NameCensus.

UK surname

Mcgahan

Son of a young warrior or soldier.

In the 1881 census there were 108 people recorded with the Mcgahan surname, ranking it #18,888 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 497, ranked #10,024, up from #18,888 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Gateshead, Auckland St Andrew and Glasgow. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cowal South, Darnley East and Halton.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Mcgahan is 514 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 360.2%.

1881 census count

108

Ranked #18,888

Modern count

497

2016, ranked #10,024

Peak year

2010

514 bearers

Map years

6

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Mcgahan had 108 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #18,888 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 497 in 2016, ranked #10,024.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 152 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Mcgahan surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Mcgahan surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Mcgahan 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 37 #26,673
1861 historical 67 #25,342
1881 historical 108 #18,888
1891 historical 99 #24,200
1901 historical 152 #17,916
1911 historical 104 #22,209
1997 modern 466 #9,809
1998 modern 485 #9,825
1999 modern 470 #10,120
2000 modern 474 #10,029
2001 modern 472 #9,873
2002 modern 481 #9,923
2003 modern 471 #9,902
2004 modern 480 #9,793
2005 modern 465 #9,958
2006 modern 472 #9,892
2007 modern 482 #9,831
2008 modern 489 #9,808
2009 modern 502 #9,818
2010 modern 514 #9,838
2011 modern 503 #9,908
2012 modern 503 #9,819
2013 modern 504 #9,966
2014 modern 507 #9,981
2015 modern 500 #10,009
2016 modern 497 #10,024

Geography

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Where Mcgahans are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Gateshead, Auckland St Andrew, Glasgow, Bishop Wearmouth and London parishes. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cowal South, Darnley East, Halton, Hinckley and Bosworth and North West Leicestershire. 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 Gateshead Durham
2 Auckland St Andrew Durham
3 Glasgow Lanark
4 Bishop Wearmouth Durham
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cowal South Argyll and Bute
2 Darnley East Glasgow City
3 Halton 007 Halton
4 Hinckley and Bosworth 001 Hinckley and Bosworth
5 North West Leicestershire 007 North West Leicestershire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Mcgahan

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Mcgahan

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Mcgahan, 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 Mcgahan surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Mcgahan 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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Mcgahan 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

Mcgahan is most concentrated in decile 2 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.

2
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Mcgahan 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 Mcgahan 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 - Irish

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

Meaning and origin of Mcgahan

The surname McGahan is of Irish origin, originating in the medieval period. It is an anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic name "Mag Athain", which means "son of Athan". The prefix "Mac" or "Mc" means "son of" in Gaelic.

The McGahan name is believed to have first appeared in County Fermanagh, located in the province of Ulster in Northern Ireland. The name may also have been present in County Donegal, which borders County Fermanagh. These areas were part of the historical Gaelic territory known as Tír Chonaill.

Records show that the McGahan surname can be traced back to the 14th century. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which mentions a chieftain named "Mag Athain" in the year 1351.

In the 16th century, the McGahan name was also found in the Fiants of the Tudor Conquest, a collection of official documents from the English conquest of Ireland. These records mention individuals with the surname McGahan, as well as variations such as McGaughan and McGahen.

One notable figure in history with the McGahan surname was James McGahan, an Irish American surgeon born in 1844 in County Fermanagh. He served as a surgeon in the Union Army during the American Civil War and later became a prominent physician in St. Louis, Missouri.

Another individual of note was Michael McGahan, a 19th-century Irish Catholic priest and author from County Leitrim, Ireland. He was born in 1824 and is known for his work "Ecclesiastical History of Ireland", published in 1868.

In the 20th century, James McGahan (1900-1978) was a Canadian politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan. He represented the constituency of Melfort from 1944 to 1964.

Patrick McGahan (1925-2016) was an Irish businessman and philanthropist from County Fermanagh. He founded the McGahan Engineering Company and was a significant donor to educational and community initiatives in Ireland.

John McGahan (born 1947) is a British actor known for his roles in television shows such as "Coronation Street" and "Emmerdale". He has had a long career in theatre, film, and television spanning several decades.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Mcgahan families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Mcgahan 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. Durham leads with 6 Mcgahans recorded in 1881 and an index of 23.02x.

County Total Index
Durham 6 23.02x
Cheshire 1 5.17x
Lancashire 1 0.96x
Middlesex 1 1.14x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Bishopwearmouth in Durham leads with 6 Mcgahans recorded in 1881 and an index of 267.86x.

Place Total Index
Bishopwearmouth 6 267.86x
Hackney London 1 20.37x
Liscard 1 285.71x
Walton Le Dale 1 357.14x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Bridget 1
Eliza 1
Ellen 1
M. 1
Margaret 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 1
John 1
Patrick 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 Mcgahan households.

FAQ

Mcgahan surname: questions and answers

How common was the Mcgahan surname in 1881?

In 1881, 108 people were recorded with the Mcgahan surname. That placed it at #18,888 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Mcgahan surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 497 in 2016. That gives Mcgahan a modern rank of #10,024.

What does the Mcgahan surname mean?

Son of a young warrior or soldier.

What does the Mcgahan map show?

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