How common is the surname McClay?

2,208 people in the United States had the surname McClay in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 139,830 Americans. It ranked 13,707th of 162,253 surnames.

Is the surname McClay getting more or less common?

Less common. 2,278 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 2,208 in 2010, down 3.1%.

The surname McClay

A patronymic surname, carried by 2,208 people in the United States.

2 syllables Soundex M240

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). McClay is more common than 91.6% of them.

Origin

Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic and Northern Irish Mac an Leagha (“son of the physician”), from leigheas (“remedy, cure”).

McClay is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 2,208 people named McClay in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 139,830 Americans. That is down 3.1% since 2000, when the Census counted 2,278.

#13,707

rank among US surnames

2,208

people in 2010

0.8

per 100,000 Americans

-3.1%

change since 2000 (was #12,490)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#13,700	Kinslow	2,210	139,704
#13,703	Acklin	2,209	139,767
#13,707	Overturf	2,208	139,830
#13,713	Sprenger	2,207	139,894

Who is named McClay

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

75% of people named McClay identified as white (not Hispanic), 20% as Black (not Hispanic) and 1.9% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 75%
Black (not Hispanic) 20%
Two or more races 1.9%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 1.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.8%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.7%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like McClay

McClay has the Soundex code M240, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code M240.

Questions

Where does the surname McClay come from?: Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic and Northern Irish Mac an Leagha (“son of the physician”), from leigheas (“remedy, cure”).
How common is the surname McClay?: 2,208 people in the United States had the surname McClay in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 139,830 Americans. It ranked 13,707th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname McClay?: In the 2010 Census, 75% of people named McClay identified as white (not Hispanic), and 20% as Black (not Hispanic).
What type of surname is McClay?: McClay is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname McClay getting more or less common?: Less common. 2,278 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 2,208 in 2010, down 3.1%.