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

McLaughlin, 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 McLaughlin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McLaughlin in America

McLaughlin is the 437th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McLaughlin surname appeared 74,816 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 25 people would have the surname McLaughlin.

We can also compare 2010 data for McLaughlin 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 McLaughlin

The surname McLaughlin is of Scottish origin, originating from the Gaelic 'Mac Lochlainn', meaning 'son of the Norwegian'. This name dates back to the 12th century when there were frequent Norse invasions and settlements in parts of Scotland.

The name is believed to have derived from the ancient territories of Clan Loughlin, a branch of the wider Clan Donald, who once held lands in Argyll and the Hebrides. Early records mention a Gillespie McLochlin who received a grant of lands in Kintyre from Robert the Bruce in 1314.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the name is found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from 1264, which mentions a 'Malcolm McLougli'. The Clan Munro manuscript from 1597 also includes references to 'McLochlan of Craigintarrie'.

In the 16th century, the name began appearing with various spellings such as McLauchlin, McLoughlin, and McLaughlin. A notable figure from this period was Sir Evan McLaughlin (c.1525-1595), a Scottish soldier who fought for the Swedish King Gustaf I in the Northern Seven Years' War.

As the name spread throughout Scotland and Ireland, it became associated with several place names. For example, the Scottish town of Ardmucknish was formerly known as 'Ardmucknishe McLauchlin' in the 17th century.

Other notable individuals with this surname include:

1. James McLaughlin (1834-1923), an American industrialist and founder of the McLaughlin carriage company.

2. Marie McLaughlin (1886-1971), an American actress and vaudeville performer.

3. Andrew McLaughlin (1924-2012), a Scottish golfer who won the British Open in 1962.

4. Gerald McLaughlin (1934-2011), an Irish painter and sculptor known for his abstract expressionist works.

5. Elinor McLaughlin (1920-1998), an American mathematician and computer scientist who worked on early programming languages.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McLaughlin

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

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

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

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