2000
#3,094
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,740
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.98
Uncommon Last name
Moe
A variant of the Scottish surname Mow, possibly derived from a place name or a nickname for someone with a crop of thick hair.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,903 Americans carry the last name Moe. That puts it at #2,896 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 24,653 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Moe 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Moe with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
14K
1 in 24,653
Census rank
#2,896
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 12,124 bearers of the surname Moe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2896th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Moe, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (13.2%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Moe
The surname "Moe" is believed to have originated in Germany, specifically in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Germanic word "muohi," meaning "marshy meadow" or "swamp," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this surname lived near or worked on marshy lands.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "Moe" can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, dating back to the 12th century. The name is mentioned in reference to a landowner named "Heinrich Muohe" in the year 1162.
In the 13th century, the name "Moe" appeared in various forms, such as "Mue," "Muwe," and "Muh," reflecting regional spelling variations. These variations can be found in the Breviarium Monasterii Campi Sancti, a historical record from the monastery of Kamp in the Netherlands, where a certain "Johannes Mue" is mentioned in 1278.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and property in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname "Moe." However, it is possible that some early bearers of the name migrated to England from continental Europe during the Norman Conquest or in subsequent centuries.
Notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname "Moe" include:
1. Hans Moe (c. 1515-1589), a German painter and engraver known for his religious artwork in the Renaissance style.
2. Jørgen Moe (1813-1882), a Norwegian scholar and writer who, along with Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, collected and published a famous anthology of Norwegian folk tales.
3. Martha Moe (1855-1925), a Norwegian painter and one of the first women to receive formal art training in Norway.
4. Henry Allen Moe (1894-1975), an American educator and the sixth president of the Guggenheim Foundation.
5. Vebjørn Moe (1911-1982), a Norwegian architect and urban planner who played a significant role in the reconstruction of Oslo after World War II.
While the surname "Moe" has spread to various parts of the world due to migration and immigration, its roots can be traced back to the marshy regions of Germany, where it originated as a descriptive name for those who lived or worked in swampy areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Moe
Among Census respondents with the surname Moe, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (13.2%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Moe 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 Moe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.0% · 9,211
- Asian and Pacific Islander13.2% · 1,596
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 447
- Black or African American3.5% · 429
- Two or more races3.3% · 398
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 43
Timeline
Historical Census data for Moe
Moe 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
#3,238
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,150
+410 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 3.78
Rank movement Down 144 places
2020
#2,896
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,124
+974 bearers (+8.7%)
Per 100,000 4.06
Rank movement Up 342 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,094 | 10,740 | 3.98 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,238 | 11,150 | 3.78 | +410 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 144 places |
| 2020 | #2,896 | 12,124 | 4.06 | +974 bearers (+8.7%) | Up 342 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 Moe 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 | #3,238 | #2,896 | 10.6% |
| Count | 11,150 | 12,124 | 8.7% |
| Per 100K | 3.78 | 4.06 | 7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Moe bearers went from 11,150 to 12,124 (+8.7% change). The surname moved up 342 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,238 to #2,896.
FAQ
Moe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Moe?
Name Census estimates that about 13,903 living Americans carry the surname Moe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 24,653 residents.
How common is Moe?
Moe ranks #2,896 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 12,124 people with the surname Moe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,903), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Moe.
Has Moe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Moe went from 11,150 recorded bearers to 12,124. That is an increase of 974 (+8.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,238 to #2,896.
What does the Census say about the background of Moe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Moe, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (13.2%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Moe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.0% (9,211 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Moe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (13.2%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Moe (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 Moe mean?
A variant of the Scottish surname Mow, possibly derived from a place name or a nickname for someone with a crop of thick hair. 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 Moe (4.06 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 common is the surname Moe?
If you just want to know how common the surname Moe is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.