The surname McPherson
A Scottish Gaelic patronymic surname, carried by 36,125 people in the United States.
Pronounced /məkˈfɜː(ɹ)sən/ 3 syllables Soundex M216
Origin
Scottish Gaelic origin
Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Mac a' Phearsain (“son of the parson”), from pearsan (“parson”).
McPherson 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 36,125 people named McPherson in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 8,547 Americans. That is up 3.9% since 2000, when the Census counted 34,763.
Who is named McPherson
Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census
73% of people named McPherson identified as white (not Hispanic), 21% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
- White (not Hispanic) 73%
- Black (not Hispanic) 21%
- Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.5%
- Two or more races 2.3%
- American Indian and Alaska Native 0.6%
- Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%
Famous McPhersons
10 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Patricia McPhersonAmerican actress, born 1954
- Paige McPhersonAmerican taekwondo practitioner, born 1990
- James Alan McPhersonAmerican short story writer and essayist (1943–2016)
- Charles McPhersonAmerican jazz alto saxophonist (born 1939)
- James M. McPhersonAmerican historian (born 1936)
- John R. McPhersonAmerican politician (1833-1897)
- Inika McPhersonAmerican high jumper, born 1986
- Lisa McPhersonAmerican Scientologist (1959–1995)
- Tara McPhersonAmerican artist, born 1976
- Paul McPhersonAmerican basketball player (born 1978)
Spellings and sound-alikes
Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling
Variant spellings
- Ferson
- Pherson
Surnames that sound like McPherson
McPherson has the Soundex code M216, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code M216.
Other Scottish Gaelic surnames
Questions
- Where does the surname McPherson come from?
- Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Mac a' Phearsain (“son of the parson”), from pearsan (“parson”).
- How common is the surname McPherson?
- 36,125 people in the United States had the surname McPherson in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 8,547 Americans. It ranked 965th of 162,253 surnames.
- What ethnicity is the surname McPherson?
- In the 2010 Census, 73% of people named McPherson identified as white (not Hispanic), and 21% as Black (not Hispanic).
- Who is the most famous person named McPherson?
- Patricia McPherson, American actress, followed by Paige McPherson.
- Where is the surname McPherson most common?
- Wikidata records people named McPherson in the United States.
- How do you pronounce McPherson?
- McPherson is /məkˈfɜː(ɹ)sən/, 3 syllables.
- What type of surname is McPherson?
- McPherson is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
- Is the surname McPherson getting more or less common?
- More common. 34,763 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 36,125 in 2010, up 3.9%.
- What are other spellings of McPherson?
- Ferson and Pherson.