NameCensus.

UK surname

Macgillivray

A Scottish surname meaning "son of the servant lad".

In the 1881 census there were 222 people recorded with the Macgillivray surname, ranking it #12,022 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 1,242, ranked #4,801, up from #12,022 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Daviot and Dunlichty, Kilfinichen and Iona and Strath. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Lochaber West, Skye South and Benbecula and North Uist.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Macgillivray is 1,242 in 2016. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 459.5%.

1881 census count

222

Ranked #12,022

Modern count

1,242

2016, ranked #4,801

Peak year

2016

1,242 bearers

Map years

7

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Macgillivray had 222 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,022 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 1,242 in 2016, ranked #4,801.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 402 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Macgillivray surname distribution map

The map shows where the Macgillivray surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Macgillivray surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Macgillivray over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 176 #11,489
1861 historical 99 #21,294
1881 historical 222 #12,022
1891 historical 362 #9,569
1901 historical 402 #9,463
1911 historical 26 #30,547
1997 modern 968 #5,638
1998 modern 1,012 #5,625
1999 modern 1,038 #5,538
2000 modern 1,073 #5,370
2001 modern 1,066 #5,302
2002 modern 1,089 #5,314
2003 modern 1,064 #5,317
2004 modern 1,088 #5,235
2005 modern 1,086 #5,177
2006 modern 1,079 #5,217
2007 modern 1,118 #5,115
2008 modern 1,136 #5,083
2009 modern 1,140 #5,167
2010 modern 1,169 #5,152
2011 modern 1,169 #5,095
2012 modern 1,165 #5,032
2013 modern 1,209 #4,954
2014 modern 1,229 #4,917
2015 modern 1,226 #4,877
2016 modern 1,242 #4,801

Geography

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Where Macgillivrays are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Daviot and Dunlichty, Kilfinichen and Iona, Strath, Edinburgh and Cawdor. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Lochaber West, Skye South, Benbecula and North Uist, Fort William North and Fort William South. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Daviot and Dunlichty Inverness
2 Kilfinichen and Iona Argyll
3 Strath Inverness
4 Edinburgh Edinburgh
5 Cawdor Nairn

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Lochaber West Highland
2 Skye South Highland
3 Benbecula and North Uist Na h-Eileanan Siar
4 Fort William North Highland
5 Fort William South Highland

Forenames

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First names often paired with Macgillivray

These lists show first names that appear often with the Macgillivray surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Macgillivray

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Macgillivray, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Macgillivray surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Macgillivray household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Macgillivray is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Macgillivray is most concentrated in decile 1 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Macgillivray falls in decile 6 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Macgillivray is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Macgillivray, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Macgillivray

The surname MACGILLIVRAY is of Scottish origin, originating from the Gaelic "MacGille Bhràth" meaning "son of the servant of judgment." The name first appeared in the 14th century in the Scottish Highlands, particularly in the regions of Lochaber and Badenoch.

The earliest recorded instance of the name can be found in the 1397 Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, where it appears as "McGillewrath." Similar spellings such as "MacGillivray" and "MacGillivrie" were also found in historical records from the 15th and 16th centuries.

One of the earliest known individuals with the MACGILLIVRAY surname was Dougall MacGillivray, who lived in the 15th century and was a notable figure in the Clan Chattan confederation of clans. Another prominent MACGILLIVRAY was Iain Dubh MacGillivray (1625-1686), a Scottish outlaw and cattle raider known for his exploits in the Scottish Highlands.

In the 18th century, William MACGILLIVRAY (1796-1852) was a renowned Scottish naturalist and ornithologist. He made significant contributions to the study of birds and wrote several influential works, including "A History of British Birds" and "Descriptions of the Rapacious Birds of Great Britain."

Another notable figure with the MACGILLIVRAY surname was Walter MACGILLIVRAY (1859-1920), a Scottish artist and illustrator best known for his illustrations in books by authors such as Robert Louis Stevenson and Andrew Lang.

In the 19th century, Donald MACGILLIVRAY (1834-1894) was a Scottish-Canadian explorer and fur trader who played a crucial role in the exploration and mapping of the Canadian Arctic regions.

Throughout history, the MACGILLIVRAY surname has been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as the MACGILLIVRAY's Seat, a hill near Loch Lochy, and MACGILLIVRAY's Castle, a ruined fortification in the Scottish Highlands.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Macgillivray families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Macgillivray surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Inverness-shire leads with 124 Macgillivrays recorded in 1881 and an index of 241.90x.

County Total Index
Inverness-shire 124 241.90x
Nairnshire 14 267.18x
Midlothian 10 4.35x
Morayshire 6 22.50x
Ross-shire 6 12.73x
Banffshire 5 14.04x
Middlesex 4 0.23x
Aberdeenshire 2 1.26x
Kincardineshire 2 9.57x
Argyllshire 1 2.09x
East Lothian 1 4.40x
Lanarkshire 1 0.18x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Sleat in Inverness-shire leads with 60 Macgillivrays recorded in 1881 and an index of 4918.03x.

Place Total Index
Sleat 60 4918.03x
Inverness 31 240.50x
Daviot Dunlichity 12 1621.62x
Kingussie Insh 9 762.71x
Nairn 9 283.02x
South Leith 9 34.78x
Ardclach 5 757.58x
Keith 5 131.58x
Moy Dalarossie 5 1041.67x
Tain 5 279.33x
St Pancras London 4 2.90x
Cromdale 3 139.53x
Dyke 3 410.96x
Abernethy Kincardine 2 222.22x
Alvie 2 476.19x
Fetteresso 2 60.98x
Barony 1 0.71x
Boleskine Abertarff 1 117.65x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 1 1.08x
Forgue 1 69.93x
Gladsmuir 1 99.01x
Kilfinichen 1 84.75x
Kiltarlity 1 79.37x
New Deer 1 34.72x
Petty 1 111.11x
Rosemarkie 1 192.31x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Macgillivray surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Macgillivray surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Alexr. 1
Donald 1
Robt. 1

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Macgillivray households.

FAQ

Macgillivray surname: questions and answers

How common was the Macgillivray surname in 1881?

In 1881, 222 people were recorded with the Macgillivray surname. That placed it at #12,022 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Macgillivray surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 1,242 in 2016. That gives Macgillivray a modern rank of #4,801.

What does the Macgillivray surname mean?

A Scottish surname meaning "son of the servant lad".

What does the Macgillivray map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Macgillivray bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.