Mcdonald
Masculine · “Son of Donald”
Mcdonald is the Scottish clan name used as a first name, 'son of Donald'. It belongs to Canada's first prime minister and to two brothers from New Hampshire who invented the fast-food kitchen and then sold their own name.
How old is the name Mcdonald?
Mcdonald first appears in US birth records in 1913 — 112 years ago. The typical Mcdonald alive today was born around 1940, making them about 85 years old. About 200 people named Mcdonald are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Mcdonald most popular?
Mcdonald peaked in 1932, reaching #1716 nationally. See the whole 1932 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Dòmhnall to Mcdonald
The story of Mcdonald
John A. Macdonald, born in Glasgow and brought to Upper Canada as a child, led the confederation of 1867 and became the first prime minister of Canada. In 1948 Richard and Maurice McDonald redesigned their drive-in restaurant in San Bernardino, California, around a short menu and an assembly-line kitchen they called the Speedee Service System; the milkshake-machine salesman Ray Kroc franchised it and in 1961 bought the brothers out, name and all. Mcdonald as a first name was a surname put to use.
Meaning
Son of Donald, 'world ruler'
From Gaelic MacDhòmhnaill, 'son of Dòmhnall'.
How the name formed
- Dòmhnall
- MacDhòmhnaill
- McDonald
Related forms: MacDhòmhnaill · Macdonald
Pronouncing Mcdonald
mik-DON-uld
Three syllables with the stress on the second.
Nicknames for Mcdonald
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1913
- Most boys named
- 191819 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1716reached in 1932
- Change vs 1986
- 0.0%5 in 2000, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Mcdonald in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- MacDhòmhnaill in Scottish Gaelic — related form
- Macdonald in English — spelling variant
Mcdonalds among us
people named Mcdonald are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Mcdonald sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- A real Scottish clan name with a long history.
- Comes with Mac as a ready short form.
- Almost certain to be the only one.
- Everyone will think of the restaurant chain first.
- Forms may not handle the capital D in the middle.
- As a surname-first name it may be taken for a last name.
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Mcdonald
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Mcdonalds are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 200 people named Mcdonald are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Mcdonald in 2025?
- Mcdonald is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Mcdonald with classmates?
- Mcdonald will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More M names
The most-given names starting with M, all years combined.
Michael#21 · Matthew#32 · Mark#244 · Mason#39 · Martin#335 · Marvin#699 · Melvin#958 · Marcus#258
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Mcdonald? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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