2000
#810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 38,896
First available Census row
Per 100,000 14.42
Uncommon Last name
Mcmillan
Son of the bald or tonsured man, derived from the Gaelic "Maolán" meaning "bald" or "tonsured."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 44,467 Americans carry the last name Mcmillan. That puts it at #880 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 12.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 7,708 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcmillan 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 Mcmillan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
44K
1 in 7,708
Census rank
#880
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
13.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
39K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 38,777 bearers of the surname Mcmillan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 12.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 880th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcmillan, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.9%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcmillan
The surname MCMILLAN is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic words "mac" meaning "son" and "millan" which is a personal name meaning "bald". It is believed to have originated in the early medieval period, around the 12th century, in the region of Argyll and Bute in western Scotland.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various Scottish medieval records, such as the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which list several individuals with the name. One of the earliest known bearers was Gillemichel M'Millan, who was recorded in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1328.
The name MCMILLAN is also associated with the ancient Scottish clan of the same name, which had its seat in the district of Cowal in Argyll. The clan claims descent from a 13th-century ancestor named Somhairle, or Samuel, who was nicknamed "Mac Gillemhaoil" or "Son of the Bald Lad".
In the 16th century, the MCMILLAN clan played a significant role in the infamous Lorn Feuds, a series of bitter conflicts between rival clans in the region. One of the most notable figures of this era was Sir Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy, who married Grizel MCMILLAN in 1558, strengthening the alliance between the two clans.
Throughout history, several individuals with the surname MCMILLAN have achieved prominence in various fields. One notable example is William MCMILLAN (1828-1896), a Scottish-American industrialist who founded the McMILLAN Company, one of the largest iron and steel manufacturing firms in the United States during the 19th century.
Another notable bearer of the name was John MCMILLAN (1670-1753), a Scottish Presbyterian minister who played a key role in the establishment of the Presbyterian Church in the American colonies. He founded several churches in Pennsylvania and is considered a pioneer of Presbyterianism in the United States.
In the world of literature, two prominent figures with the surname MCMILLAN are the Scottish novelist Margaret MCMILLAN (1915-1988) and the American writer Terry MCMILLAN (born 1951), best known for her novel "Waiting to Exhale".
The name MCMILLAN has also been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as the village of Millhouse, near Kirkcudbright, which was historically known as "Milmachdub" or "MCMILLAN's farm".
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcmillan
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcmillan, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.9%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcmillan 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 Mcmillan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.9% · 25,547
- Black or African American24.3% · 9,411
- Two or more races4.6% · 1,767
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 1,289
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 508
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 255
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcmillan
Mcmillan 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
#860
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 40,237
+1,341 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 13.64
Rank movement Down 50 places
2020
#880
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 38,777
-1,460 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 12.97
Rank movement Down 20 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #810 | 38,896 | 14.42 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #860 | 40,237 | 13.64 | +1,341 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 50 places |
| 2020 | #880 | 38,777 | 12.97 | -1,460 bearers (-3.6%) | Down 20 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 Mcmillan 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 | #860 | #880 | -2.3% |
| Count | 40,237 | 38,777 | -3.6% |
| Per 100K | 13.64 | 12.97 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcmillan bearers went from 40,237 to 38,777 (-3.6% change). The surname moved down 20 positions in the national ranking, going from #860 to #880.
FAQ
Mcmillan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcmillan?
Name Census estimates that about 44,467 living Americans carry the surname Mcmillan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 7,708 residents.
How common is Mcmillan?
Mcmillan ranks #880 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 12.97 per 100,000 residents, which is about 13 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 38,777 people with the surname Mcmillan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (44,467), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 12.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 12.97 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 13 of them to have the surname Mcmillan.
Has Mcmillan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcmillan went from 40,237 recorded bearers to 38,777. That is a decrease of 1,460 (-3.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #860 to #880.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcmillan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcmillan, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.9%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Mcmillan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.9% (25,547 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcmillan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.9%), Black (24.3%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Mcmillan (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 Mcmillan mean?
Son of the bald or tonsured man, derived from the Gaelic "Maolán" meaning "bald" or "tonsured." 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 Mcmillan (12.97 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 Mcmillan?
You can see how many people have the surname Mcmillan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.