2000
#8,155
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,742
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.39
Rare Last name
Mcglothlin
A Scottish and Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Lachlainn," meaning "son of Lochlann" (a Norse personal name).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,264 Americans carry the last name Mcglothlin. That puts it at #8,508 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 80,383 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcglothlin 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
4.3K
1 in 80,383
Census rank
#8,508
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,718 bearers of the surname Mcglothlin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8508th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcglothlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcglothlin
The surname McGlothlin has its origins in Scotland, emerging during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Gaelic words "mac" meaning "son of" and "gille" meaning "servant" or "lad," combined with the word "ochdair" meaning "porter" or "doorkeeper." This suggests that the original bearer of the name may have been the son of a doorkeeper or porter employed by a prominent household or estate.
The earliest known records of the name date back to the 13th century, with variations in spelling such as McGlochlyn, McGlochling, and McGlothlyn appearing in ancient Scottish charters and documents. One of the earliest known references is found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which recorded the names of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England after his conquest of parts of Scotland.
In the 15th century, the McGlothlin name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Ayrshire and Renfrewshire, where they held lands and played a role in the ongoing conflicts between Scotland and England. Notable figures from this era include John McGlothlin, who fought alongside Robert the Bruce in the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, and Angus McGlothlin, who served as a member of the Scottish Parliament in 1450.
As the centuries passed, the McGlothlin name spread across Scotland and eventually to other parts of the British Isles, with some members of the family emigrating to the American colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries. Among the early American McGlothlins was William McGlothlin, who settled in Virginia in 1635, and James McGlothlin, who was born in County Antrim, Ireland, in 1756 and later fought in the American Revolutionary War.
Other notable individuals with the McGlothlin surname include:
1. Sir John McGlothlin (1820-1892), a Scottish entrepreneur and philanthropist who founded the McGlothlin Textile Mills in Glasgow.
2. Mary McGlothlin (1865-1948), an American educator and women's rights activist from Tennessee.
3. Robert McGlothlin (1879-1957), a Canadian politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.
4. George McGlothlin (1901-1982), an American businessman and co-founder of the McGlothlin Oil Company in Texas.
5. Patricia McGlothlin (1927-2018), a British author and historian known for her works on the social history of England.
Throughout its long history, the McGlothlin surname has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, reflecting the diverse experiences and contributions of those who bore this name across different eras and regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcglothlin
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcglothlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcglothlin 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 Mcglothlin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 3,356
- Two or more races4.0% · 148
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 118
- Black or African American1.3% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcglothlin
Mcglothlin 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
#8,317
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,984
+242 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 1.35
Rank movement Down 162 places
2020
#8,508
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,718
-266 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 191 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,155 | 3,742 | 1.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,317 | 3,984 | 1.35 | +242 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 162 places |
| 2020 | #8,508 | 3,718 | 1.24 | -266 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 191 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 Mcglothlin 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 | #8,317 | #8,508 | -2.3% |
| Count | 3,984 | 3,718 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.35 | 1.24 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcglothlin bearers went from 3,984 to 3,718 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 191 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,317 to #8,508.
FAQ
Mcglothlin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcglothlin?
Name Census estimates that about 4,264 living Americans carry the surname Mcglothlin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 80,383 residents.
How common is Mcglothlin?
Mcglothlin ranks #8,508 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,718 people with the surname Mcglothlin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,264), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.24 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Mcglothlin.
Has Mcglothlin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcglothlin went from 3,984 recorded bearers to 3,718. That is a decrease of 266 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,317 to #8,508.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcglothlin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcglothlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Mcglothlin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (3,356 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcglothlin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Mcglothlin (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 Mcglothlin mean?
A Scottish and Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Lachlainn," meaning "son of Lochlann" (a Norse personal name). 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 Mcglothlin (1.24 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 Mcglothlin?
If you just want to know how common the surname Mcglothlin is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.