2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Molas
A surname derived from the Spanish word "mola" meaning a rocky or pebbly area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Molas. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Molas 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Molas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Molas, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 41.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (30.0%) and White (27.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Molas
The surname Molas originated in the Catalonia region of Spain during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Catalan word 'mola,' meaning a rocky hill or a mill stone, suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name may have lived near a rocky outcrop or worked as millers.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Molas surname can be found in the Fogatge de Catalunya, a tax census conducted in 1497, which lists several individuals with this surname residing in various parts of Catalonia. The town of Molas, located in the province of Barcelona, may also have influenced the origin of this surname.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the Molas surname was Joan Molas, a Catalan painter and sculptor who lived from approximately 1524 to 1592. His works can be found in various churches and monasteries throughout Catalonia.
The Molas surname also has a presence in historical records of Aragon, a neighboring region of Catalonia. One example is Miguel Molas, a prominent lawyer and legal scholar who lived in the 17th century and authored several treatises on Aragonese law.
In the 19th century, a notable bearer of the Molas surname was Isidre Molas i Casas, a Catalan priest and philosopher who was born in 1838 and died in 1892. He was known for his writings on ethics and moral philosophy.
Another noteworthy figure with the Molas surname was Joaquim Molas i Batllori, a prominent Catalan historian and literary critic born in 1930 and died in 2018. He made significant contributions to the study of Catalan literature and culture.
While the Molas surname is primarily associated with Catalonia and Spain, it has also spread to other parts of the world through migration, including regions such as Latin America and parts of Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Molas
Among Census respondents with the surname Molas, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 41.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (30.0%) and White (27.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Molas 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 Molas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander41.8% · 46
- Hispanic or Latino30.0% · 33
- White27.3% · 30
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Molas
Molas appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
+3 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,182 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.8%) | Up 3,182 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 Molas 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 | #152,628 | #149,446 | 2.1% |
| Count | 107 | 110 | 2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Molas bearers went from 107 to 110 (+2.8% change). The surname moved up 3,182 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #149,446.
FAQ
Molas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Molas?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Molas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Molas?
Molas ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Molas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Molas.
Has Molas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Molas went from 107 recorded bearers to 110. That is an increase of 3 (+2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Molas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Molas, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 41.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (30.0%) and White (27.3%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Molas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 41.8% (46 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Molas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (41.8%), Hispanic (30.0%), White (27.3%). 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 Molas (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 Molas mean?
A surname derived from the Spanish word "mola" meaning a rocky or pebbly area. 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 Molas (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Molas?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.