# McKay (surname)

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

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 38,681 |
| US rank (2010) | 895 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 7,982 people |
| Change since 2000 | +4.7% (36,948 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /məˈkeɪ/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From Irish Mac Aodha and Scottish Gaelic MacAoidh (literally “son of Aodh”). Related to McCoy and McGee.

## Who carries it

Share of people named McKay 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) | 80% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 14% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.7% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.2% |
| Two or more races | 2.1% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named McKay in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada.

## People named McKay

- Adam McKay, American filmmaker (born 1968)
- Matt McKay, Australian association football player
- Nellie McKay, American musician
- Antonio McKay, American track and field athlete
- Mike McKay, Australian rower
- Chris McKay, American film and television director
- Christian McKay, British actor
- Gardner McKay, American actor and artist (1932-2001)
- Donald McKay, American shipbuilder (1810–1880)
- Clint McKay, Australian cricketer
- Heather McKay, Australian squash player
- Douglas McKay, American politician (1893-1959)

and 5 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

Mackey, Mackay, McKoy, Mickey, McKey, McCay, McQuay, McGahey, MacKaye, McCoy, Mejia, Moss.

## 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.