2000
#27,821
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 813
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.30
Very Rare Last name
Mcgillis
A Scottish surname derived from the Gaelic "Gillebride" meaning servant or follower of St. Bridget.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 927 Americans carry the last name Mcgillis. That puts it at #30,840 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.27 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 369,746 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mcgillis 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.
Bearers in the US
927
1 in 369,746
Census rank
#30,840
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
808
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 808 bearers of the surname Mcgillis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.27 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 30840th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcgillis, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.3%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.2%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mcgillis
The surname McGillis has its origins in Scotland and is believed to have emerged during the 12th or 13th century. It is derived from the Gaelic name "MacGille Iosa," which translates to "son of the servant of Jesus." This name likely referred to someone who worked in the service of the church or a religious order.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various Scottish records and manuscripts from the medieval period. For example, there are references to individuals with the name McGillis, or similar spellings such as McGillies or McGilles, in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented the names of Scottish nobles and landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England.
The McGillis surname was particularly prominent in the Highlands of Scotland, especially in the regions of Argyll and the Western Isles. Over time, the name evolved into various spelling variations, including McGillies, McGillis, McGillivray, and McGillivray-McIntosh, reflecting the fluid nature of surnames during that era.
One notable figure with the surname McGillis was Sir Lachlan McGillis, a Scottish knight who lived in the 14th century and fought alongside Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence. Another early example is Ewan McGillis, a Scottish clergyman who served as the Bishop of Argyll in the late 15th century.
In the 17th century, the McGillis surname began to spread beyond Scotland as individuals emigrated to other parts of the British Isles and, eventually, to North America. One such individual was John McGillis, who was born in Scotland around 1640 and later settled in the colony of Virginia.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, several notable individuals bore the McGillis surname. These include Alexander McGillis, a Scottish-born merchant and landowner who lived in Nova Scotia in the late 18th century, and Andrew McGillis, a Canadian politician and businessman from Ontario who served as a member of the legislative assembly in the mid-19th century.
Another prominent figure was William McGillis, a Scottish-born author and historian who lived in the late 19th century and wrote extensively about Scottish history and culture. Additionally, John McGillis was a Scottish-American soldier who fought in the American Civil War and received the Medal of Honor for his bravery during the Battle of Stones River in 1862.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mcgillis
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcgillis, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.3%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.2%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Mcgillis 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 Mcgillis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.3% · 673
- American Indian and Alaska Native6.2% · 50
- Two or more races5.9% · 48
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 7
- Black or African American0.5% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mcgillis
Mcgillis 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
#27,707
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 868
+55 bearers (+6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.29
Rank movement Up 114 places
2020
#30,840
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 808
-60 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.27
Rank movement Down 3,133 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #27,821 | 813 | 0.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #27,707 | 868 | 0.29 | +55 bearers (+6.8%) | Up 114 places |
| 2020 | #30,840 | 808 | 0.27 | -60 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 3,133 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 Mcgillis 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 | #27,707 | #30,840 | -11.3% |
| Count | 868 | 808 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.29 | 0.27 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mcgillis bearers went from 868 to 808 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 3,133 positions in the national ranking, going from #27,707 to #30,840.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mcgillis
FAQ
Mcgillis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mcgillis?
Name Census estimates that about 927 living Americans carry the surname Mcgillis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 369,746 residents.
How common is Mcgillis?
Mcgillis ranks #30,840 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.27 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 808 people with the surname Mcgillis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (927), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.27 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.27 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Mcgillis.
Has Mcgillis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mcgillis went from 868 recorded bearers to 808. That is a decrease of 60 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #27,707 to #30,840.
What does the Census say about the background of Mcgillis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mcgillis, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.3%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.2%) and Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Mcgillis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.3% (673 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mcgillis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.3%), American Indian/Alaska Native (6.2%), Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Mcgillis (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 Mcgillis mean?
A Scottish surname derived from the Gaelic "Gillebride" meaning servant or follower of St. Bridget. 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 Mcgillis (0.27 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 Mcgillis?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.