NameCensus.

UK surname

Macleay

Scottish surname derived from a location possibly meaning "son of the servant of Leay".

In the 1881 census there were 120 people recorded with the Macleay surname, ranking it #17,756 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 216, ranked #18,613, down from #17,756 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Barvas and Carloway, Gairloch and Applecross. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Northwest Lewis, Sutherland South and Inverness Lochardil and Holm Mains.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Macleay is 218 in 2009. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 80.0%.

1881 census count

120

Ranked #17,756

Modern count

216

2016, ranked #18,613

Peak year

2009

218 bearers

Map years

6

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Macleay had 120 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #17,756 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 216 in 2016, ranked #18,613.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 139 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Macleay surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Macleay surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Macleay 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 60 #22,584
1861 historical 72 #24,643
1881 historical 120 #17,756
1891 historical 123 #20,939
1901 historical 139 #18,876
1911 historical 33 #29,703
1997 modern 192 #18,103
1998 modern 196 #18,342
1999 modern 186 #19,073
2000 modern 196 #18,431
2001 modern 187 #18,708
2002 modern 195 #18,590
2003 modern 186 #18,928
2004 modern 180 #19,424
2005 modern 188 #18,866
2006 modern 188 #19,023
2007 modern 202 #18,359
2008 modern 202 #18,528
2009 modern 218 #18,015
2010 modern 205 #19,140
2011 modern 200 #19,280
2012 modern 205 #18,909
2013 modern 211 #18,872
2014 modern 216 #18,705
2015 modern 218 #18,478
2016 modern 216 #18,613

Geography

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Where Macleays are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Barvas and Carloway, Gairloch, Applecross, Edinburgh and Fodderty. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Northwest Lewis, Sutherland South, Inverness Lochardil and Holm Mains, Dingwall and Alness. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Barvas and Carloway Ross And Cromarty
2 Gairloch Ross And Cromarty
3 Applecross Ross And Cromarty
4 Edinburgh Edinburgh
5 Fodderty Ross And Cromarty

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Northwest Lewis Na h-Eileanan Siar
2 Sutherland South Highland
3 Inverness Lochardil and Holm Mains Highland
4 Dingwall Highland
5 Alness Highland

Forenames

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First names often paired with Macleay

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Macleay

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

European Enclaves

Within London, Macleay is most associated with areas classed as European Enclaves, 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

Many residents of these accessible neighbourhoods have wide-ranging non-UK European origins. Typically residing in privately rented flats, many residents live alone and are beyond normal retirement age. There are more students than elsewhere in the Supergroup, some of which live in communal establishments. Household residents are often drawn from different ethnic groups.

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

Macleay is most concentrated in decile 8 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier 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.

8
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Macleay falls in decile 5 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.

5
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Macleay is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 20-25 mbit/s.

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

4
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Macleay

The surname MACLEAY is of Scottish origin, emerging in the 15th century from the Hebrides islands off the western coast of Scotland. It is a variant spelling of the Gaelic name MacIllEathain, which means "son of the man from Islay". Islay is one of the Inner Hebrides islands, and the name likely refers to an ancestor who hailed from that region.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the MACLEAY name can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1478, where a John Makyllequhane is mentioned. This spelling variation demonstrates the fluid nature of surnames during that period before standardized spellings became more common.

In the 16th century, the MACLEAY name appears in the Register of the Privy Seal of Scotland in 1546, with a reference to a David Makyllewane. The spelling "MACLEAY" itself is documented in the parish registers of Glasgow in 1644, when a John MACLEAY is recorded.

A notable early bearer of the MACLEAY surname was Alexander MACLEAY (1767-1848), a Scottish entomologist and colonial administrator in New South Wales, Australia. He served as the Colonial Secretary of New South Wales from 1825 to 1837 and made significant contributions to the study of insects, particularly beetles.

Another prominent figure was William Sharp MACLEAY (1792-1865), a Scottish lawyer and naturalist who was a Fellow of the Royal Society. He was also an avid collector of insects and served as the President of the Entomological Society of London.

In the 19th century, John Pringle MACLEAY (1810-1892) was a Scottish-born Australian politician and landowner. He served as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council and was active in the development of the colony's agriculture and livestock industries.

The MACLEAY name also has connections to place names in Scotland, such as Macleay Island in the Inner Hebrides and the town of Macleay in Argyll and Bute. These places likely derived their names from early MACLEAY settlers or landowners in those areas.

Throughout history, the MACLEAY surname has been spelled in various ways, including Makyllequhane, Makyllewane, Macyllequhane, Macyllewan, and Macillequhane, reflecting the evolving nature of surname spellings over time.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Macleay families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Macleay 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 81 Macleays recorded in 1881 and an index of 274.86x.

County Total Index
Ross-shire 81 274.86x
Inverness-shire 9 28.09x
Middlesex 6 0.56x
Dunbartonshire 3 10.40x
Cheshire 2 0.84x
Hampshire 2 0.91x
Lancashire 2 0.16x
Argyllshire 1 3.35x
Lanarkshire 1 0.29x
Midlothian 1 0.70x
Morayshire 1 6.00x
Sutherland 1 12.12x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Applecross in Ross-shire leads with 16 Macleays recorded in 1881 and an index of 1927.71x.

Place Total Index
Applecross 16 1927.71x
Fodderty 16 2133.33x
Gairloch 11 647.06x
Knockbain 10 1449.28x
Logie Wester 7 1320.75x
Barvas 6 304.57x
Lochbroom 6 389.61x
Urray 6 659.34x
Harris 5 310.56x
Kensington London 3 5.03x
Row 3 80.43x
Chelsea London 2 6.19x
Chester St Oswald 2 46.62x
Great Bolton 2 11.86x
Inverness 2 24.81x
Alverstoke 1 12.56x
Ardchattan Muckairn 1 135.14x
Ardersier 1 129.87x
Dingwall 1 120.48x
Dornoch 1 107.53x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 1 1.73x
Forres 1 57.14x
Kirkhill 1 185.19x
Lanark 1 35.84x
Lyndhurst 1 166.67x
Rosskeen 1 71.94x
Stornoway 1 26.04x
Westminster St Margaret 1 19.31x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Amelia 2
Barbara 1
Catherine 1
Eliza 1
Lelia 1
Margaret 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Alexander 1
Anthony 1
George 1
James 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 Macleay households.

FAQ

Macleay surname: questions and answers

How common was the Macleay surname in 1881?

In 1881, 120 people were recorded with the Macleay surname. That placed it at #17,756 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Macleay surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 216 in 2016. That gives Macleay a modern rank of #18,613.

What does the Macleay surname mean?

Scottish surname derived from a location possibly meaning "son of the servant of Leay".

What does the Macleay map show?

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