McRoberts
A Scottish and Irish surname meaning “son of Robert,” with the Mc- prefix marking descent from a man named Robert.
The #8,793 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 82,862 Americans shares it.
Etymology
McRoberts is a patronymic surname built from the Gaelic prefix Mac, meaning “son of,” plus the personal name Robert. The name therefore means “son of Robert,” and in older records it appears in several spellings, including MacRoberts and M’Croberts. The sources also link it with related forms such as MacRobin and Cribbin, showing how Gaelic and Anglicized surname forms could overlap.
History
The surname is recorded in Irish surname collections in forms like MacRoberts and M’Croberts, but the excerpted material does not give a detailed local history. As with many Mac- surnames, it likely arose independently in more than one Gaelic-speaking family line later standardized in English spelling. The modern Mc- spelling is the common Anglicized form in North America and Britain.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some 19th- and early-20th-century surname scholars grouped MacRoberts with a cluster of related names including MacRobin, Cribbin, and Robinson, reflecting older spelling variation rather than a single fixed family line.
From the historical record
“ITlAC RoibeAiiiT), RTac Roi- bcAiiA-o, MacRoberts, Mac Crobarts ; Robertson, Roberts triAC Roibin, MacRobin, Crib- bin, Cribbon, Cribbins ; Robinson, Robbinson, Rob-”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames