How common is the surname McFarlane?

9,319 people in the United States had the surname McFarlane in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 33,131 Americans. It ranked 3,795th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named McFarlane?

Danny McFarlane, Athletics (sport) competitor, followed by Robert McFarlane.

Where is the surname McFarlane most common?

Wikidata records people named McFarlane in the United States, Jamaica and the United Kingdom and 1 other country.

Is the surname McFarlane getting more or less common?

More common. 8,160 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 9,319 in 2010, up 14%.

The surname McFarlane

A Scottish Gaelic patronymic surname, carried by 9,319 people in the United States.

3 syllables Soundex M216

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). McFarlane is more common than 97.7% of them.

Origin

Scottish Gaelic origin

Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Mac Pharthaláin (“son of Parthalán”), probably a Gaelicized form of the personal name Bartholomew.

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

One of 277 Scottish Gaelic surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 9,319 people named McFarlane in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 33,131 Americans. That is up 14% since 2000, when the Census counted 8,160.

#3,795

rank among US surnames

9,319

people in 2010

3.2

per 100,000 Americans

+14.2%

change since 2000 (was #3,995)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#3,786	McGrew	9,354	33,007
#3,787	Scholl	9,351	33,017
#3,788	Tarver	9,341	33,053
#3,789	Clough	9,339	33,060
#3,790	Hennessy	9,338	33,063
#3,791	Rosenbaum	9,333	33,081
#3,792	Stull	9,324	33,113

Who is named McFarlane

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

53% of people named McFarlane identified as white (not Hispanic), 38% as Black (not Hispanic) and 5.3% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 53%
Black (not Hispanic) 38%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 5.3%
Two or more races 2.4%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous McFarlanes

5 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Danny McFarlane
Athletics (sport) competitor, born 1972
Robert McFarlane
American Marine Corps officer and National Security Advisor (1937–2022)
Colin McFarlane
British actor, born 1961
Tracey McFarlane
American swimmer, born 1966
Mustard
American record producer (born 1990)

Notable McFarlanes come mostly from the United States (2), Jamaica (1) and the United Kingdom (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like McFarlane

McFarlane has the Soundex code M216, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code M216.

Other Scottish Gaelic surnames

All 277 Scottish Gaelic surnames

Questions

Where does the surname McFarlane come from?: Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Mac Pharthaláin (“son of Parthalán”), probably a Gaelicized form of the personal name Bartholomew.
How common is the surname McFarlane?: 9,319 people in the United States had the surname McFarlane in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 33,131 Americans. It ranked 3,795th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname McFarlane?: In the 2010 Census, 53% of people named McFarlane identified as white (not Hispanic), and 38% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named McFarlane?: Danny McFarlane, Athletics (sport) competitor, followed by Robert McFarlane.
Where is the surname McFarlane most common?: Wikidata records people named McFarlane in the United States, Jamaica and the United Kingdom and 1 other country.
What type of surname is McFarlane?: McFarlane is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname McFarlane getting more or less common?: More common. 8,160 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 9,319 in 2010, up 14%.