2000
#9,939
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,994
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.11
Rare Last name
Mcclean
A Scottish and Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Eáin," meaning "son of the servant of John."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,398 Americans carry the last name Mcclean. That puts it at #10,334 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 100,869 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcclean 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 Mcclean with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.4K
1 in 100,869
Census rank
#10,334
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,963 bearers of the surname Mcclean in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10334th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcclean, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.4%. The next largest groups are Black (32.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcclean
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcclean, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.4%. The next largest groups are Black (32.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcclean 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 Mcclean surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White56.4% · 1,672
- Black or African American32.3% · 958
- Two or more races5.0% · 149
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 139
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 31
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcclean
Mcclean 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
#10,125
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,183
+189 bearers (+6.3%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 186 places
2020
#10,334
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,963
-220 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 209 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,939 | 2,994 | 1.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,125 | 3,183 | 1.08 | +189 bearers (+6.3%) | Down 186 places |
| 2020 | #10,334 | 2,963 | 0.99 | -220 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 209 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 Mcclean 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 | #10,125 | #10,334 | -2.1% |
| Count | 3,183 | 2,963 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 0.99 | -8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcclean bearers went from 3,183 to 2,963 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 209 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,125 to #10,334.
FAQ
Mcclean surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcclean?
Name Census estimates that about 3,398 living Americans carry the surname Mcclean. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 100,869 residents.
How common is Mcclean?
Mcclean ranks #10,334 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.99 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 2,963 people with the surname Mcclean. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,398), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.99 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 Mcclean.
Has Mcclean become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcclean went from 3,183 recorded bearers to 2,963. That is a decrease of 220 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,125 to #10,334.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcclean?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcclean, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.4%. The next largest groups are Black (32.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Mcclean in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.4% (1,672 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcclean appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (56.4%), Black (32.3%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Mcclean (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 Mcclean mean?
A Scottish and Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Eáin," meaning "son of the servant of John." 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 Mcclean (0.99 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 last name Mcclean?
You can see how many people have the surname Mcclean on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.