Find out how popular the last name Moisan is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Moisan.
A French surname derived from the Old French word "moise" meaning moss.
Moisan, 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 Moisan surname is from the 2010 census data.
Moisan is the 40494th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Moisan surname appeared 540 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 Moisan.
We can also compare 2010 data for Moisan 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.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 40494 | 36761 | 9.66% |
| Count | 540 | 573 | -5.93% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.18 | 0.21 | -15.38% |
The surname Moisan originated in France, specifically in the northwestern region of Normandy during the medieval period. It is believed to derive from the Old French word "moise," meaning "moss" or "mossy," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a mossy area or worked with moss.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Moisan can be found in the Livre Blanc de l'Échiquier de Normandie, a 13th-century Norman document that recorded land holdings and legal disputes. This document mentions a person named Robert Moisan, who held land in the region of Caen.
During the 16th century, the Moisan name appeared in various records in Normandy, including parish registers and tax rolls. One notable individual from this time was Jean Moisan, a merchant from Rouen who was born around 1520.
In the 17th century, the Moisan family gained prominence in the town of Honfleur, where several members were involved in the maritime trade. One of the most distinguished figures was Pierre Moisan (1642-1710), a successful ship captain and merchant who amassed considerable wealth through his trading ventures.
As the Moisan family spread throughout France, the name also took on various spellings, such as Moysan, Moisand, and Moisin. In the 18th century, a branch of the family settled in the Bordeaux region, where they became prominent wine merchants. One notable figure from this era was Jacques Moisan (1725-1798), a wealthy négociant (wine merchant) who played a significant role in the local wine trade.
Another notable individual bearing the Moisan surname was Jean-Baptiste Moisan (1776-1859), a French botanist and horticulturist who made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and the cultivation of ornamental plants. He served as the director of the Jardin des Plantes in Paris and was responsible for introducing numerous exotic species to Europe.
As the Moisan family continued to expand across France and beyond, the name has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including artists, writers, and scholars. Some examples include the 20th-century French painter Marcel Moisan (1888-1945) and the Canadian writer and journalist Clément Moisan (1927-2008).
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Moisan.
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:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Moisan was:
| Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Hispanic White Only | 94.81% | 512 |
| Non-Hispanic Black Only | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | (S)% | (S) |
| Hispanic Origin | 2.59% | 14 |
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 Moisan has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 94.81% | 95.81% | -1.05% |
| Black | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Two or More Races | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Hispanic | 2.59% | 2.09% | 21.37% |
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 Moisan was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
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