NameCensus.

UK surname

Mclean

A Scottish toponymic surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Eáin," meaning "son of the servant of Saint John."

In the 1881 census there were 20,498 people recorded with the Mclean surname, ranking it #181 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 23,201, ranked #254, down from #181 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Barvas and Carloway, Govan Combination and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Campbeltown, Drumoyne and Shieldhall and Rothesay Town.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Mclean is 23,201 in 2016. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 13.2%.

1881 census count

20,498

Ranked #181

Modern count

23,201

2016, ranked #254

Peak year

2016

23,201 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Mclean had 20,498 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #181 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 23,201 in 2016, ranked #254.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 22,306 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Mclean surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Mclean surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Mclean 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 16,113 #133
1861 historical 16,055 #133
1881 historical 20,498 #181
1891 historical 21,215 #182
1901 historical 22,306 #212
1911 historical 4,225 #1,230
1997 modern 20,728 #284
1998 modern 21,261 #285
1999 modern 21,602 #285
2000 modern 21,597 #284
2001 modern 21,052 #284
2002 modern 21,590 #281
2003 modern 21,032 #280
2004 modern 21,164 #277
2005 modern 21,248 #270
2006 modern 21,418 #267
2007 modern 21,612 #264
2008 modern 21,886 #263
2009 modern 22,459 #263
2010 modern 23,031 #264
2011 modern 22,545 #263
2012 modern 22,399 #260
2013 modern 22,832 #261
2014 modern 23,130 #260
2015 modern 23,008 #257
2016 modern 23,201 #254

Geography

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Where Mcleans are most common

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

The modern local-area list points to Campbeltown, Drumoyne and Shieldhall, Rothesay Town, Shotts and Govan and Linthouse. 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 Govan Combination Lanark
3 Edinburgh Edinburgh
4 Tiree and Coll Argyll
5 Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry Forfar

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Campbeltown Argyll and Bute
2 Drumoyne and Shieldhall Glasgow City
3 Rothesay Town Argyll and Bute
4 Shotts North Lanarkshire
5 Govan and Linthouse Glasgow City

Forenames

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First names often paired with Mclean

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Mclean

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

Mclean 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

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

Meaning and origin of Mclean

The surname McLean has its origins in Scotland, with the earliest recorded examples appearing in the 13th century. It is derived from the Gaelic "mac gille Fhaolain," meaning "son of the servant or follower of St. Fillan." St. Fillan was a Scottish abbot and missionary who lived in the 8th century.

The name is closely associated with the clan territory of Lochbuie on the Isle of Mull in the Inner Hebrides. The McLeans of Lochbuie were a powerful branch of the clan and held significant lands in the region. Alternative spellings of the name in early records include MacLean, MacClean, and MacLyne.

One of the earliest notable figures with the name was Sir Lachlan Mor McLean, the 5th Chief of the McLean clan, who lived from around 1390 to 1472. He played a significant role in the Wars of Scottish Independence and was a loyal supporter of the Stewart kings.

Another historical figure was Sir John McLean, a Scottish soldier and diplomat who served as the British ambassador to France in the early 18th century. He was born in 1670 and died in 1714.

In the realm of literature, Lachlan McLean was a Scottish poet and songwriter who lived from 1776 to 1848. He is particularly known for his Gaelic language compositions and his work in preserving Scottish folk traditions.

One of the most famous McLeans was Allan McLean, a Scottish explorer and fur trader who played a significant role in the exploration and settlement of western Canada in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was born in 1768 and died in 1847.

The name McLean also appears in the Domesday Book, a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that the name may have had an earlier presence in Britain before its association with the Scottish clan.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Mclean families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Mclean 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 141 Mcleans recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.59x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 141 1.59x
Middlesex 104 1.40x
Yorkshire 66 0.89x
Durham 52 2.35x
Surrey 48 1.32x
Cumberland 32 4.99x
Kent 26 1.02x
Midlothian 25 2.50x
Northumberland 25 2.25x
Cheshire 18 1.09x
Lanarkshire 18 0.75x
Staffordshire 18 0.72x
Essex 14 0.95x
Royal Navy 14 15.76x
Gloucestershire 12 0.82x
Renfrewshire 12 2.08x
Argyllshire 11 5.30x
Ayrshire 10 1.79x
Devon 10 0.64x
Derbyshire 9 0.77x
Glamorgan 8 0.62x
Hampshire 8 0.52x
Hertfordshire 8 1.56x
Warwickshire 8 0.43x
Inverness-shire 7 3.15x
Northamptonshire 7 1.00x
Sutherland 6 10.47x
Dorset 5 1.02x
Norfolk 4 0.35x
Bedfordshire 3 0.78x
Buckinghamshire 3 0.67x
Cornwall 3 0.36x
Perthshire 3 0.90x
Ross-shire 3 1.47x
Sussex 3 0.24x
Worcestershire 3 0.31x
Dunbartonshire 2 1.00x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.20x
Shropshire 2 0.31x
Berkshire 1 0.18x
Buteshire 1 2.21x
Caithness 1 0.98x
Carmarthenshire 1 0.32x
Denbighshire 1 0.36x
Flintshire 1 0.50x
Isle of Man 1 0.72x
Lincolnshire 1 0.08x
Oxfordshire 1 0.22x
Peeblesshire 1 2.85x
Somerset 1 0.08x

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 29 Mcleans recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.40x.

