NameCensus.

UK surname

Mckay

Son of Aodh, a Gaelic personal name meaning "fire" or "fiery one", likely referring to a passionate or lively person.

In the 1881 census there were 17,160 people recorded with the Mckay surname, ranking it #221 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 16,854, ranked #373, down from #221 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Reay, Govan Combination and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Portsoy, Fordyce and Cornhill, Macduff and Buckie West and Mains of Buckie.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Mckay is 17,225 in 1891. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 1.8%.

1881 census count

17,160

Ranked #221

Modern count

16,854

2016, ranked #373

Peak year

1891

17,225 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Mckay had 17,160 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #221 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 16,854 in 2016, ranked #373.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 17,225 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Mckay surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Mckay surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Mckay 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 15,370 #142
1861 historical 14,757 #156
1881 historical 17,160 #221
1891 historical 17,225 #235
1901 historical 16,308 #310
1911 historical 3,524 #1,484
1997 modern 15,459 #391
1998 modern 15,929 #396
1999 modern 16,103 #395
2000 modern 16,018 #394
2001 modern 15,632 #396
2002 modern 15,966 #396
2003 modern 15,515 #396
2004 modern 15,642 #390
2005 modern 15,671 #383
2006 modern 15,746 #380
2007 modern 16,019 #378
2008 modern 16,198 #374
2009 modern 16,505 #375
2010 modern 16,855 #376
2011 modern 16,480 #381
2012 modern 16,230 #378
2013 modern 16,592 #378
2014 modern 16,871 #376
2015 modern 16,801 #375
2016 modern 16,854 #373

Geography

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Where Mckays are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Reay, Govan Combination, Edinburgh, Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry and Tongue. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Portsoy, Fordyce and Cornhill, Macduff, Buckie West and Mains of Buckie, Port Glasgow Upper, West and Central and Corby. 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 Reay Caithness
2 Govan Combination Lanark
3 Edinburgh Edinburgh
4 Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry Forfar
5 Tongue Sutherland

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Portsoy, Fordyce and Cornhill Aberdeenshire
2 Macduff Aberdeenshire
3 Buckie West and Mains of Buckie Moray
4 Port Glasgow Upper, West and Central Inverclyde
5 Corby 006 Corby

Forenames

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First names often paired with Mckay

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Mckay

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

Mckay 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

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

Meaning and origin of Mckay

The surname MCKAY is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic name "MacAidh" or "MacAidey", which means "son of Aodh" or "son of Hugh". The name Aodh itself is an old Gaelic personal name meaning "fire" or "flame". The prefix "Mac" in Scottish surnames means "son of".

The earliest recorded instances of the MCKAY surname can be traced back to the 13th century in the Scottish Highlands, particularly in areas such as Argyll, Inverness-shire, and the Western Isles. The name was prominent among the clans of the Scottish Highlands and Islands.

In historical records, the surname appears in various spellings, including MacKay, MacKaye, Makkie, and Mackie. One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name is in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1263, where a person named "Ferchard Makki" is mentioned.

The MCKAY surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Iye Monache Makay, who was a member of the Parliament of Scotland in 1358.

Another prominent figure was Sir Donald MCKAY (1810-1880), a renowned Scottish-born shipbuilder and designer of clipper ships based in Boston, Massachusetts. He is credited with designing and building some of the fastest and most famous clipper ships of the 19th century, including the Sovereign of the Seas and the Stag Hound.

Robert MCKAY (1839-1909) was a Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the Working Girls' Vacation Society, which provided vacation homes for underprivileged women and children in New York City.

In the field of literature, Claude MCKAY (1889-1948) was a Jamaican-American writer and poet who played a significant role in the Harlem Renaissance literary movement in the 1920s. His works, such as "If We Must Die" and "Harlem Shadows", explored themes of racial consciousness and social injustice.

Another notable bearer of the MCKAY surname was David MCKAY (1860-1918), a Canadian educator and politician who served as the Premier of Nova Scotia from 1900 to 1904.

The MCKAY surname has also been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as Mackay's Castle in Sutherland and the village of Mackayville in Caithness.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Mckay families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Mckay 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 135 Mckays recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.63x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 135 1.63x
Middlesex 81 1.16x
Durham 66 3.17x
Northumberland 51 4.90x
Yorkshire 49 0.71x
Lanarkshire 30 1.33x
Glamorgan 26 2.13x
Cheshire 25 1.62x
Surrey 25 0.73x
Essex 20 1.45x
Cumberland 16 2.66x
Ross-shire 16 8.33x
Bedfordshire 15 4.14x
Hampshire 14 0.98x
Kent 14 0.59x
Renfrewshire 13 2.40x
Staffordshire 13 0.55x
Derbyshire 10 0.91x
Sussex 10 0.85x
Denbighshire 7 2.65x
Royal Navy 7 8.40x
Buckinghamshire 6 1.42x
Hertfordshire 6 1.24x
Midlothian 6 0.64x
Ayrshire 5 0.96x
Inverness-shire 5 2.39x
Northamptonshire 5 0.76x
Berkshire 4 0.76x
Caithness 4 4.18x
Aberdeenshire 3 0.46x
Angus 3 0.46x
Argyllshire 3 1.54x
Gloucestershire 3 0.22x
Suffolk 3 0.35x
Sutherland 3 5.58x
Devon 2 0.14x
Leicestershire 2 0.26x
Brecknockshire 1 0.71x
Cornwall 1 0.13x
Dunbartonshire 1 0.53x
Fife 1 0.24x
Lincolnshire 1 0.09x
Nottinghamshire 1 0.11x
Oxfordshire 1 0.23x
Perthshire 1 0.32x
Somerset 1 0.09x
Westmorland 1 0.65x
Worcestershire 1 0.11x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Liverpool in Lancashire leads with 33 Mckays recorded in 1881 and an index of 6.55x.

