2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Molli
A German surname derived from a short form of the given name Matthias.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Molli. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Molli 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Molli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Molli, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (8.4%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Molli
The surname MOLLI is believed to have originated in Italy. It is thought to be derived from the Italian word "molle," meaning soft or gentle. This suggests that the name may have been given as a nickname or descriptive name to someone with a gentle or mild temperament.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname MOLLI can be traced back to the 13th century in the regions of Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna. In particular, there are records of the MOLLI family residing in the city of Florence during this time period.
One notable early bearer of the MOLLI name was Bartolomeo Molli, a 14th-century Florentine painter and artist. He is known for his contributions to the frescoes in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence.
Another significant figure with the MOLLI surname was Giovanni Battista Molli, a 16th-century Italian mathematician and astronomer. Born in Prato in 1515, Molli made important contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits.
In the 17th century, the MOLLI family had established themselves in the city of Bologna, where they were involved in the textile trade. One notable member of this branch was Stefano Molli, a wealthy merchant and philanthropist who funded the construction of a hospital in Bologna in the late 1600s.
As the MOLLI name spread throughout Italy, it also found its way into other European countries. In the 18th century, there were records of the MOLLI family residing in the Swiss city of Geneva, where they were involved in the watchmaking industry.
One of the most famous bearers of the MOLLI surname was the Italian philosopher and writer, Antonio Molli. Born in Milan in 1789, Molli was a prominent figure in the Romantic movement and wrote extensively on the subjects of aesthetics and literary criticism.
Over the centuries, the MOLLI name has undergone various spelling variations, including Molle, Molli, Mollo, and Mollo. While the origins of the name can be traced back to Italy, it has since spread to other parts of the world, with descendants of the MOLLI family found in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Molli
Among Census respondents with the surname Molli, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (8.4%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Molli 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 Molli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.2% · 99
- Asian and Pacific Islander8.4% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 5
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Molli
Molli 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
#133,863
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
+15 bearers (+13.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,878 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-7 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,925 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,863 | 126 | 0.04 | +15 bearers (+13.5%) | Up 4,878 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 8,925 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 Molli 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 | #133,863 | #142,788 | -6.7% |
| Count | 126 | 119 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Molli bearers went from 126 to 119 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 8,925 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,863 to #142,788.
FAQ
Molli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Molli?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Molli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Molli?
Molli ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Molli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Molli.
Has Molli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Molli went from 126 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,863 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Molli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Molli, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (8.4%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Molli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.2% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Molli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (8.4%), Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Molli (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 Molli mean?
A German surname derived from a short form of the given name Matthias. 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 Molli (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 people are called Molli?
See how many people have the last name Molli on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.