NameCensus.

UK surname

Mackenzie

A Scottish surname referring to the son of Kenneth or the son of the fair one.

In the 1881 census there were 8,998 people recorded with the Mackenzie surname, ranking it #467 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 22,810, ranked #259, up from #467 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Gairloch, London parishes and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Ross and Cromarty South West, Ross and Cromarty North West and South Lewis.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Mackenzie is 22,810 in 2016. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 153.5%.

1881 census count

8,998

Ranked #467

Modern count

22,810

2016, ranked #259

Peak year

2016

22,810 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Mackenzie had 8,998 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #467 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 22,810 in 2016, ranked #259.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 14,588 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Mackenzie surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Mackenzie surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Mackenzie 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 5,379 #513
1861 historical 4,862 #582
1881 historical 8,998 #467
1891 historical 11,714 #382
1901 historical 14,588 #363
1911 historical 4,887 #1,066
1997 modern 20,756 #282
1998 modern 21,567 #284
1999 modern 21,644 #284
2000 modern 22,071 #271
2001 modern 21,257 #281
2002 modern 21,610 #280
2003 modern 21,258 #275
2004 modern 20,816 #283
2005 modern 20,956 #275
2006 modern 21,013 #274
2007 modern 21,196 #275
2008 modern 21,338 #274
2009 modern 21,713 #276
2010 modern 22,204 #276
2011 modern 21,769 #276
2012 modern 21,875 #266
2013 modern 22,366 #266
2014 modern 22,718 #264
2015 modern 22,716 #262
2016 modern 22,810 #259

Geography

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Where Mackenzies are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Gairloch, London parishes, Edinburgh, Lochcarron and Lochbroom. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Ross and Cromarty South West, Ross and Cromarty North West, South Lewis, Point and Dingwall. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Gairloch Ross And Cromarty
2 London parishes London 3
3 Edinburgh Edinburgh
4 Lochcarron Ross And Cromarty
5 Lochbroom Ross And Cromarty

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Ross and Cromarty South West Highland
2 Ross and Cromarty North West Highland
3 South Lewis Na h-Eileanan Siar
4 Point Na h-Eileanan Siar
5 Dingwall Highland

Forenames

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First names often paired with Mackenzie

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Mackenzie

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Mackenzie, 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 Mackenzie surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Mackenzie 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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Mackenzie is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Mackenzie 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

Mackenzie 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 Mackenzie 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 Mackenzie, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Mackenzie

The surname MACKENZIE is of Scottish origin, originating from the Gaelic words 'mac' meaning 'son of' and 'cuindigh' meaning 'handsome' or 'bright one'. The name first appeared in the 13th century in the Scottish Highlands and is associated with the Clan Mackenzie, one of the most powerful clans in the region.

The earliest recorded bearer of the name was Coinneach Mor, who lived in the late 12th century and was the progenitor of the Clan Mackenzie. The name MACKENZIE is closely linked to the historical events and battles involving the clan, such as the Battle of Locharbriggs in 1480 and the Clan's support for the Jacobite cause in the 18th century.

One of the most notable figures in the history of the MACKENZIE surname was Sir George Mackenzie, born in 1636, who served as Lord Advocate of Scotland and played a significant role in the political and legal affairs of the time. Another prominent bearer of the name was Colin Mackenzie, born in 1754, a Scottish surveyor and explorer who produced the first accurate survey of the Indian subcontinent.

The name MACKENZIE is also associated with several place names in Scotland, such as Mackenzie's Castle in Ross-shire and the town of Kintail, where the Clan Mackenzie had their ancestral lands. The spelling variations of the name over time include Mackenzie, MacKenzie, MacKenzia, and Mackenzy.

Other notable individuals who bore the surname MACKENZIE throughout history include Alexander Mackenzie, born in 1764, a Scottish explorer who completed the first known transcontinental crossing of North America, and Sir Alexander Mackenzie, born in 1838, a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the second Prime Minister of Canada from 1873 to 1878.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Mackenzie families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Mackenzie 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. Ross-shire leads with 2,955 Mackenzies recorded in 1881 and an index of 131.60x.