Place Total Index
Liverpool 33 6.55x
Kirkdale 17 12.18x
West Derby 15 6.18x
Birkenhead 14 11.38x
Bishopwearmouth 14 7.84x
Byker 14 27.22x
Roath 14 25.31x
Cardiff St Mary 12 17.89x
Gateshead 12 7.70x
Toxteth Park 12 4.27x
Aldershot 10 20.82x
Clifton In York 10 68.97x
Glasgow 10 2.49x
Govan 10 1.79x
Elswick 9 10.84x
Everton 9 3.40x
Stoke Upon Trent 9 3.60x
Tain 9 123.63x
Barony 8 1.40x
Hampstead London 8 7.34x
Heworth 8 19.51x
Lambeth 8 1.31x
Leeds 8 2.04x
St Pancras London 8 1.42x
Walthamstow 8 16.10x
West Greenock 8 8.22x
Accrington 7 9.28x
Rumbolds Wyke 7 324.07x
Sanderstead 7 760.87x
West Ham 7 2.30x
Woburn 7 222.93x
Acton 6 14.63x
Hackney London 6 1.53x
Litchurch 6 13.61x
Preston 6 2.70x
Stranton 6 8.57x
Tonge 6 34.46x
Wolverton 6 68.57x
Abbey 5 6.05x
Alness 5 201.61x
Batley 5 7.59x
Birtley 5 58.89x
Harton 5 60.83x
Hulme 5 2.89x
Llanferres 5 303.03x
Longbenton 5 11.34x
Manchester 5 1.34x
North Seaton 5 114.68x
Pontefract 5 33.49x
Sheffield 5 2.27x
Shoreditch London 5 1.65x
St George In East 5 10.51x
St Luke London 5 4.46x
Tynemouth 5 8.97x
Warkworth 5 84.46x
Whitechapel London 5 7.25x
Battersea 4 1.55x
Bromley London 4 2.60x
Chesterfield 4 9.74x
Crosscanonby 4 20.09x
Darlington 4 4.98x
Dover St Mary Virgin 4 17.32x
Halifax 4 3.93x
Islington London 4 0.59x
Kensington London 4 1.03x
Kingswinford 4 4.67x
Manningham 4 4.68x
Newcastle On Tyne St 4 7.42x
Salford 4 1.64x
Ardrossan 3 16.56x
Bedford St Peter 3 31.88x
Brighton 3 1.26x
Bury St Edmunds St James 3 13.19x
Jesmond 3 20.49x
Lymm 3 26.74x
Totteridge 3 198.68x
Walton On Hill 3 6.67x
Westminster St John 3 3.52x
Whitehaven 3 9.35x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 48
Margaret 17
Elizabeth 16
Isabella 12
Jane 12
Sarah 12
Ann 10
Annie 10
Jessie 10
Catherine 8
Ellen 8
Frances 8
Janet 6
Eliza 5
Agnes 4
Bridget 3
Eleanor 3
Emma 3
Fanny 3
Minnie 3
Alice 2
Bessie 2
Charlotte 2
Clara 2
Dora 2
Edith 2
Elizh. 2
Esther 2
Gertrude 2
Hannah 2
Helen 2
Julia 2
Louisa 2
Lucy 2
Maria 2
Maryann 2
Susan 2
Susannah 2
Caroline 1
Catharine 1
Christine 1
Clemontina 1
Constance 1
Dolina 1
Dorothy 1
E. 1
Francis 1
Ginett 1
Grace 1
Willimina 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 53
William 36
James 30
Alexander 17
Robert 16
George 15
Thomas 13
Charles 10
Donald 10
Edward 6
Peter 6
Henry 5
Wm. 5
Joseph 4
Daniel 3
David 3
Hugh 3
Patrick 3
Samuel 3
Alex 2
Angus 2
Duncan 2
Ernest 2
Francis 2
Frank 2
Gordon 2
Harry 2
Jas. 2
Robt. 2
Ronald 2
Alfred 1
Andrew 1
Anus 1
Arthur 1
Augustus 1
Benjamin 1
Edgar 1
Edmund 1
Edwin 1
Evan 1
Fergus 1
Fred 1
Hester 1
Horace 1
Infant 1
Isaac 1
J. 1
J.W. 1
J.W.F. 1
Jms. 1

FAQ

Mckay surname: questions and answers

How common was the Mckay surname in 1881?

In 1881, 17,160 people were recorded with the Mckay surname. That placed it at #221 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Mckay surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 16,854 in 2016. That gives Mckay a modern rank of #373.

What does the Mckay surname mean?

Son of Aodh, a Gaelic personal name meaning "fire" or "fiery one", likely referring to a passionate or lively person.

What does the Mckay map show?

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