2010
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mcdunnah
A surname derived from the Gaelic mac Dhuinnshléibhe, meaning "son of the brown-hilled or moorland inhabitant".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Mcdunnah. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcdunnah 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.
Bearers in the US
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Mcdunnah in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcdunnah, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.6%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcdunnah
The surname McDunnah has its origins in Scotland, with the earliest records dating back to the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Scottish Gaelic phrase "Mac Donnchaidh," which translates to "son of Duncan." This suggests that the name may have originated from a patronymic, referring to the son or descendant of an individual named Duncan.
One of the earliest documented instances of the name McDunnah can be found in the records of the parish of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland, where a family bearing this surname resided in the late 1500s. It is possible that the name underwent slight variations in spelling over time, such as McDonagh or McDonough, before settling on the modern form of McDunnah.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the McDunnah family appears to have been concentrated primarily in the Scottish Lowlands, particularly in the regions of Ayrshire and Renfrewshire. Notable individuals bearing this surname from this era include John McDunnah, a merchant from Ayr who was recorded in the town's council records in 1678, and Margaret McDunnah, born in Paisley in 1725, whose birth is recorded in the parish registers.
As the Scottish diaspora spread throughout the British Isles and beyond, the McDunnah name travelled with them. In the late 18th century, a branch of the family settled in County Antrim, Ireland, where they established themselves as landowners and farmers. One prominent member of this Irish branch was Robert McDunnah, born in 1783, who served as a magistrate and played a significant role in local affairs.
Further afield, the name has also been documented in North America, with some of the earliest recorded instances dating back to the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Among these early North American bearers of the McDunnah name was James McDunnah, who was born in Scotland in 1765 and later emigrated to Nova Scotia, Canada, where he worked as a shipwright.
Other notable individuals with the surname McDunnah throughout history include William McDunnah (1845-1922), a Scottish-born engineer who contributed to the development of early steam engines, and Mary McDunnah (1892-1978), an American educator and women's rights activist from Pennsylvania.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcdunnah
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcdunnah, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.6%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcdunnah 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 Mcdunnah surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 95
- Two or more races8.6% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcdunnah
Mcdunnah appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-8 bearers (-7.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,788 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-7.1%) | Down 6,788 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 Mcdunnah 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 | #146,201 | #152,989 | -4.6% |
| Count | 113 | 105 | -7.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcdunnah bearers went from 113 to 105 (-7.1% change). The surname moved down 6,788 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #152,989.
FAQ
Mcdunnah surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcdunnah?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Mcdunnah. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Mcdunnah?
Mcdunnah ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 105 people with the surname Mcdunnah. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Mcdunnah.
Has Mcdunnah become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcdunnah went from 113 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 8 (-7.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #146,201 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcdunnah?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcdunnah, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.6%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Mcdunnah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcdunnah appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Two or More Races (8.6%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Mcdunnah (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 Mcdunnah mean?
A surname derived from the Gaelic mac Dhuinnshléibhe, meaning "son of the brown-hilled or moorland inhabitant". 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 Mcdunnah (0.04 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 surname Mcdunnah?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.