Mora
Female name of Spanish origin meaning "delay" or "lingering".
Name Census estimates that about 585 living Americans carry the first name Mora. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Mora today is around 29 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mora births was 2019 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mora. 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.
People living today
585
~ 1 in 585,905 Americans
Peak year
2019
24 babies that year
Average age
29
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,249
Tracked since 1881
Census
Mora in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 955 people with the first name Mora, which placed it at #12,842 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#12,842
National first-name rank
People counted
955
955 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
51.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mora
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mora is White at 51.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (25.2%) and Black (12.7%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Mora described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Mora at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.4% · 491
- Hispanic or Latino25.2% · 241
- Black or African American12.7% · 121
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.3% · 60
- Two or more races4.0% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 4
Popularity
Mora: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mora from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 171 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Mora remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mora 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 Mora during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mora
The name Mora has its origins in the Latin language, derived from the word "mora," which means "delay" or "pause." This name first emerged during the Roman era, around the 1st century AD, and was likely used as a descriptive name or a nickname.
In ancient Roman texts, the name Mora appears occasionally, often referring to individuals who were known for their patience or deliberate nature. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus, who mentions a woman named Mora in his work "Annals."
During the Middle Ages, the name Mora gained popularity across various regions of Europe, particularly in Italy and Spain. It was often associated with virtues such as calmness, steadfastness, and perseverance. One notable figure from this period was Mora of Milan (c. 1140 - 1195), a Benedictine abbess and scholar renowned for her leadership and contributions to religious literature.
In the Renaissance era, the name Mora continued to be used, albeit less frequently. One notable bearer of this name was Mora Navarrete (c. 1505 - 1562), a Spanish writer and poet who gained recognition for her lyrical works and her defense of women's rights.
As the name spread across different cultures, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Maura, Moura, and Morra. In the 19th century, the name resurfaced in literary circles, with one of the most famous bearers being Mora Malibran (1808 - 1836), a renowned Spanish opera singer celebrated for her virtuosic performances and vocal range.
Another notable figure was Mora Bunescu (1857 - 1909), a Romanian writer and activist who played a significant role in promoting women's education and advocating for social reforms.
Throughout history, the name Mora has been carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions, each leaving their mark in their respective fields. From scholars and writers to artists and performers, the name has been a testament to the enduring qualities of patience, perseverance, and thoughtfulness.
People
Mora + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mora 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
Mora: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mora?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 585 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mora 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 1 in 585,905 US residents.
Is Mora a common name?
We classify Mora as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 931 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mora most popular?
The single biggest year for Mora was 2019, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mora is about 29 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mora in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 955 people with the name Mora, or 0.32 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,842 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Mora in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Mora?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mora leans strongly female. 891 people counted with this name were female (93.3%), compared with 64 male bearers (6.7%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Mora?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mora is White at 51.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (25.2%) and Black (12.7%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Mora most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Mora in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.4% (491 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Mora in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mora a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mora in the SSA data are female. 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 Mora still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mora 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 Mora 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.
How many people have the name Mora?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Mora, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.