County Total Index
Ross-shire 2,955 131.60x
Inverness-shire 1,144 46.85x
Midlothian 620 5.66x
Middlesex 486 0.59x
Lanarkshire 342 1.29x
Sutherland 272 43.26x
Lancashire 267 0.28x
Surrey 210 0.53x
Caithness 162 14.47x
Morayshire 145 11.41x
Yorkshire 127 0.16x
Aberdeenshire 126 1.66x
Angus 94 1.24x
Warwickshire 87 0.42x
Renfrewshire 78 1.23x
Northumberland 75 0.62x
Fife 71 1.47x
Kent 70 0.25x
Durham 52 0.21x
Essex 51 0.32x
Nairnshire 50 20.03x
Gloucestershire 48 0.30x
Perthshire 48 1.31x
Argyllshire 41 1.80x
Banffshire 41 2.42x
Hampshire 41 0.24x
Sussex 39 0.28x
Stirlingshire 37 1.23x
Ayrshire 36 0.59x
Cheshire 28 0.16x
East Lothian 28 2.59x
Roxburghshire 28 1.89x
Cumberland 27 0.38x
Hertfordshire 27 0.48x
Somerset 27 0.21x
Staffordshire 26 0.09x
Channel Islands 25 1.03x
Dumfriesshire 23 1.27x
Norfolk 19 0.15x
Worcestershire 19 0.18x
Derbyshire 18 0.14x
Peeblesshire 18 4.68x
Devon 16 0.09x
Nottinghamshire 16 0.15x
Buteshire 15 3.03x
Dunbartonshire 14 0.64x
Glamorgan 13 0.09x
Lincolnshire 13 0.10x
Berwickshire 12 1.21x
Oxfordshire 12 0.24x
Kirkcudbrightshire 11 0.93x
Suffolk 11 0.11x
Denbighshire 10 0.32x
Orkney 9 1.00x
Pembrokeshire 9 0.35x
West Lothian 9 0.73x
Shetland 8 0.96x
Berkshire 6 0.10x
Northamptonshire 6 0.08x
Radnorshire 6 0.91x
Wiltshire 6 0.08x
Anglesey 5 0.35x
Buckinghamshire 5 0.10x
Herefordshire 5 0.15x
Royal Navy 5 0.51x
Cornwall 4 0.04x
Dorset 4 0.07x
Bedfordshire 3 0.07x
Cambridgeshire 3 0.06x
Isle of Man 3 0.20x
Kinross-shire 2 0.97x
Monmouthshire 2 0.03x
Westmorland 2 0.11x
Wigtownshire 2 0.18x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.03x
Clackmannanshire 1 0.15x
Huntingdonshire 1 0.06x
Kincardineshire 1 0.10x
Leicestershire 1 0.01x
Selkirkshire 1 0.14x
Shropshire 1 0.01x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Gairloch in Ross-shire leads with 745 Mackenzies recorded in 1881 and an index of 575.65x.

Place Total Index
Gairloch 745 575.65x
Inverness 571 92.97x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 345 7.83x
Stornoway 291 99.43x
Lochcarron 263 644.45x
Lochbroom 242 206.45x
Fodderty 196 345.13x
Rosskeen 158 149.49x
Barony 141 2.11x
Govan 116 1.77x
Applecross 114 180.64x
Tain 107 125.79x
Dingwall 105 166.22x
Urray 94 134.83x
Kilmorack 90 121.57x
Logie Wester 88 218.20x
Lochs 85 47.55x
Cromarty 84 139.79x
Lochalsh 84 145.56x
Portree 77 85.22x
Birmingham 64 0.93x
Camberwell 59 1.13x
Elgin 55 22.25x
Aberdeen Old Machar 51 3.23x
Glasgow 51 1.09x
Kilmuir 48 66.86x
Forres 47 35.20x
Latheron 45 24.03x
Olrig 44 78.68x
Dundee 43 1.52x
Islington London 43 0.54x
Kensington London 43 0.95x
Rogart 42 121.00x
Harris 40 32.59x
St Marylebone London 40 0.92x
Tongue 40 73.62x
Everton 38 1.23x
Urquhart Glenmoriston 38 55.03x
Eddrachillis 37 86.63x
Kincardine 37 89.57x
St Pancras London 36 0.55x
Edinburgh Buccleuch 35 13.51x
Fearn 35 58.52x
South Leith 35 2.84x
Liverpool 34 0.58x
Nairn 32 21.13x
Barvas 30 20.01x
Kiltearn 30 90.69x
Edinburgh St Stephens 29 13.45x
Golspie 29 66.54x
Kirkhill 29 69.96x
Lambeth 29 0.41x
Paddington London 29 0.96x
St George Hanover 29 2.72x
Croydon 28 1.27x
Lairg 28 73.18x
Edinburgh St Marys 27 12.68x
Kildonan 27 49.60x
Stirling 27 7.10x
Toxteth Park 26 0.79x
Chelsea London 25 1.01x
Dores 25 76.66x
Edinburgh Greenside 25 17.27x
North Uist 25 26.23x
Duddingston 24 10.92x
Logie Easter 24 102.08x
Uig 24 23.58x
Watten 24 60.99x
Hackney London 23 0.50x
Petty 23 53.68x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 22 1.55x
Bromley London 22 1.22x
Knockbain 22 41.88x
Scoonie 22 20.99x
Creich 21 33.52x
Kelso 21 14.23x
St Andrews 21 9.54x
Duirinish 20 16.07x
Wick 20 5.53x
Dornoch 19 26.82x
Leyton Low 19 5.79x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 115
William 84
James 54
George 46
Alexander 42
Thomas 37
Henry 32
Charles 31
Frederick 24
Robert 18
Donald 17
Arthur 16
Alfred 13
Duncan 13
Kenneth 12
Francis 10
Joseph 10
Peter 10
Archibald 9
David 9
Edward 9
Roderick 9
Andrew 7
Daniel 7
Hugh 7
Albert 6
Colin 6
Douglas 6
Ernest 6
Walter 6
Angus 5
Hector 5
Herbert 5
Richard 5
Thos. 5
Alex 4
Stephen 4
E. 3
Edwin 3
Fred 3
Frederic 3
Geo. 3
Harry 3
Patrick 3
Sidney 3
Adam 2
Frank 2
Kennett 2
Lewis 2
Malcolm 2

FAQ

Mackenzie surname: questions and answers

How common was the Mackenzie surname in 1881?

In 1881, 8,998 people were recorded with the Mackenzie surname. That placed it at #467 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Mackenzie surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 22,810 in 2016. That gives Mackenzie a modern rank of #259.

What does the Mackenzie surname mean?

A Scottish surname referring to the son of Kenneth or the son of the fair one.

What does the Mackenzie map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Mackenzie 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.