Find out how popular the last name Moorhead is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Moorhead.

Moorhead, 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 Moorhead surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Moorhead in America

Moorhead is the 7666th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Moorhead surname appeared 4,332 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Moorhead.

We can also compare 2010 data for Moorhead 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.

The history of the last name Moorhead

The surname Moorhead has its roots in Scotland, originating from a combination of the Scots words "muir" meaning "moor" or "moorland" and "heid" meaning "head" or "elevated land". This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or on a moorland or elevated area.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 16th century in the Scottish Lowlands. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Moorhead, who was mentioned in the Register of the Privy Council of Scotland in 1585.

Throughout history, the name has been spelled in various ways, including Muirhead, Moorheid, and Mooreheed, reflecting the regional dialects and spelling variations of the time. The name is also closely related to the place name Muirhead, a small village in East Ayrshire, Scotland.

In the 17th century, the name appeared in the records of the Scottish Parliament, with Robert Moorhead serving as a commissioner for Renfrewshire in 1661. Another notable bearer of the name was James Moorhead (1664-1734), a Scottish minister and author who wrote on theological topics.

As the Moorhead family spread throughout Scotland and beyond, the name gained prominence in other parts of the British Isles and North America. John Moorhead (1766-1834) was an Irish-born American Presbyterian minister and educator who served as the first president of Washington College (now Washington & Jefferson College) in Pennsylvania.

Another significant figure was James Moorhead (1810-1884), an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania from 1859 to 1867. He played a crucial role in the development of the Union Pacific Railroad during the Civil War era.

In the literary world, John Moorhead (1914-1991) was a renowned Scottish poet and author, known for works such as "The Severnaikers" and "The Snar Road Fell." His contributions to Scottish literature and the preservation of the Scots language were widely acclaimed.

While these are just a few examples, the surname Moorhead has a rich history spanning centuries, with bearers of the name making significant contributions in various fields across multiple countries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Moorhead

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Moorhead.

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:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Moorhead was:

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 Moorhead has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

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 Moorhead was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Moorhead, please contact us.

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