NameCensus.

UK surname

Mcburney

A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "the foot of the burn" (stream).

In the 1881 census there were 160 people recorded with the Mcburney surname, ranking it #14,860 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 542, ranked #9,396, up from #14,860 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Arbroath and St. Vigeans, Govan Combination and Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Redcar and Cleveland, Caerphilly and Toryglen and Oatlands.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Mcburney is 555 in 2013. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 238.8%.

1881 census count

160

Ranked #14,860

Modern count

542

2016, ranked #9,396

Peak year

2013

555 bearers

Map years

8

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Mcburney had 160 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #14,860 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 542 in 2016, ranked #9,396.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 182 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Mcburney surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Mcburney surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Mcburney 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 77 #19,998
1861 historical 118 #18,512
1881 historical 160 #14,860
1891 historical 182 #15,983
1901 historical 179 #16,227
1911 historical 131 #19,404
1997 modern 485 #9,512
1998 modern 497 #9,638
1999 modern 529 #9,245
2000 modern 551 #8,930
2001 modern 537 #8,963
2002 modern 541 #9,088
2003 modern 506 #9,404
2004 modern 509 #9,390
2005 modern 507 #9,351
2006 modern 514 #9,291
2007 modern 515 #9,357
2008 modern 518 #9,388
2009 modern 521 #9,554
2010 modern 545 #9,420
2011 modern 546 #9,322
2012 modern 543 #9,264
2013 modern 555 #9,267
2014 modern 553 #9,343
2015 modern 547 #9,353
2016 modern 542 #9,396

Geography

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Where Mcburneys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Arbroath and St. Vigeans, Govan Combination, Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry, Manchester and Dean. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Redcar and Cleveland, Caerphilly, Toryglen and Oatlands, Guildford and Wirral. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Arbroath and St. Vigeans Forfar
2 Govan Combination Lanark
3 Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry Forfar
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Dean Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Redcar and Cleveland 001 Redcar and Cleveland
2 Caerphilly 004 Caerphilly
3 Toryglen and Oatlands Glasgow City
4 Guildford 018 Guildford
5 Wirral 002 Wirral

Forenames

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First names often paired with Mcburney

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Mcburney

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Mcburney, 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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Mcburney surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Mcburney household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Mcburney is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, 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 predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

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

Mcburney is most concentrated in decile 9 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.

9
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Mcburney falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

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

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Mcburney 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 Mcburney, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Mcburney

The surname McBurney is a Scottish name that originated in the Middle Ages, likely in the 14th or 15th century. It is derived from the Gaelic "Mac Burnaidh," which means "son of the stream." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name may have lived near a burn or brook.

The name is believed to have originated in the Highlands of Scotland, specifically in the regions of Argyll and Perthshire. In its earliest forms, it was sometimes spelled as "McBurnie," "McBirnie," or "McBirny," reflecting the phonetic variations common in the translation from Gaelic to English.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the late 15th century, where a "John McBurny" is mentioned as a tenant in the Barony of Balquhidder in Perthshire.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the McBurney clan was particularly prominent in the Scottish Borders region, where they were involved in the ongoing conflicts and raids known as the Border Reivers. A notable figure from this era was John McBurney, a Border Reiver who was involved in several skirmishes and was eventually hanged for his crimes in 1605.

In the 18th century, the name appears in various parish records and historical documents across Scotland. One notable bearer was William McBurney (1720-1798), a Scottish mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the fields of navigation and cartography.

As the McBurney families spread throughout Scotland and beyond, the spelling of the name began to standardize to its current form. In the 19th century, several McBurneys achieved notable positions, including Robert McBurney (1810-1885), a prominent Scottish businessman and philanthropist, and James McBurney (1832-1901), a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the House of Commons.

Other historical figures with the McBurney surname include David McBurney (1871-1936), a Scottish-born American architect known for his work in New York City, and John McBurney (1892-1963), a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the House of Commons and the Senate of Canada.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Mcburney families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Mcburney 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. Lancashire leads with 11 Mcburneys recorded in 1881 and an index of 4.32x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 11 4.32x
Essex 5 11.81x
Surrey 5 4.79x
Devon 1 2.24x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Broughton In Salford in Lancashire leads with 5 Mcburneys recorded in 1881 and an index of 214.59x.

Place Total Index
Broughton In Salford 5 214.59x
Harwich St Nicholas 5 1515.15x
Lambeth 5 26.74x
Manchester 3 26.22x
Great Bolton 2 59.35x
Kirkdale 1 23.36x
Plymouth Charles The 1 50.76x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 2
Beatrice 1
C. 1
Catherine 1
Cordelia 1
Emily 1
Hannah 1
L. 1
M. 1
Rose 1
Sarah 1
Y. 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Jas. 2
John 2
William 2
A. 1
Chas. 1
Samuel 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 Mcburney households.

FAQ

Mcburney surname: questions and answers

How common was the Mcburney surname in 1881?

In 1881, 160 people were recorded with the Mcburney surname. That placed it at #14,860 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Mcburney surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 542 in 2016. That gives Mcburney a modern rank of #9,396.

What does the Mcburney surname mean?

A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "the foot of the burn" (stream).

What does the Mcburney map show?

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