2000
#57,705
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 330
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.12
Very Rare Last name
Mcelhenney
An Irish surname composed of elements meaning "son of the servant of the tonsured one".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 393 Americans carry the last name Mcelhenney. That puts it at #62,967 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.11 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 872,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcelhenney 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
393
1 in 872,148
Census rank
#62,967
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
343
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 343 bearers of the surname Mcelhenney in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.11 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 62967th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcelhenney, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Black (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcelhenney
The surname MCELHENNEY has its origins in Scotland and Ireland, dating back to the late 16th and early 17th centuries. It is derived from the Gaelic personal name Ailín, which means "handsome" or "comely." The prefix "Mac" means "son of," so the name would have originally referred to the son of someone named Ailín.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Irish Fiants of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, where a Patrick McElhenney is mentioned in 1596. The name also appears in records from County Donegal, Ireland, in the early 17th century.
In Scotland, the name is believed to have originated in the regions of Argyll and the Western Isles, where it was likely an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name MacAilín or MacCallin. The earliest known Scottish bearer of the name was John McElhenney, who was born in 1613 in Argyllshire.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname MCELHENNEY. One of the most prominent was Sir Roderick McElhenney (1790-1867), a Scottish politician and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Argyllshire from 1835 to 1857.
Another notable figure was John McElhenney (1801-1885), an Irish-born American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania from 1843 to 1847.
In the field of literature, there was the Scottish author and poet Archibald McElhenney (1825-1892), whose works included "The Poems of Argyll" and "The Lays of the Western Isles."
The name has also been associated with the military, with Captain James McElhenney (1832-1902) serving in the Union Army during the American Civil War and later becoming a prominent businessman in Pennsylvania.
Finally, one of the more recent notable individuals with the surname was Eugene McElhenney (1905-1983), an American artist and illustrator known for his paintings depicting scenes from World War II and the American West.
While these are just a few examples, the name MCELHENNEY has a rich history spanning several centuries and countries, reflecting its Scottish and Irish origins and the diverse accomplishments of those who have borne this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcelhenney
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcelhenney, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Black (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcelhenney 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 Mcelhenney surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 323
- Black or African American2.3% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 5
- Two or more races1.5% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcelhenney
Mcelhenney 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
#65,593
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 302
-28 bearers (-8.5%)
Per 100,000 0.10
Rank movement Down 7,888 places
2020
#62,967
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 343
+41 bearers (+13.6%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Up 2,626 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #57,705 | 330 | 0.12 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #65,593 | 302 | 0.10 | -28 bearers (-8.5%) | Down 7,888 places |
| 2020 | #62,967 | 343 | 0.11 | +41 bearers (+13.6%) | Up 2,626 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 Mcelhenney 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 | #65,593 | #62,967 | 4.0% |
| Count | 302 | 343 | 13.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.10 | 0.11 | 14.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcelhenney bearers went from 302 to 343 (+13.6% change). The surname moved up 2,626 positions in the national ranking, going from #65,593 to #62,967.
FAQ
Mcelhenney surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcelhenney?
Name Census estimates that about 393 living Americans carry the surname Mcelhenney. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 872,148 residents.
How common is Mcelhenney?
Mcelhenney ranks #62,967 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.11 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 343 people with the surname Mcelhenney. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (393), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.11 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.11 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 Mcelhenney.
Has Mcelhenney become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcelhenney went from 302 recorded bearers to 343. That is an increase of 41 (+13.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #65,593 to #62,967.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcelhenney?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcelhenney, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Black (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.5%). 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 Mcelhenney in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (323 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcelhenney appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Black (2.3%), Hispanic (1.5%). 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 Mcelhenney (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 Mcelhenney mean?
An Irish surname composed of elements meaning "son of the servant of the tonsured one". 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 Mcelhenney (0.11 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 Mcelhenney?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.