MacArthur Surname

38,503rd
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 13,658 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Scotland

MacArthur Surname Definition:

Gaelic MacArtair, 'son of Arthur,' which see. As a clan the Macarthurs were at the height of their power in the middle of the fourteenth century. They received large grants of lands in Lome and the keepership of the Castle of Dunstaffnage from Robert the Bruce, whose cause they espoused in the War of Independence (RMS.

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MacArthur Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States5,5941:64,7947,575
Canada3,0401:12,1201,797
Scotland1,2691:4,219729
Australia1,0951:24,6543,368
England1,0721:51,9766,395
Ghana7621:35,4604,134
New Zealand2641:17,1532,999
South Africa1241:436,91737,311
Philippines1161:872,74380,276
Ireland451:104,6435,503
Northern Ireland381:48,5544,148
Wales271:114,6128,773
Thailand241:2,943,264289,518
Brazil231:9,307,580200,052
France181:3,690,151224,666
Netherlands121:1,407,26575,423
Sweden101:984,67673,605
Mexico81:15,515,77647,773
Argentina81:5,342,927168,491
India71:109,580,769786,157
Qatar61:393,00055,922
United Arab Emirates61:1,527,04651,993
China61:227,886,92811,701
Switzerland61:1,368,81977,571
Nigeria51:35,428,552388,973
Greece51:2,215,95891,893
Dominican Republic41:2,608,23320,941
Russia41:36,030,764577,589
Peru41:7,946,03141,846
Mozambique41:6,815,3924,272
Singapore41:1,376,92628,409
Italy41:15,289,172132,955
Malaysia41:7,373,556230,001
Cyprus31:294,9598,690
Hong Kong31:2,445,1619,595
Israel31:2,852,545113,505
Poland21:19,004,374199,659
South Korea21:25,620,1284,175
Chile21:8,808,23765,417
Norway21:2,571,14395,402
Venezuela11:30,204,07785,459
Tanzania11:52,941,613123,716
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
United States Virgin Islands11:110,3756,934
Austria11:8,515,435118,036
Angola11:26,989,21411,853
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
Spain11:46,752,036156,870
Bangladesh11:159,356,77326,077
Barbados11:287,4482,772
Solomon Islands11:580,02922,243
Serbia11:7,144,94838,459
Rwanda11:11,364,9785,947
Costa Rica11:4,780,06913,345
Morocco11:34,476,099111,471
Micronesia11:106,2431,380
Liberia11:4,408,53547,110
Kuwait11:3,800,69427,187
Indonesia11:132,249,194811,426
Guyana11:762,22114,420
Guatemala11:16,082,66812,169
Germany11:80,505,459560,955
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland411:108,0466,702
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States221:2,282,667111,005

MacArthur (2,294) may also be a first name.

MacArthur Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

Gaelic MacArtair, 'son of Arthur,' which see. As a clan the Macarthurs were at the height of their power in the middle of the fourteenth century. They received large grants of lands in Lome and the keepership of the Castle of Dunstaffnage from Robert the Bruce, whose cause they espoused in the War of Independence (RMS., I, App. II, 353,368, 372,620, 621). Early in the fifteenth century their power was broken when their chief John MacArthur was beheaded by James I and most of the estates forfeited. The seat of the clan was Strachur, and a sept of the name were hereditary pipers to the Macdonalds of the Isles. A Gaelic saying current in Islay in connection with the antiquity of the Macarthurs is:

"Cnoic is uillt, is Ailpeinich,Stolen from Fore-bears

Ach cuin' a thanaig Artaraich?"

(Hills and streams and Alpinites,

But whence came the Arthurites?)

Carlich Makkerthyre, witness to an obligation by the earl of Ross in 1439 (Cawdor, p. 16) is probably the Tarleto M'Erthir mentioned in 1440 (Rose, p. 129). Duncan Makarturicht witnessed a charter of lands in Stratherne, 1529 (RMS., III, 861), Gyllemechall M'Carthair is in record, 1569 (Moray MSS., p. 645), and Dougall M'Airthour was sheriff-clerk of Argyll in 1595 (HP., I). Another Dougall M'Arthour was notary at Glenurquhay in 1580 (BBT., p. 224), and John Dow McNeill VcHarther of Torvadithe, who had a tack of the teinds of Inschald in 1618, appears again in 1630 as Patrick McKairtour of Tullierodiche (LIM., p. 116,137). Mc harter 1549. Some individuals of this name have dropped the 'Mac' and become Arthurs (but not all Arthurs were originally Macarthurs), and the name has been also translated Arthurson, a form appearing as early as 1427 (HP., II, p. 159). M Arthor 1589, McArtour 1516, M'Cairtter 1688, M'Carthour 1580, M'Carthur 1529, Makcairter 1640, Mackartar 1690, Makarthour 1518, Makarthure 1507, Makkerthyre 1439, Mc Cartur 1662, Mcerter 1776. General Arthur MacArthur (1845—1912) of Scottish parentage, served in the Philippines, became Lieutenant-General (1906), being the twelfth officer in the history of the U. S. Army to attain that rank. His son, Douglas MacArthur, is equally famous.

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

A Scottish name distinct from the foregoing.

It is often called Arthur and sometimes MacCarter. IF 287

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

(Irish, Scottish) The son of Arthur (valorous).

Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

The son of Arthur. The family branched off from the Campbells about the time of Alexander III.

The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames (1862) by Clifford Stanley Sims (1839-1896)

MacArthur Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name MacArthur Come From? nationality or country of origin

MacArthur (Marathi: माकॅथुर्र) is most common in The United States. It can be rendered as a variant:. For other potential spellings of this name click here.

How Common Is The Last Name MacArthur? popularity and diffusion

The last name is the 38,503rd most frequent last name throughout the world It is held by around 1 in 533,573 people. This surname is primarily found in The Americas, where 63 percent of MacArthur are found; 63 percent are found in North America and 62 percent are found in Anglo-North America. It is also the 155,662nd most numerous first name on earth, borne by 2,294 people.

This surname is most frequent in The United States, where it is carried by 5,594 people, or 1 in 64,794. In The United States MacArthur is most common in: California, where 12 percent live, Michigan, where 8 percent live and Massachusetts, where 7 percent live. Not including The United States it is found in 62 countries. It is also found in Canada, where 22 percent live and Scotland, where 9 percent live.

MacArthur Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The prevalency of MacArthur has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people bearing the MacArthur surname grew 25,427 percent between 1880 and 2014 and in Ireland it grew 110 percent between 1901 and 2014.

MacArthur Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those holding the last name is primarily Presbyterian (73%) in Ireland.

In The United States those holding the MacArthur last name are 3.47% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than the national average, with 50.24% being registered to vote for the party.

The amount MacArthur earn in different countries varies greatly. In Norway they earn 128.39% more than the national average, earning 790,415 kr per year; in South Africa they earn 30.73% more than the national average, earning R 310,668 per year; in United States they earn 8.49% more than the national average, earning $46,813 USD per year and in Canada they earn 1.14% more than the national average, earning $50,248 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
MacCarthur958/
MacAurthur956/
MacAarthur950/
McArthur9431,563/
Macartur948/
D'Macarthur901/
McCarthur89223/
Macarthor896/
McAurthur895/
McArthure891/
MacArhtur891/
McArtur888/
Macarthurová861/
Makartur8227/
Macartor8225/
McArhtur822/
MacSartor783/
Makartor7183/

MacArthur Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
MacArthur in the Marathi language
माकॅथुर्रmakethurra-

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to MacArthur
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis