaders, politicians, writers, and artists. For example, Archibald McClean (1853-1929) was a Scottish-born American painter known for his landscape paintings of the American West.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McClean

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname McClean.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for McClean was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of McClean has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name McClean was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of McClean, please contact us.

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