Find out how popular the last name McElfish is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named McElfish.

McElfish, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the McElfish surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McElfish in America

McElfish is the 57101st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McElfish surname appeared 357 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname McElfish.

We can also compare 2010 data for McElfish to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name McElfish

The surname MCELFISH has its origins in the Scottish Highlands, specifically in the region of Argyll. It dates back to the late 16th century and is believed to be derived from the Gaelic words "mac" meaning "son of" and "èileas" meaning "eel." This suggests the name may have originally referred to someone who caught or traded in eels, or perhaps lived near a body of water abundant with eels.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name MCELFISH can be found in the Parish Records of Kilchrenan, Argyll from 1592, where a Duncan McEileas is mentioned. It's possible that this Duncan McEileas was an ancestor of the modern MCELFISH family.

The name appears to have remained concentrated in the Highlands until the late 17th century when a branch of the family migrated to the Scottish Lowlands. One notable bearer was Robert MCELFISH (1658-1714), a merchant and landowner in the town of Ayr.

In the 18th century, the name began to spread beyond Scotland as members of the MCELFISH clan sought new opportunities. James MCELFISH (1732-1803) was a soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Virginia.

Another prominent individual was Isabella MCELFISH (1786-1867), a philanthropist and advocate for women's education in Edinburgh. She established several schools and was instrumental in the founding of the Lady Glenorchy's Free Church Seminary.

As the Industrial Revolution took hold, some MCELFISHES found work in the coal mining and steel industries. John MCELFISH (1812-1891) was a coal miner in Lanarkshire, while his son William MCELFISH (1845-1924) became a successful steel magnate in Glasgow.

Throughout its history, the name has seen various spelling variations such as McElfish, McIlfish, and McYlfish, reflecting the fluidity of Scottish naming conventions and regional dialects. However, the modern standardized spelling of MCELFISH has remained consistent since the 19th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McElfish

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname McElfish.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for McElfish was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of McElfish has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name McElfish was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of McElfish, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!