Mackay
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- muh-KAY
- Origin
- Scottish
Mackay is a boys' name of Scottish origin, meaning “son of Aodh”. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Mackay mean?
Scottish: Scottish surname, from Gaelic Mac Aoidh
“son of Aodh”
Clan Mackay is a Highland clan historically centred on Strathnaver in the far north of Scotland.
Is Mackay a girl's or a boy's name?
Mackay is a boys' name.
How popular is Mackay in the US?
No boys in the US were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 2012, with 13 boys. It first appears in the records in 1991.
Half of all the boys named Mackay in the US since 1880 were born between 2001 and 2015, the years shaded on the chart below.
Mackay in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 8 | #8,982 |
| 2023 | 7 | #9,757 |
| 2022 | 11 | #7,256 |
| 2021 | 8 | #8,820 |
| 2020 | 6 | #10,599 |
| 2019 | 6 | #10,797 |
| 2018 | 7 | #9,664 |
| 2017 | 7 | #9,691 |
| 2016 | 8 | #8,811 |
| 2015 | 7 | #9,562 |
| 2014 | 7 | #9,636 |
| 2013 | 10 | #7,532 |
| 2012 | 13 | #6,300 |
| 2011 | 12 | #6,572 |
| 2010 | 8 | #8,797 |
| 2009 | 10 | #7,687 |
| 2008 | 11 | #7,182 |
| 2007 | 7 | #9,782 |
| 2006 | 9 | #7,992 |
| 2005 | 12 | #6,220 |
| 2004 | 9 | #7,530 |
| 2003 | 7 | #8,636 |
| 2002 | 10 | #6,515 |
| 2001 | 11 | #6,006 |
| 2000 | 6 | #9,104 |
| 1999 | 9 | #6,524 |
| 1998 | 10 | #5,834 |
| 1997 | 12 | #4,954 |
| 1996 | 8 | #6,489 |
| 1995 | 5 | #8,861 |
| 1994 | 10 | #5,446 |
| 1993 | 0 | – |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 5 | #8,228 |
Nicknames for Mackay
- Mac 64 boys in the UK in 2025
Names like Mackay
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Brody Kayden Aiden Brayden Finley Logan Lachlan Declan Ronan Deacon Raiden Kian
Names related to Mackay
More Scottish names
Isla Arabella Cameron Bonnie Paisley Carson Maxwell Brodie Finlay Blair Lennox Skye Knox Dallas Lochlan Reid
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Mackay: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/mackay, updated 20 October 2026.