2000
#7,471
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.52
Rare Last name
Mcnaughton
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place meaning "haughton belonging to a son."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,883 Americans carry the last name Mcnaughton. That puts it at #7,529 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 70,193 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcnaughton 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 Mcnaughton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.9K
1 in 70,193
Census rank
#7,529
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,258 bearers of the surname Mcnaughton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7529th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcnaughton, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcnaughton
The surname McNaughton has its origins in Scotland, first appearing in the late 12th century. It is derived from the Gaelic words "Naughtan" meaning "little poor one" or "little bare one". The prefix "Mac" translates to "son of", indicating the name originally referred to the son of someone named Naughtan.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in the Ragman Rolls, a collection of homage rolls recording those who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. It was also found in the Black Book of Taymouth, a 16th century manuscript recording land charters and genealogies of Scottish clans.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to 1296, with Andrew McNachtan appearing in the Ragman Rolls. The name has also been spelled as McNaughton, McNaghten, McNaughten, and McNauchtan throughout history.
The McNaughtons were a prominent Scottish clan based in Argyllshire and were closely associated with the powerful Campbell clan. During the Wars of Scottish Independence, they supported Robert the Bruce, with John McNaughton being recorded as one of his supporters in 1320.
In the 16th century, Sir John McNaughton of Beuchanside was a notable member of the clan, serving as a judge and legal advisor to King James VI of Scotland. Another prominent figure was Sir Francis McNaughton (1589-1674), a Scottish soldier and landowner who fought for the Covenanters during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.
Other notable individuals with the surname include Sir William McNaughton (1825-1915), a British colonial administrator in India and author of several books on Indian history and politics, and John McNaughton (1835-1914), a Canadian politician and businessman who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
In the United States, Andrew McNaughton (1925-2014) was a respected mathematician and statistician, known for his contributions to the field of stochastic processes and his work on the Manhattan Project during World War II.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcnaughton
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcnaughton, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcnaughton 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 Mcnaughton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.3% · 3,758
- Two or more races3.5% · 151
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 137
- Black or African American3.0% · 129
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 41
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcnaughton
Mcnaughton 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
#7,744
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,287
+177 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 1.45
Rank movement Down 273 places
2020
#7,529
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,258
-29 bearers (-0.7%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Up 215 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,471 | 4,110 | 1.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,744 | 4,287 | 1.45 | +177 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 273 places |
| 2020 | #7,529 | 4,258 | 1.42 | -29 bearers (-0.7%) | Up 215 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 Mcnaughton 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 | #7,744 | #7,529 | 2.8% |
| Count | 4,287 | 4,258 | -0.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.45 | 1.42 | -1.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcnaughton bearers went from 4,287 to 4,258 (-0.7% change). The surname moved up 215 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,744 to #7,529.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mcnaughton
FAQ
Mcnaughton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcnaughton?
Name Census estimates that about 4,883 living Americans carry the surname Mcnaughton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 70,193 residents.
How common is Mcnaughton?
Mcnaughton ranks #7,529 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.42 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 4,258 people with the surname Mcnaughton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,883), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.42 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 Mcnaughton.
Has Mcnaughton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcnaughton went from 4,287 recorded bearers to 4,258. That is a decrease of 29 (-0.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,744 to #7,529.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcnaughton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcnaughton, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) 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 Mcnaughton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (3,758 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcnaughton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.3%), Two or More Races (3.5%), 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 Mcnaughton (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 Mcnaughton mean?
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place meaning "haughton belonging to a son." 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 Mcnaughton (1.42 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 many Americans have the surname Mcnaughton?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.