2000
#1,122
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 28,586
First available Census row
Per 100,000 10.60
Uncommon Last name
Mcallister
A Scottish occupational surname meaning "son of Alasdair" or "son of Alexander," likely referring to a clan chief.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 32,423 Americans carry the last name Mcallister. That puts it at #1,222 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 9.46 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 10,571 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcallister surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mcallister with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
32K
1 in 10,571
Census rank
#1,222
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
9.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
28K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 28,274 bearers of the surname Mcallister in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 9.46 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1222nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcallister, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcallister
The surname McAllister is of Scottish origin, deriving from the Gaelic "Mac Alasdair" or "son of Alasdair." Alasdair is the Scottish form of the name Alexander. The name is thought to have originated in the Argyll region of western Scotland during the Middle Ages, where the Clan McAllister held lands.
The earliest recorded instances of the name appear in the 13th century, with references to individuals such as Gillecrist MacAleystyr in 1263. The name was often spelled in various ways, including McAlister, McCalyster, and McCallaster, reflecting regional dialects and scribal variations.
One notable early bearer of the name was Angus McAllister, a Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. He was granted lands in Kintyre for his service.
In the 16th century, the McAllisters were involved in conflicts with the Campbells, a powerful neighboring clan. In 1586, a bloody feud erupted between the two clans, leading to the Battle of Glenlussa, where the McAllisters suffered significant losses.
The name McAllister is also found in Irish records, likely due to migration from Scotland to Ulster during the Plantation of Ulster in the 17th century. Notable Irish McAllisters include John McAllister (1753-1795), an early Presbyterian minister and educator in Pennsylvania.
Other notable individuals with the surname include Archibald McAllister (1824-1896), a Canadian politician and businessman, and Walter Bruce McAllister (1900-1997), an American artist known for his Western landscapes.
Throughout history, variations of the name, such as McAlester, have also been prominent. This includes Miles McAlester (1856-1898), a Confederate soldier and recipient of the Confederate Medal of Honor during the American Civil War.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcallister
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcallister, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcallister bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Mcallister surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.5% · 21,349
- Black or African American15.6% · 4,411
- Two or more races4.2% · 1,189
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 1,013
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 190
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 122
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcallister
Mcallister appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#1,197
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 29,544
+958 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 10.02
Rank movement Down 75 places
2020
#1,222
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 28,274
-1,270 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 9.46
Rank movement Down 25 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,122 | 28,586 | 10.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,197 | 29,544 | 10.02 | +958 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 75 places |
| 2020 | #1,222 | 28,274 | 9.46 | -1,270 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 25 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Mcallister surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,197 | #1,222 | -2.1% |
| Count | 29,544 | 28,274 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 10.02 | 9.46 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcallister bearers went from 29,544 to 28,274 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 25 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,197 to #1,222.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mcallister
FAQ
Mcallister surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcallister?
Name Census estimates that about 32,423 living Americans carry the surname Mcallister. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 10,571 residents.
How common is Mcallister?
Mcallister ranks #1,222 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 9.46 per 100,000 residents, which is about 9 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 28,274 people with the surname Mcallister. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (32,423), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 9.46 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 9.46 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 9 of them to have the surname Mcallister.
Has Mcallister become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcallister went from 29,544 recorded bearers to 28,274. That is a decrease of 1,270 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,197 to #1,222.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcallister?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcallister, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mcallister in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.5% (21,349 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcallister appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.5%), Black (15.6%), Two or More Races (4.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Mcallister (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Mcallister mean?
A Scottish occupational surname meaning "son of Alasdair" or "son of Alexander," likely referring to a clan chief. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Mcallister (9.46 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Mcallister?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.