Mac Names

The eponymous TV hero has inspired a handful of parents to use his name for their sons. Macgyver first appeared on the charts in 1989, four years after the original television series began.

Is this popular name really Michaela, or is it a combination of McKenna and Kayla. The real answer: it's a fusion of trends.

Magee became one of the first gender-bending Irish surname names so popular today thanks to New York television newswoman Magee Hickey. In case you don't know, the g is hard, as in Maggie, but with the opposite emphasis.

The Mc and Mac surnames are asserting themselves as first names and this is among the most usable. MacArthur or McArthur makes a perfect honorific for an ancestral Arthur and leads directly to the nicknames Mac or Art

Although appearing as a patronym (nope, it doesn't mean "son of Elizabeth"), Macbeth originated as a given name. It is derived from the Gaelic MacBeatha, describing a religious man.

Shows some promise via its connection to the growing interest in Ewan.

This Macallister variation is strongly associted with Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Unless it's your alma mater, it might be wise to stick with the original.

This highly recognizable surname means "son of Artan," an Irish derivative of the name Art. It's most closely tied to Beatle Paul McCartney — we'd be willing to bet that some of the parents who give this name to their children each year are fans.

McLaren is an Anglicization of the surname MacLabhrainn, meaning "son of Labhrann." Labhrann is the Gaelic form of Laurentius, from which Lawrence also derived.

Interesting possibility for the son or grandson of a Gregory.

Scottish and Irish Mac and Mc surnames are definitely up for consideration, and this one has sports cred via its link to tennis champ John. It was one of the fastest-rising names on Nameberry in early 2018, though this hasn't translated into real-life use yet. We still think it's one of the coolest undiscovered Scottish names for boys.