2000
#12,951
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,173
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.81
Rare Last name
Moberly
Derived from a place name meaning "the fortified hill," from Old English elements "middel" and "burg."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,357 Americans carry the last name Moberly. That puts it at #14,034 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 145,420 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Moberly surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 145,420
Census rank
#14,034
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,055 bearers of the surname Moberly in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14034th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Moberly, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Moberly
The surname Moberly originates from England and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is a locational name, derived from the place name Mobberley in Cheshire. The name itself is derived from the Old English words "moere", meaning "marsh" or "lake", and "leah", meaning "clearing" or "meadow", suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name lived near a marshy clearing or meadow.
The earliest recorded instance of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cheshire from 1273, where it appears as "de Mobberleye". This indicates that the name was initially used as a locational descriptor by those who resided in or near the village of Mobberley.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various legal records and documents. For instance, a John de Moburleye is mentioned in the Cheshire Plea Rolls of 1348, while a William de Mobberley is recorded in the Cheshire Chamberlain's Accounts from 1392.
The name has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded was Sir Edward Moberly (c.1530-1575), a member of the English gentry from Cheshire who served as a justice of the peace during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
Another prominent figure was George Paulet Moberly (1835-1905), an English clergyman and headmaster of Winchester College from 1868 to 1892. He played a significant role in reforming the education system at the college and was widely respected for his leadership and academic contributions.
In the realm of literature, Walter Moberly (1832-1915) was a notable author and educator. He served as the headmaster of St. Peter's College in Radley, Oxfordshire, and published several works on education and religion.
The name has also been associated with military service. Major General Walter Joscelyne Moberly (1881-1973) was a British Army officer who served in both World Wars and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his bravery and leadership.
Lastly, Ethel Moberly (1846-1919) and Eleanor Jourdain (1863-1924) were two British academics and authors who gained recognition for their work on the paranormal. Their book "An Adventure", published in 1911, recounted a purported time-slip experience they claimed to have had while visiting the Petit Trianon in Versailles, France.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Moberly
Among Census respondents with the surname Moberly, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Moberly bearers 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 surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Moberly surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 1,856
- Two or more races4.6% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 58
- Black or African American1.3% · 27
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Moberly
Moberly appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#13,893
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,173
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 942 places
2020
#14,034
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,055
-118 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 141 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,951 | 2,173 | 0.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,893 | 2,173 | 0.74 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 942 places |
| 2020 | #14,034 | 2,055 | 0.69 | -118 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 141 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Moberly surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #13,893 | #14,034 | -1.0% |
| Count | 2,173 | 2,055 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.69 | -7.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Moberly bearers went from 2,173 to 2,055 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 141 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,893 to #14,034.
FAQ
Moberly surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Moberly?
Name Census estimates that about 2,357 living Americans carry the surname Moberly. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 145,420 residents.
How common is Moberly?
Moberly ranks #14,034 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,055 people with the surname Moberly. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,357), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Moberly.
Has Moberly become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Moberly went from 2,173 recorded bearers to 2,055. That is a decrease of 118 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,893 to #14,034.
What does the Census say about the background of Moberly?
Among Census respondents with the surname Moberly, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Moberly in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (1,856 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Moberly appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (4.6%), Hispanic (2.8%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Moberly (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Moberly mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "the fortified hill," from Old English elements "middel" and "burg." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Moberly (0.69 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Moberly?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.