McKely Surname

6,723,624th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 8 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
United States

McKely Surname Definition:

MACKELLY: Gaelic Mac Ceallaigh, 'son of Cellach, i.e. the 'warlike' one. The Mackellies or Mackailes of Gaitgill were no doubt descended from Gilmalgon (read Gilmahagon) MacKelli who witnessed Abbot Arald's gift of the lands of Duueglas to Theobald the Fleming (Theobaldus Flamaticus), c.

Read More About This Surname

McKely Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States81:45,307,367917,113
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland11:4,429,86640,727
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States51:10,043,737422,899

McKely Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

MACKELLY: Gaelic Mac Ceallaigh, 'son of Cellach, i.e. the 'warlike' one. The Mackellies or Mackailes of Gaitgill were no doubt descended from Gilmalgon (read Gilmahagon) MacKelli who witnessed Abbot Arald's gift of the lands of Duueglas to Theobald the Fleming (Theobaldus Flamaticus), c. 1150 (Kelso, 107). Kalman McKelli and Michael, his brother, were two of the 'chief men of Clenafren,' in Galloway, in 1298 (Bain, II, p. 253) Payments were made to Roger McKelli in Culane, Inverness, in 1340 (ER,, I, p. 458,462). John McCelly, witness in Abercorn in 1363, is probably John M'Kelli or M'Kelly, clerk of liverance to Queen Euphemia, who appears in record in 1364 and succeeding years (ER. II, RMS.). Oswald Mackelly was bailie of Edinburgh in 1392 (Egidii, p. 28), and Andrew M'Kelli appears as a witness in Wigtownshire in 1426 (RMS., II, 185). Thomas M'Kelle who acquired the lands of Gaitgill, Dumfries, in 1476, and had sasine of the lands of Gategilmakilvemak in 1493 and 1498 (Edgar, p. 196; ER.) is doubtless the umquhile Thomas McKelle of Gategill, father of Duncan McKelle, mentioned in 1503 (RSS., I, 998). Thomas Makelly, a follower of the earl of Cassilis, was respited for murder in 1526 (RSS., I, 3386). The name still exists in Wigtownshire as Kelly, and some of the family have changed to Macgulloch. The Mackellys (Mackellaig or Mackellaigh) of Mull have changed their name to Macdonald. In 1684 the name was spelled McKeallie and also appeared in that year without the 'Mac' as Kellie, Kail, Kaill, Kailzie, Kale, and Kalie (Parish). (2) There was also a family of this name of some importance in Perthshire in the fourteenth century. Robert II confirmed the charter by which Andrew de Valoniis, knight, granted John McKelly or M'Kelli, son of quondam Galfridus McKelly, all the lands of Byniane with pertinents in the barony of Methfen, 1374 (RMS., I, 613,707). John McKelly had a confirmation charter of "qua-tuor acris terre infra vicecomitatum de Strivelyne" in 1376 (ibid., 565).

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

McKely Last Name Facts

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

The surname McKely is most common in The United States. It may also appear as a variant:. Click here to see other potential spellings of this name.

How Common Is The Last Name McKely? popularity and diffusion

This last name is the 6,723,624th most frequently held family name on a global scale. It is borne by approximately 1 in 910,943,240 people. The surname McKely occurs mostly in The Americas, where 100 percent of McKely reside; 100 percent reside in North America and 100 percent reside in Anglo-North America.

It is most prevalent in The United States, where it is held by 8 people, or 1 in 45,307,367. In The United States it is primarily concentrated in: California, where 50 percent are found, Texas, where 38 percent are found and Maryland, where 13 percent are found.

McKely Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The occurrence of McKely has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people bearing the McKely surname grew 160 percent between 1880 and 2014.

McKely Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those holding the surname is principally Presbyterian (100%) in Ireland.

McKely earn significantly less than the average income. In United States they earn 26.18% less than the national average, earning $31,854 USD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

Search for Another Surname

The name statistics are still in development, sign up for information on more maps and data

By signing up to the mailing list you will only receive emails specifically about name reference on Forebears and your information will not be distributed to 3rd parties.

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 McKely
  • 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