Find out how popular the last name Misir is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Misir.

Misir, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Misir surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Misir in America

Misir is the 84748th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Misir surname appeared 221 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Misir.

We can also compare 2010 data for Misir to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Misir

The surname "MISIR" is believed to have originated in the Middle East, specifically in regions that are now part of modern-day Egypt, Lebanon, and Syria. It is derived from the Arabic word "misr," which means "city" or "urban settlement." The earliest known records of this surname date back to the 9th century CE, during the Abbasid Caliphate.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "MISIR" can be found in a manuscript from the 10th century, which mentions a scholar named Ahmed al-Misri. This suggests that the name was already in use by that time. Additionally, the name appears in several medieval Arabic texts and documents, indicating its prevalence in the region.

During the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt (1250-1517 CE), the name "MISIR" gained further prominence. Several notable figures from this period bore the surname, including the historian and geographer Al-Misri (1287-1365 CE) and the Sufi scholar Ibn Ata Allah al-Misri (1259-1309 CE).

In the 16th century, the name "MISIR" spread beyond the Middle East as a result of trade and migration. Records from the Ottoman Empire show individuals with this surname living in various parts of the empire, including modern-day Turkey and the Balkans.

Throughout the centuries, the surname "MISIR" has been associated with several notable individuals. One example is the 18th-century Egyptian scholar and religious leader Muhammad al-Misri (1688-1768 CE), who was known for his contributions to Islamic jurisprudence. Another notable figure was the 19th-century Ottoman statesman and diplomat Mustafa Rashid Pasha al-Misri (1825-1890 CE).

In more recent times, the name "MISIR" has been carried by individuals such as the Egyptian writer and journalist Aisha Abd al-Rahman al-Misri (1913-1998 CE) and the Lebanese-American author and academic Ameen Rihani (1876-1940 CE), whose family name was originally spelled "al-Misri."

It is important to note that the spelling and pronunciation of the surname "MISIR" may vary across different regions and cultures. In some areas, it may be spelled as "Misri," "Masri," or "Massry," among other variations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Misir

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Misir.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Misir was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Misir has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Misir was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Misir, please contact us.

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