2000
#12,340
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,310
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Mccreery
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "the hollow of the herdsman."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,623 Americans carry the last name Mccreery. That puts it at #12,861 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 130,673 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mccreery 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 Mccreery with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 130,673
Census rank
#12,861
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,287 bearers of the surname Mccreery in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12861st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccreery, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mccreery
The surname McCreery originates from Scotland, emerging in the 12th century. It is derived from the Gaelic words "mac," meaning "son," and "riabhach," meaning "brindled" or "grizzled," referring to someone with grayish or mixed-colored hair.
McCreery is a variant spelling of the more common Scottish surname MacRae or MacRory. The name first appeared in historical records in the early 13th century, with references to individuals bearing the name in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from 1264 onwards.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of instruments of homage to Edward I of England, which includes the name "Gillecrist MacRory." This suggests that the surname was already well-established in Scotland by the late 13th century.
In the 16th century, the McCreery clan was concentrated in the Highlands, particularly in the regions of Ross-shire and Inverness-shire. The name is associated with the MacRae clan, and some McCreerys may have been a sept or branch of the larger MacRae clan.
Notable individuals with the surname McCreery include:
1. John McCreery (1768-1832), a Scottish-born merchant and landowner in Virginia, United States.
2. David McCreery (1845-1923), an Irish-born American Presbyterian minister and educator.
3. Frank McCreery (1873-1945), a Scottish-born Australian politician and member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly.
4. Sir Richard McCreery (1898-1967), a British Army officer and Commander-in-Chief of the British Indian Army during World War II.
5. John McCreery (born 1931), an American anthropologist and expert on Japanese society and culture.
While the surname McCreery is not as common as its variants, it has a rich history rooted in the Scottish Highlands and has been carried by individuals across various fields and regions throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mccreery
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccreery, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mccreery 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 Mccreery surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.3% · 2,088
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 91
- Two or more races2.8% · 63
- Black or African American0.8% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mccreery
Mccreery 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
#12,496
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,481
+171 bearers (+7.4%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 156 places
2020
#12,861
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,287
-194 bearers (-7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 365 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,340 | 2,310 | 0.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,496 | 2,481 | 0.84 | +171 bearers (+7.4%) | Down 156 places |
| 2020 | #12,861 | 2,287 | 0.77 | -194 bearers (-7.8%) | Down 365 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 Mccreery 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 | #12,496 | #12,861 | -2.9% |
| Count | 2,481 | 2,287 | -7.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.77 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mccreery bearers went from 2,481 to 2,287 (-7.8% change). The surname moved down 365 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,496 to #12,861.
FAQ
Mccreery surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mccreery?
Name Census estimates that about 2,623 living Americans carry the surname Mccreery. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 130,673 residents.
How common is Mccreery?
Mccreery ranks #12,861 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 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 2,287 people with the surname Mccreery. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,623), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 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 Mccreery.
Has Mccreery become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mccreery went from 2,481 recorded bearers to 2,287. That is a decrease of 194 (-7.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,496 to #12,861.
What does the Census say about the background of Mccreery?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mccreery, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mccreery in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.3% (2,088 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mccreery appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.3%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Mccreery (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 Mccreery mean?
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "the hollow of the herdsman." 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 Mccreery (0.77 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 Mccreery?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.