Given name & surname
Mackinnon
“the son of the fair one”
Mackinnon is used as a given name and a surname. One interpretation is “the son of the fair one.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One interpretation is “the son of the fair one.”
How it developed
In French usage, Mackinnon as a surname developed from MhicFhionghain.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1998. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Mackinnon through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 107
- 107 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2020
- 12 babies
- 2025
- 12
- #7,047 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +26%
- Rising
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 12 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 7,047 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 131 as a first name in 2020; 4,123 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Mackinnon’s family of names
In French usage, Mackinnon as a surname developed from the Scottish Gaelic form MhicFhionghain. Mackinnon has a related form in Mackennon. Mackinnon has a related form in Mackenon.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Mackinnon has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Irish roots to each of them.
9 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 11
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Mckinnonvariant · French, English
- Kinnonvariant · English, French
- Mackenonvariant
- Mackinonvariant
- Mackennonvariant
- Mc Kinnonvariant · French, English
- Mac Kinnonvariant · French, English
- Fingonvariant · English
Show 3 moreShow fewer
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Mackinnon, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Macrae
“the son of Ray”
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“the son of the carpenter”
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“helper and defender of mankind”
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Mannix
“a little monk”
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Senan
“the people's hero”
>99% boys
Quillan
“resembling a cub”
>99% boys
Gannon
“a fair-skinned man”
>99% boys
Alaster
“helper and defender of mankind”
>99% boys