# MacDonald (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/macdonald/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname from Scottish Gaelic common in Scotland.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Scottish Gaelic |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 46,717 |
| US rank (2010) | 744 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 6,609 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.0% (45,782 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /məkˈdɑnəld/, 3 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Macdonnell, Mcdonald, M'donald, Mdonald, Madonald, Donald |

## Etymology

From Scottish Gaelic Mac Dhòmhnaill, equivalent to "son of Donald".

## Who carries it

Share of people named MacDonald in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 94% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 1.1% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.8% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.4% |
| Two or more races | 1.6% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named MacDonald in the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Canada and Australia.

## People named MacDonald

- John A. Macdonald, 1st prime minister of Canada from 1867 to 1873 and 1878 to 1891
- Jeanette MacDonald, American singer and actress (1903-1965)
- John D. MacDonald, American writer (1916–1986)
- Margaret MacDonald, British artist (1865-1933)
- Danielle Macdonald, Australian actress
- Katherine MacDonald, American actor and film producer (1881-1956)
- Oliver MacDonald, athletics competitor (1904–1973)
- J. Farrell MacDonald, American actor and director (1875-1952)
- Jimmy MacDonald, British actor (1906–1991)
- Kevin B. MacDonald, American psychologist and academic
- Dwight Macdonald, American writer, editor, film critic, social critic, philosopher and political radical (19
- Ian MacDonald, American actor (1914-1978)

and 13 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

McDonald, McDonagh, McDonell, McDaniel, McDonough, McDonnell, McAdams, McDaniels, Mastin, Masten, McAdam, Maston.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.