Place Total Index
Liverpool 29 5.40x
Kirkdale 18 12.10x
Toxteth Park 17 5.68x
Shoreditch London 16 4.95x
Darlington 15 17.52x
Hulme 15 8.12x
Birkenhead 14 10.68x
St Marylebone London 14 3.52x
West Derby 14 5.41x
Lambeth 13 2.00x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 12 2.99x
Islington London 12 1.66x
Govan 11 1.85x
Hampstead London 11 9.48x
Lythe 11 374.15x
Middlesbrough 11 11.44x
Camberwell 10 2.10x
Manchester 10 2.51x
South Leith 10 8.90x
Deptford St Paul 9 4.59x
Bushey 8 65.41x
Dawdon 8 29.34x
Harrington 8 103.23x
Plymouth St Andrew 8 6.69x
Southwick 8 38.10x
Arlecdon 7 41.03x
Ashton Under Lyne 7 3.62x
Battersea 7 2.55x
Benwell 7 57.76x
Bethnal Green London 7 2.16x
Clifton In York 7 45.31x
Ludworth 7 127.27x
Renfrew 7 36.71x
Stoke Upon Trent 7 2.62x
West Ham 7 2.16x
Bow London 6 6.32x
Bromley London 6 3.66x
Brompton In 6 181.82x
Cardiff St Mary 6 8.39x
Chorlton On Medlock 6 4.27x
Clifton 6 8.12x
Clyne 6 129.87x
Greenwich 6 5.06x
Holy Trinity 6 3.38x
Kilfinichen 6 116.96x
Mayfield 6 190.48x
Northampton St Sepulchre 6 16.83x
Workington 6 16.33x
Ayr 5 19.00x
Barnard Castle 5 45.62x
Carshalton 5 35.97x
Cleator 5 18.72x
Hackney London 5 1.20x
Kensington London 5 1.21x
St Pancras London 5 0.83x
Treeton 5 289.02x
Walthamstow 5 9.44x
West Greenock 5 4.82x
Barony 4 0.66x
Dunlop 4 114.94x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 4 4.17x
Kilchoman 4 61.44x
Lewisham 4 2.95x
Oldham 4 1.40x
Sheffield 4 1.70x
Stockton On Tees 4 3.74x
Tadcaster West 4 68.38x
Walton On Hill 4 8.35x
Whorlton 4 229.89x
Beckermet St John 3 187.50x
Bedford St Mary 3 30.18x
Bishopwearmouth 3 1.58x
Byker 3 5.47x
Contin 3 80.65x
Eton 3 29.38x
Glasgow 3 0.70x
Leamington Priors 3 6.49x
Oswaldtwistle 3 9.60x
Walsall Foreign 3 2.31x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 40
Elizabeth 22
Jane 21
Margaret 20
Sarah 18
Ellen 14
Ann 13
Agnes 12
Annie 12
Catherine 10
Emily 8
Isabella 7
Edith 6
Martha 6
Eliza 5
Helen 5
Alice 4
Amelia 4
Charlotte 4
Eleanor 4
Elizth. 4
Jessie 4
Lucy 4
Bridget 3
Emma 3
Frances 3
Harriett 3
Kate 3
Margt. 3
Matilda 3
Susan 3
Ada 2
Amy 2
Anna 2
Bessie 2
Caroline 2
Christina 2
Dorathina 2
Hannah 2
Harriet 2
Janet 2
Maria 2
Marion 2
Monica 2
Rose 2
Wilhelmina 2
Doris 1
Dorothea 1
Hilda 1
Winifred 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 46
James 31
William 27
Alexander 18
Robert 14
David 12
Thomas 11
George 10
Charles 7
Patrick 7
Andrew 6
Edward 6
Peter 6
Joseph 5
Donald 4
Hector 4
Henry 4
Alexr. 3
Allan 3
Angus 3
Archibald 3
Daniel 3
Duncan 3
Robt. 3
Samuel 3
Arthur 2
Francis 2
Frank 2
Frederick 2
Geo. 2
Harry 2
Hugh 2
Michael 2
Roderick 2
Thos. 2
Baines 1
Colin 1
D.Mckay 1
Edwin 1
Fred 1
Geo.O. 1
Matthew 1
Murdoch 1
Murdock 1
Murloch 1
Neil 1
Niel 1
Philip 1
R.W.S. 1
Wm.Hewson 1

FAQ

Mclean surname: questions and answers

How common was the Mclean surname in 1881?

In 1881, 20,498 people were recorded with the Mclean surname. That placed it at #181 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Mclean surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 23,201 in 2016. That gives Mclean a modern rank of #254.

What does the Mclean surname mean?

A Scottish toponymic surname derived from the Gaelic "Mac Gille Eáin," meaning "son of the servant of Saint John."

What does the Mclean map show?

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