2000
#1,513
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,727
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.05
Uncommon Last name
Mcghee
A surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic "Mac Aodha," meaning "son of Aodh" (a personal name meaning "fire").
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 26,479 Americans carry the last name Mcghee. That puts it at #1,508 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.73 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 12,944 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcghee 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 Mcghee with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
26K
1 in 12,944
Census rank
#1,508
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
23K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 23,091 bearers of the surname Mcghee in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.73 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1508th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcghee, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.1%. The next largest groups are White (42.3%) and Two or More Races (5.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcghee
The surname McGhee is of Scottish origin, with its roots traceable back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Gaelic Mac Ghie, which translates to "son of the stranger" or "son of the outsider." This suggests that the name's earliest bearers may have been immigrants or settlers from another region, perhaps Ireland or elsewhere.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a historical document containing the names of Scottish nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. The name appears as "McGhee" and is believed to refer to a family from the region of Argyll.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, variations of the name, such as "McGhie," "McGhee," and "McGhye," were prevalent in the counties of Ayr and Dumfries in southwestern Scotland. Several notable individuals bearing this surname emerged during this period, including John McGhie (1549-1622), a respected minister in the Scottish Kirk.
As the centuries progressed, the name spread beyond Scotland's borders. In Ireland, the McGhee name can be found in counties such as Antrim and Down, particularly among Protestant settlers from Scotland. One notable bearer of the name was Sir Ralph McGhee (1738-1823), an Irish-born British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War.
In the United States, the McGhee name first gained prominence in the late 18th century, as Scottish and Scots-Irish immigrants began arriving in significant numbers. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of James McGhee (1765-1843), a Revolutionary War veteran from Pennsylvania who later settled in Tennessee.
Other notable individuals bearing the McGhee surname include George Crews McGhee (1851-1912), an American politician and lawyer who served as the 36th Governor of Arkansas, and John McGhee (1854-1933), a Canadian businessman and philanthropist who founded the McGhee Memorial Institute in Norfolk, Virginia.
Throughout its long history, the McGhee name has maintained a strong connection to its Scottish roots, while also becoming well-established in various parts of the English-speaking world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcghee
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcghee, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.1%. The next largest groups are White (42.3%) and Two or More Races (5.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcghee 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 Mcghee surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American47.1% · 10,872
- White42.3% · 9,758
- Two or more races5.7% · 1,318
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 669
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 370
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 104
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcghee
Mcghee 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
#1,529
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,461
+1,734 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 7.95
Rank movement Down 16 places
2020
#1,508
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,091
-370 bearers (-1.6%)
Per 100,000 7.73
Rank movement Up 21 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,513 | 21,727 | 8.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,529 | 23,461 | 7.95 | +1,734 bearers (+8.0%) | Down 16 places |
| 2020 | #1,508 | 23,091 | 7.73 | -370 bearers (-1.6%) | Up 21 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 Mcghee 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 | #1,529 | #1,508 | 1.4% |
| Count | 23,461 | 23,091 | -1.6% |
| Per 100K | 7.95 | 7.73 | -2.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcghee bearers went from 23,461 to 23,091 (-1.6% change). The surname moved up 21 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,529 to #1,508.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mcghee
FAQ
Mcghee surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcghee?
Name Census estimates that about 26,479 living Americans carry the surname Mcghee. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 12,944 residents.
How common is Mcghee?
Mcghee ranks #1,508 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.73 per 100,000 residents, which is about 8 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 23,091 people with the surname Mcghee. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (26,479), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.73 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.73 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 8 of them to have the surname Mcghee.
Has Mcghee become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcghee went from 23,461 recorded bearers to 23,091. That is a decrease of 370 (-1.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #1,529 to #1,508.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcghee?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcghee, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.1%. The next largest groups are White (42.3%) and Two or More Races (5.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mcghee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.1% (10,872 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcghee appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (47.1%), White (42.3%), Two or More Races (5.7%). 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 Mcghee (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 Mcghee mean?
A surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic "Mac Aodha," meaning "son of Aodh" (a personal name meaning "fire"). 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 Mcghee (7.73 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 are called Mcghee?
You can see how many people have the last name Mcghee on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.