2000
#652
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 47,526
First available Census row
Per 100,000 17.62
Uncommon Last name
Mcdowell
Derived from the Gaelic "Mac Dubhghaill," meaning "son of Dubhghall," a personal name meaning "dark stranger" or "dark-haired foreigner."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 54,371 Americans carry the last name Mcdowell. That puts it at #704 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 15.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,304 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcdowell 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 Mcdowell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
54K
1 in 6,304
Census rank
#704
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
15.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
47K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 47,414 bearers of the surname Mcdowell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 15.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 704th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcdowell, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (24.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcdowell
The surname McDowell is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic phrase "mac Dughail," meaning "son of Dougal." Dougal is a diminutive form of the name Dugald, which itself is a Scottish variation of the Irish name Dúnchad. The prefix "mac" or "mc" is a common patronymic in Scottish and Irish surnames, indicating "son of."
The McDowell name can be traced back to the Scottish Highlands, particularly in the regions of Argyll and Lochaber. The earliest known record of the name dates back to the 13th century, with a mention of "Dugallus Laumansun" in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a document containing the names of Scottish nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England.
In the 14th century, the McDowells were prominent landowners in the Lochaber region. A notable figure from this era was John McDowell, who was granted lands in Lochaber by King Robert II in 1389. The name also appears in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the 15th century, which recorded various transactions and payments made to individuals with the surname McDowell.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the McDowell name in North America dates back to the late 17th century, when several members of the clan immigrated to the American colonies. Among them was Ephraim McDowell, a Scottish-Irish immigrant who settled in Virginia in the 1730s and later became a prominent figure in the American Revolutionary War.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname McDowell. One of the most famous is Ephraim McDowell (1771-1830), an American physician who performed the world's first successful abdominal surgery in 1809. Another prominent figure was Irvin McDowell (1818-1885), a Union general during the American Civil War who commanded forces at the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861.
Other notable McDowells include:
1. Brendan McDowell (born 1965), a Scottish actor known for his roles in films like "Braveheart" and "Trainspotting."
2. Robert McDowell (1768-1842), an Irish politician and judge who served as the Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer in Ireland.
3. Sir James McDowell (1824-1898), a British military officer and recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration awarded for valor in the British and Commonwealth forces.
4. Mary Ann McDowell (1857-1936), an American educator and social worker who founded the first free kindergarten in the southern United States.
The surname McDowell continues to be widely used today, with significant populations bearing the name in Scotland, Ireland, England, and various parts of North America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcdowell
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcdowell, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (24.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcdowell 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 Mcdowell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.2% · 31,874
- Black or African American24.1% · 11,407
- Two or more races4.3% · 2,044
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 1,550
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 283
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 256
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcdowell
Mcdowell 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
#702
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 49,217
+1,691 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 16.68
Rank movement Down 50 places
2020
#704
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 47,414
-1,803 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 15.86
Rank movement Down 2 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #652 | 47,526 | 17.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #702 | 49,217 | 16.68 | +1,691 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 50 places |
| 2020 | #704 | 47,414 | 15.86 | -1,803 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 2 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 Mcdowell 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 | #702 | #704 | -0.3% |
| Count | 49,217 | 47,414 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 16.68 | 15.86 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcdowell bearers went from 49,217 to 47,414 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 2 positions in the national ranking, going from #702 to #704.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mcdowell
FAQ
Mcdowell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcdowell?
Name Census estimates that about 54,371 living Americans carry the surname Mcdowell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,304 residents.
How common is Mcdowell?
Mcdowell ranks #704 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 15.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 16 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 47,414 people with the surname Mcdowell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (54,371), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 15.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 15.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 16 of them to have the surname Mcdowell.
Has Mcdowell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcdowell went from 49,217 recorded bearers to 47,414. That is a decrease of 1,803 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #702 to #704.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcdowell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcdowell, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (24.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Mcdowell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.2% (31,874 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcdowell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.2%), Black (24.1%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Mcdowell (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 Mcdowell mean?
Derived from the Gaelic "Mac Dubhghaill," meaning "son of Dubhghall," a personal name meaning "dark stranger" or "dark-haired foreigner." 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 Mcdowell (15.86 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 Mcdowell?
If you just want to know how many people are called Mcdowell, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.