# McKernan (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/mckernan/  
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 Irish.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Irish |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 3,144 |
| US rank (2010) | 10,255 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 98,202 people |
| Change since 2000 | +15% (2,730 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

Variant of McKiernan.

## Who carries it

Share of people named McKernan 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) | 95% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.5% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.7% |
| Two or more races | 1.1% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named McKernan in the United States.

## People named McKernan

- Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, American musician (1945–1973)
- John R. McKernan, American politician

## Similar surnames

McKiernan, McCraney, McGrane, McCarney, McCormick, McCormack, McReynolds, McCarron, Mascarenas, McCrimmon, McCranie, McGranahan.

## 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.