2010
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mcgarigle
An Anglicized form of the Irish surname Mag Arghaile, meaning "son of charioteer" or "horse breeder."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Mcgarigle. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcgarigle 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Mcgarigle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcgarigle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcgarigle
The surname McGarigle is of Irish origin, and it first emerged in the late 16th or early 17th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Gaelic words "Mac Gáirgíle," which translate to "son of Gáirgíle." Gáirgíle is believed to have been a personal name that may have referred to someone who was loud or noisy.
The McGarigle surname is primarily associated with County Tyrone in Northern Ireland, where it is believed to have originated. The name was particularly prevalent in the Strabane area of County Tyrone, which was once a stronghold of the McGarigle clan.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the McGarigle name can be found in the Fiants of the Reign of Elizabeth I, which are legal documents from the late 16th century. In these documents, there are references to individuals with the surname McGarigle, though the spelling may have varied slightly.
In the 17th century, the McGarigle surname appeared in various records and manuscripts related to the Plantation of Ulster, a significant event in Irish history that involved the settlement of English and Scottish Protestants in parts of Ireland.
One notable bearer of the McGarigle name was Patrick McGarigle, who lived in the late 17th century and was a prominent figure in the Jacobite risings. He fought alongside the Irish Catholic forces against the forces of William of Orange during the Williamite War in Ireland.
In the 19th century, a prominent McGarigle was John McGarigle, a politician from County Tyrone who served as a Member of Parliament for the constituency of Londonderry City from 1852 to 1857.
Another notable individual with the McGarigle surname was James McGarigle, a writer and poet who was born in County Tyrone in 1834. He wrote several collections of poetry and prose that explored themes of Irish identity and culture.
In the early 20th century, one of the most famous bearers of the McGarigle name was Patrick McGarigle, a Gaelic scholar and teacher who was born in 1884. He dedicated his life to preserving and promoting the Irish language and culture, and he was instrumental in establishing Irish language education in Ireland.
Finally, one cannot discuss the McGarigle surname without mentioning Seán McGarigle, a prominent Irish republican and politician who was born in County Tyrone in 1922. He played a significant role in the Irish republican movement and served as a member of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) during the Irish Revolutionary period.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcgarigle
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcgarigle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcgarigle 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 Mcgarigle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.6% · 95
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.8% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcgarigle
Mcgarigle 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
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-4 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,944 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.6%) | Down 2,944 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 Mcgarigle 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 | #149,395 | #152,339 | -2.0% |
| Count | 110 | 106 | -3.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcgarigle bearers went from 110 to 106 (-3.6% change). The surname moved down 2,944 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #152,339.
FAQ
Mcgarigle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcgarigle?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Mcgarigle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Mcgarigle?
Mcgarigle ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Mcgarigle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Mcgarigle.
Has Mcgarigle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcgarigle went from 110 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 4 (-3.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #149,395 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcgarigle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcgarigle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.8%). 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 Mcgarigle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcgarigle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.6%), Two or More Races (4.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.8%). 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 Mcgarigle (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 Mcgarigle mean?
An Anglicized form of the Irish surname Mag Arghaile, meaning "son of charioteer" or "horse breeder." 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 Mcgarigle (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 common is the surname Mcgarigle?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Mcgarigle? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.