McLea Surname
Approximately 147 people bear this surname
McLea Surname Definition:
MACLAE, Maclay, Macclay, Maclea, Macleay: These names ere commonly but incorrectly explained as from Gaelic Mac an leigh. This is merely popular etymology due to t le belief that the name means 'son of the physician,' and that the Macleays of western Sutherland ere descended from Ferchard Leche, who had a grant of lands in Assynt, 1386.
Read More About This SurnameMcLea Surname Distribution Map
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 112 | 1:3,236,240 | 185,654 |
| South Africa | 45 | 1:1,203,949 | 68,637 |
| Scotland | 22 | 1:243,355 | 12,191 |
| Northern Ireland | 21 | 1:87,859 | 5,745 |
| England | 13 | 1:4,286,005 | 132,302 |
| Canada | 12 | 1:3,070,466 | 169,836 |
| New Zealand | 6 | 1:754,720 | 41,661 |
| Taiwan | 6 | 1:3,907,458 | 23,065 |
| Malawi | 1 | 1:17,119,109 | 34,144 |
| Isle of Man | 1 | 1:85,822 | 4,091 |
| India | 1 | 1:767,065,382 | 1,851,717 |
| Australia | 1 | 1:26,995,701 | 270,794 |
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 32 | 1:138,433 | 7,742 |
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 50 | 1:74,864 | 4,249 |
| England | 12 | 1:2,031,281 | 60,933 |
| Wales | 1 | 1:1,568,416 | 19,290 |
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 43 | 1:1,167,876 | 66,381 |
McLea Surname Meaning
From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history
MACLAE, Maclay, Macclay, Maclea, Macleay: These names ere commonly but incorrectly explained as from Gaelic Mac an leigh. This is merely popular etymology due to t le belief that the name means 'son of the physician,' and that the Macleays of western Sutherland ere descended from Ferchard Leche, who had a grant of lands in Assynt, 1386. The full form of the name is MacDhunnshleibhe, 'son of Donnshleibhe,' as explained under Dunsleve, which see. In a royal commission of 1498 King James m directed certain persons to distrain the lands and goods of Kenyoch M'Conleif and Donald M'Conleif, co-raiders with Chisholm of Comer of the lands of Huchone Ros of Kilrawok (OPS., II, p. 527). Kenzoch or Kennitus M'Coleif held the king's lands of Cumree (Comrie) in Strathconon in 1504 (ER., XII, p. 663), behind Tor Achilty, where tradition placed the seat of the clan. John M'Ewin V'Dunslef appears at Sonnachan, Argyllshire, in 1502 (Notes and queries, 11 July, 1931, p. 21), and Firda Makgillecallum Makcolluf and John Roy M'Culloiff were tenants under Stewart of Appin in 1509 (Stewarts of Appin, p. 193). In 1518 the "clane McDowleanis" (an error for M'Dowleavis) gave their bond of manrent to Sir John Campbell of Caldor (Cawdor, p. 129). The names given in the bond ere: Duncan Brec McDunlane, and Jhone Mcdoulane 'his broder.' Dunslane McNeill is one of the parties to the bond, and in all three instances -laue has been misread -lane. John McYndayn McCollef is mentioned in 1519 (ibid., p. 131). Odoni Makdouill Makdunlane had a remission in 1524, and a son of Duncan M'Dunlewe was appointed minister of the two perishes of Kiflespic-Kerrill and Kilmeronock in 1541 (HMC., 2 Rep., p. 193), The northern Macleays were known to Sir Robert Gordon as the clan Leajwe; while thereafter they are known in record as Makley (in Alness 1651), M'Ley (in Coutin 1677). Macleays were numerous in early times in Easter and Wester Ross and in Argyll. Of the southern Macleays was Jo. M'Ey V'Dunlaif in North Argyll, 1570 (Cawdor, p. 177). A cautioner was found for John McClay in Ayrshire, 1584 (RPC., III, p. 714), and Donald M'Collea was one of Dunolly's men in 1588 (RPC., IV, p. 265), and Duncan M'Collea appears in same year (ibid., p. 333). Patrik M'Conlea in Finran was fined for reset of members of Clan Gregor in 1613 (ibid., XIV, p. 631), and Donald M'Onleif was servitor to Allan Cameron of Locheil in same year (RMS., VII, 871). Donald M'Clae was burgess of Glasgow by purchase, 1617 (Burgesses), and Duncan Dow McDonochie Brec alias McDonnslae and John McEane Dow VcDonochie Brecalias McDonnske were charged with assault and cattle-stealing, 1623 (RPC., XIII, p. 