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

McQuitty, 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 McQuitty surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of McQuitty in America

McQuitty is the 34353rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The McQuitty surname appeared 660 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 McQuitty.

We can also compare 2010 data for McQuitty 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 McQuitty

The surname MCQUITTY originated in Scotland, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be a variant of the Gaelic name MacWhittie or MacWhiddie, which means "son of the witted or clever one." The name may also be linked to the Scottish word "quhittret," meaning a small whitish object or creature.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name MCQUITTY can be found in the Register of the Privy Seal of Scotland from 1569, where a William McQuitty is mentioned. In the 17th century, the name appears in various parish records and court documents across Scotland, particularly in the counties of Lanarkshire and Ayrshire.

The MCQUITTY surname has a strong connection to the Scottish Lowlands, where variations like McWhiddie, McWhittie, and McQuitty were commonly found. Some notable individuals bearing this surname include James McQuitty (1789-1873), a Scottish minister and author, and Robert McQuitty (1810-1887), a Presbyterian minister who served in Ireland.

In the 19th century, the MCQUITTY name began to appear more frequently in historical records outside of Scotland, particularly in North America, as many Scottish immigrants settled in Canada and the United States. One notable figure from this era was John McQuitty (1834-1904), a Canadian farmer and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.

Another individual of note was William McQuitty (1845-1914), a Scottish-born American businessman and politician who served as the Mayor of Columbus, Ohio, from 1892 to 1894. He was also involved in various philanthropic efforts, including the establishment of the McQuitty Library in his hometown of Haddington, Scotland.

As the MCQUITTY surname spread across the globe, it continued to be associated with individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions. For example, James McQuitty (1909-1998) was an American psychologist and academic who made significant contributions to the field of personality assessment.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name McQuitty

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!