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

McGregory, 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 McGregory surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McGregory in America

McGregory is the 35582nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McGregory surname appeared 632 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 McGregory.

We can also compare 2010 data for McGregory 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 McGregory

The surname McGregory has its origins in the Scottish Highlands, and is believed to have emerged in the 14th century. It is derived from the Gaelic personal name "Griogair," which translates to "watchful" or "vigilant." This name was often anglicized as "Gregory" in medieval times.

The prefix "Mc" or "Mac" is a common Gaelic term meaning "son of," indicating that McGregory means "son of Gregory." This patronymic naming system was widely used in Scottish clans and families, especially in the Highlands and Isles.

One of the earliest recorded references to the name McGregory can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the late 15th century, where a person named "John McGregory" is mentioned in connection with land transactions in the county of Argyll.

In the 16th century, the McGregory surname was prevalent in the Scottish Highlands, particularly in the areas of Argyllshire and Perthshire. During this period, the name is also found in various spellings such as "McGrigor," "McGregor," and "McGriggour."

Notable individuals with the surname McGregory include Sir James McGregory (1570-1642), a Scottish military commander who fought in the Thirty Years' War, and Reverend William McGregory (1695-1768), a Presbyterian minister and author from Ulster.

In the 18th century, the name McGregory appeared in several historical records, such as the Old Parish Registers of Scotland. One example is John McGregory (1725-1798), a Scottish farmer and landowner from Perthshire.

The 19th century saw the spread of the McGregory surname beyond Scotland, with many families emigrating to North America and other parts of the world. One notable figure from this period was John McGregory (1810-1891), a Canadian politician and businessman from Ontario.

Another historical figure bearing the McGregory surname was Robert McGregory (1835-1905), a Scottish-born American military officer who served in the Union Army during the American Civil War and later became a successful businessman in California.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McGregory

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

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 McGregory 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 McGregory 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 McGregory was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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