McKay
A Gaelic surname meaning “son of Hugh,” widely associated with Scottish Highland and Irish families.
The #895 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 7,982 Americans shares it.
Etymology
McKay is an Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Aodha or Mac Aodhaidh, meaning “son of Aodh/Hugh.” In older sources, Aodh is often explained as a personal name connected with the idea of fire or ardour. The surname is therefore a patronymic, not an occupational or place name.
History
The name is strongly associated with Highland Scotland, though it also appears in Irish tradition and in older English-language records. Historical surname writers often linked McKay with related spellings such as MacKay, Mackie, MacCay, and Mac Hoey, all treated as forms of the same Gaelic name or closely related variants. In some local records, especially in Scotland, McKay was also used interchangeably with spellings like M'Kay and M'Cay.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname books sometimes grouped McKay with Hoey, Pugh, and Hughes because they all ultimately pointed to the same forename Hugh in different language traditions.
From the historical record
“a Northamptonshire surname. MACKAY (Celt.) Son of Aedh or Aodh =Art dour [Qael. and Ir. Mac Aedha or Aodha(dh mute) — mac. son + aedh, aodh (genit. aedha, aodha), fire, ardour : cp. Wei. didd, ardour] Mac Kean Mac Lay”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)Notable people named McKay
- Adam McKay (b. 1968)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.