270271). Mc onlea is a common record spelling of the name, and its derivation is clearly shown by the name of Dounslea Mconlea, tenant of Schewnay, 1669 (HP., IV, p. 222). Donald roy M'Onlay appears in Lunga, 1633 (Notes and queries, 18 July, 1931, p. 44). Findlay McClay and Malcolm McClay appear in Drakies in 1646 (More Culloden Papers, p. 50), and Dunsla M'ein Vc onlea and Iain M'onlea, his brother, were among those massacred at Dunaveity, 1649 (HP., II, p. 257). Duncan Mc onlea was bailie of Rothesay, 1662 (ibid., III, p. 12), and another Duncan M'Onlea was burgess of Paisley, 1667 (Isles). Iain Mc onlew was tenant of Torisay, Mull, 1669 (HP., IV, p. 223), and Duncan M'Onlea, Duncan M'Dunslea, and Neill M'Dimslea (an error for Dunslea) appear in Islay, 1688 (Bk. Islay, p. 508,511). William Livingston, the Islay bard, always wrote his name in Gaelic M'Dhunleibhe, and Dr. David Livingstone, the African traveller, was a Macdonleavy of Ulva. Allan Dall gives another popular etymology of the name, which he makes to mean 'son of John the grey-haired,'
"Thagrainn cairdeas Mhic-Iain-Leithe
'S gur dlleas do m' chinneadh fein e,Stolen from Fore bears
Sheasadh air gach cnoc le cheile,
Nuair a dh' eireadh iad gu stri."
MACLEA: A current form of Maclae, which see. In Banffshire the name was spelled Mc o Lea or Mc o Lei, and an old spelling of a branch of the family in Glasgow was McCloo (HP., IV, p. 97).
McLea Demographics
McLea Religious Adherence
in Ireland
Religious Adherence
in Ireland
McLea Last Name Facts
Where Does The Last Name McLea Come From? nationality or country of origin
McLea is held by more people in The United States than any other country/territory. It can also be rendered as a variant:. For other possible spellings of this surname click here.
How Common Is The Last Name McLea? popularity and diffusion
It is the 1,453,389th most commonly used family name at a global level. It is borne by around 1 in 49,575,142 people. The surname McLea occurs predominantly in The Americas, where 84 percent of McLea reside; 84 percent reside in North America and 84 percent reside in Anglo-North America.
The surname is most numerous in The United States, where it is carried by 112 people, or 1 in 3,236,240. In The United States McLea is mostly found in: California, where 29 percent reside, Massachusetts, where 13 percent reside and New York, where 13 percent reside. Beside The United States it occurs in 11 countries. It is also found in South Africa, where 31 percent reside and Scotland, where 15 percent reside.
McLea Family Population Trend historical fluctuation
The frequency of McLea has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people bearing the McLea last name grew 260 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Scotland it decreased 56 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in England it grew 108 percent between 1881 and 2014.
McLea Last Name Statistics demography
The religious devotion of those carrying the McLea surname is chiefly Catholic (75%) in Ireland.
In The United States those holding the McLea surname are 20.45% more likely to be registered with the Democratic Party than the national average, with 73.68% registered to vote for the political party.
The amount McLea earn in different countries varies greatly. In South Africa they earn 36.27% more than the national average, earning R 323,820 per year; in United States they earn 0.23% less than the national average, earning $43,051 USD per year and in Canada they earn 16.41% less than the national average, earning $41,532 CAD per year.
Phonetically Similar Names
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McLea Reference & Research
McLay One-name Study - A profile of the McLay surname with contact details for a researcher who collects any information pertaining to it.
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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 McLea
- To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on FamilySearch, MyHeritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis