McAdoo
An Anglicized Gaelic surname likely meaning “son of Adam,” with forms that vary from McAdoo to MacAdoo and related spellings.
The #9,122 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 86,242 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is generally treated as a Gaelic patronymic built on Mac, meaning “son,” plus a personal name rendered in the sources as Adoo, Adow, or a form of Adam. The older dictionaries suggest that the second element reflects Adam, giving the sense “son of Adam.” Over time the name was anglicized into spellings such as MacAdoo, MacAdo, and McAdoo.
History
The name appears in older Irish and Scottish surname collections in several spelling variants, which is typical of Gaelic names adapted into English record-keeping. Historical references also connect it with other Mc- and Mac- forms that were standardized differently in later centuries. In the United States, McAdoo became the dominant modern spelling.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname compilers sometimes glossed McAdoo as “son of Adam,” showing how freely Gaelic names were reshaped in English transcription.
From the historical record
“MacNuff, MacNeffe, MacNiff, MacKiniff, MacCanuff, Mac Endoo, Maclndoo, MacAdoo, MacAdo, MacCaddoo, Mac Caddo, Conniff, Conniffe, Cun- niffe, Quinnifi, Caddow, etc. triAC Conf^otitTiAOile, Normoyle,”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames