2000
#1,349
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 24,064
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.92
Uncommon Last name
Mcelroy
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Mac Giolla Rua, meaning "son of the red-haired servant or devotee."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 26,958 Americans carry the last name Mcelroy. That puts it at #1,479 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 12,714 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcelroy 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 Mcelroy with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
27K
1 in 12,714
Census rank
#1,479
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
24K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 23,509 bearers of the surname Mcelroy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1479th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcelroy, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcelroy
The surname McElroy originated in Scotland, derived from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Ruaidh," meaning "son of the red-haired lad." It is believed to have first appeared in the 12th or 13th century in the regions of Argyll and Ayr.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1390, which mention a "John McElroy." The name also appears in the Black Book of Taymouth, a 16th-century manuscript detailing land grants and disputes in the area of Perthshire.
The McElroys were a prominent clan in Galloway and Ayrshire, with their ancestral lands located near the town of Kilwinning. The name is closely associated with the Isle of Arran, where several branches of the clan settled.
Notable individuals with the surname McElroy include:
1. James McElroy (1787-1847), an Irish-American trader and explorer who was one of the first Europeans to visit the Rocky Mountains.
2. Joseph McElroy (1930-2022), an American novelist and writer, best known for his acclaimed novel "Ancient History: A Paraphase."
3. Mary McElroy (1841-1917), an Irish-American labor organizer and advocate for women's rights, often referred to as the "Irish Queen of the Prairies."
4. Robert McElroy (1600-1670), a Scottish clergyman and philosopher who served as the Principal of the University of Glasgow.
5. William McElroy (1917-1999), an American biochemist and Nobel Prize winner for his research on the chemical mechanisms of bioluminescence.
Variations in the spelling of the name include MacElroy, McIlroy, and McIlroie, among others. Place names such as Kilmarnock and Kilwinning, both in Ayrshire, Scotland, are also associated with the McElroy clan and may have influenced the surname's origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcelroy
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcelroy, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcelroy 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 Mcelroy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.7% · 17,798
- Black or African American15.0% · 3,529
- Two or more races4.5% · 1,050
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 867
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 163
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 102
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcelroy
Mcelroy 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
#1,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 24,668
+604 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 8.36
Rank movement Down 97 places
2020
#1,479
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,509
-1,159 bearers (-4.7%)
Per 100,000 7.87
Rank movement Down 33 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,349 | 24,064 | 8.92 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,446 | 24,668 | 8.36 | +604 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 97 places |
| 2020 | #1,479 | 23,509 | 7.87 | -1,159 bearers (-4.7%) | Down 33 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 Mcelroy 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 | #1,446 | #1,479 | -2.3% |
| Count | 24,668 | 23,509 | -4.7% |
| Per 100K | 8.36 | 7.87 | -5.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcelroy bearers went from 24,668 to 23,509 (-4.7% change). The surname moved down 33 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,446 to #1,479.
FAQ
Mcelroy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcelroy?
Name Census estimates that about 26,958 living Americans carry the surname Mcelroy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 12,714 residents.
How common is Mcelroy?
Mcelroy ranks #1,479 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.87 per 100,000 residents, which is about 8 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 23,509 people with the surname Mcelroy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (26,958), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.87 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 8 of them to have the surname Mcelroy.
Has Mcelroy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcelroy went from 24,668 recorded bearers to 23,509. That is a decrease of 1,159 (-4.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,446 to #1,479.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcelroy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcelroy, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Mcelroy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.7% (17,798 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcelroy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.7%), Black (15.0%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Mcelroy (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 Mcelroy mean?
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Mac Giolla Rua, meaning "son of the red-haired servant or devotee." 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 Mcelroy (7.87 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 common is the surname Mcelroy?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Mcelroy at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.