Moffett
From Old French meaning "small mound" or "hillock".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Moffett. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Moffett today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Moffett births was 1916 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Moffett. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Moffett. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1916
6 babies that year
Average age
-
1916 SSA rank
#3,758
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Moffett: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Moffett by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Moffett during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Moffett
The name Moffett is believed to have its origins in the Old French language, derived from the word "mont," meaning "hill" or "mount." It is thought to have emerged as a surname during the Middle Ages, referring to someone who lived on or near a hill or mountain.
In its earliest recorded use as a given name, Moffett is thought to have been a variant spelling of the name Moffat, which itself is a Scottish surname derived from the same Old French root. The earliest known instances of the name Moffett date back to the late 16th and early 17th centuries in Scotland and northern England.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Moffett was Samuel Moffett, an English Puritan minister and scholar who lived from 1590 to 1647. He served as the rector of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, and was known for his writings on theology and biblical exegesis.
Another notable figure with the name Moffett was Thomas Moffett, an English naturalist and physician who lived from 1553 to 1604. He is best known for his work "Insectorum sive Minimorum Animalium Theatrum" (The Theater of Insects or Smaller Living Creatures), one of the earliest scientific works on entomology.
In the 18th century, Moffett appears to have been a relatively uncommon name, but there are records of individuals such as John Moffett, a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and was involved in the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775.
In the 19th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the name Moffett was Abbot Hart Moffett, an American educator and politician who lived from 1820 to 1901. He served as the president of Marietta College in Ohio and was later elected to the United States House of Representatives, representing the state of Michigan.
Another notable figure from this period was Samuel Moffett, an American Presbyterian missionary who lived from 1864 to 1939. He spent much of his life working as a missionary in Korea and played a significant role in the establishment of the Presbyterian Church in that country.
While the name Moffett has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, it has been borne by individuals from various backgrounds and professions, reflecting its enduring legacy as a name with roots in the Old French language and a connection to the idea of hills or mountains.
People
Moffett + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Moffett as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Moffett: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Moffett?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Moffett going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Moffett a common name?
We classify Moffett as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Moffett most popular?
The single biggest year for Moffett was 1916, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Moffett is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Moffett in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Moffett a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Moffett in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Moffett still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Moffett in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Moffett can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Moffett?
Want to know how many Americans are named Moffett? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.