2000
#18,569
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,370
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.51
Rare Last name
Mccook
A surname originating in Scotland, derived from the Gaelic "mac Cuach" meaning "son of the cook".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,023 Americans carry the last name Mccook. That puts it at #15,897 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 169,429 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mccook 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 Mccook with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.0K
1 in 169,429
Census rank
#15,897
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,764 bearers of the surname Mccook in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15897th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccook, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.4%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mccook
The surname McCook originated in Ireland and Scotland, likely derived from the Gaelic name "Mac Cuag," which means "son of the cook." It dates back to the 12th century and was initially found in counties throughout Ireland and Scotland.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name is in the Annals of Ulster, an ancient Irish chronicle, where it appears as "MacCuag" in 1187. The name is also found in the Book of Ballymote, a medieval Irish manuscript compiled in the late 14th century.
In Scotland, the name appears in various forms, such as "McCook," "McCuik," and "McCuick," in records from the 16th and 17th centuries. One notable figure was Robert McCook (1566-1624), a Scottish minister and writer who authored several works on theology.
The McCook family established itself in the United States in the early 19th century, with several members achieving prominence in various fields. Daniel McCook (1798-1863) was a prominent Ohio farmer and the patriarch of the "Fighting McCooks," a family that produced fifteen Union Army officers during the American Civil War, including his sons Anson G. McCook (1835-1917) and Edwin S. McCook (1833-1869).
Other notable individuals with the surname include Alexander McDowell McCook (1831-1903), a Union Army general during the Civil War, and Anson N. McCook (1835-1923), a Union Army officer and lawyer who later served as the Secretary of the United States Senate.
In the United Kingdom, the name has been associated with various place names, such as McCook's Glen in County Down, Northern Ireland, and McCook's Brae in Ayrshire, Scotland, suggesting the surname's long-standing presence in these regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mccook
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccook, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.4%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Mccook 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 Mccook surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.8% · 1,249
- Black or African American18.4% · 325
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 63
- Two or more races3.3% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.1% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mccook
Mccook 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
#17,927
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,559
+189 bearers (+13.8%)
Per 100,000 0.53
Rank movement Up 642 places
2020
#15,897
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,764
+205 bearers (+13.1%)
Per 100,000 0.59
Rank movement Up 2,030 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,569 | 1,370 | 0.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #17,927 | 1,559 | 0.53 | +189 bearers (+13.8%) | Up 642 places |
| 2020 | #15,897 | 1,764 | 0.59 | +205 bearers (+13.1%) | Up 2,030 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 Mccook 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 | #17,927 | #15,897 | 11.3% |
| Count | 1,559 | 1,764 | 13.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.53 | 0.59 | 11.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mccook bearers went from 1,559 to 1,764 (+13.1% change). The surname moved up 2,030 positions in the national ranking, going from #17,927 to #15,897.
FAQ
Mccook surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mccook?
Name Census estimates that about 2,023 living Americans carry the surname Mccook. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 169,429 residents.
How common is Mccook?
Mccook ranks #15,897 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.59 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 1,764 people with the surname Mccook. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,023), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.59 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 Mccook.
Has Mccook become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mccook went from 1,559 recorded bearers to 1,764. That is an increase of 205 (+13.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #17,927 to #15,897.
What does the Census say about the background of Mccook?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccook, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.4%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Mccook in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.8% (1,249 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mccook appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.8%), Black (18.4%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Mccook (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 Mccook mean?
A surname originating in Scotland, derived from the Gaelic "mac Cuach" meaning "son of the cook". 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 Mccook (0.59 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 share the surname Mccook?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.