MACARTNEY
Recorded variant spellings include Mac Artney, MacArtney
Macartney is a Scottish surname that originates from the Gaelic patronymic Mac Artáin, which translates literally as “son of Artán.” The element Artán is a diminutive of the Gaelic forename Art, meaning “bear.” Consequently, the surname carries a symbolic association with the bear, a creature traditionally seen as strong and courageous in Celtic culture.
The name entered English records in the early sixteenth century. The earliest surviving instance, preserved in the Register of the Privy Seal of Scotland for the reign of King James V, dates to 1529 and records the name as Gilbert McCartnay of Galloway. Subsequent mentions confirm its persistence: a 1562 entry names Thomas McCartnay or MaKartnay of Wigtownshire; a 1588 note records Helen Macartney in connection with land in Dumfries; and a 1603 entry lists William MacKartnay, a burgess of Aberdeen. The surname was also present in Ulster from the mid‑seventeenth century, when Captain George Macartney is noted to have settled in County Antrim in 1630. Further records of the name appear in Petty’s 1659 Census of Belfast and in Monaghan Hearth Money Rolls of 1666.
The Macartney lineage produced several noble titles. George Macartney (1737‑1806) was created Baron Macartney of Lissanoure in 1776 and was the first Earl Macartney of the Irish peerage in 1792. These honours reflect the prominence of the family in both Scotland and Ireland during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
Statistical data show that, as of 2020, the surname remains most common in Scotland, ranking as the 463rd most frequent name with 804 bearers recorded. Global migration has disseminated the name worldwide: in the United States it appears as the 10,301st most common surname with 165 individuals; in Canada it is the 8,799th most common surname with 237 individuals; and in Australia it ranks as the 11,301st most common surname with 128 individuals. These figures illustrate the spread of the Macartney name through emigration during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The surname has several orthographic variants derived from the same Gaelic source, including MacCartan, MacCartney, Mac Carthy and McCarthy. The variant MacCartney is particularly associated with a notable public figure in the United Kingdom, while the Gaelic elements are also found in Irish surnames such as Mac Artnaithe. Despite these variations, each retains the core patronymic meaning of “son of Art” and preserves the historical linkage to Scottish and Irish heritage.
Typical given names associated with the Macartney surname
Male
- Alan
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Robert
- Stephen
- Terence
- Thomas
- William
Female
- Alison
- Carol
- Elizabeth
- Gillian
- Helen
- Jacqueline
- Jennifer
- Karen
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Patricia
- Winnie
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Macartney in...
Braille
⠍⠁⠉⠁⠗⠞⠝⠑⠽
Morse
--.--.-..-.-.--..-.--
Semaphore
There are approximately 636 people named Macartney in the UK. That makes it one of Britain's least common surnames. Only around ten in a million people in Britain are named Macartney.
Surname type: From name of parent
Origin: Celtic
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: Scotland
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: Gaelic
Famous people named Macartney
- George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney - Statesman, colonial administrator and diplomat (1737 to 1806)
- Carlile Aylmer Macartney - Historian (1895 to 1978)
- Allan Macartney - Politician (1941 to 1998)
- George Macartney - Diplomat (1867 to 1945)
- Edward Macartney - (1863 to 1956)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.