2000
#72,717
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 249
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.09
Very Rare Last name
Morfitt
A variant spelling of the English surname "Moffat," derived from the Scottish town of that name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 300 Americans carry the last name Morfitt. That puts it at #78,629 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,142,514 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Morfitt 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 Morfitt with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
300
1 in 1,142,514
Census rank
#78,629
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
262
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 262 bearers of the surname Morfitt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 78629th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Morfitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Morfitt
The surname Morfitt is believed to have originated in England during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old English words "mor" and "fyht," which together mean "moor fighter" or "one who fights on the moors." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who fought in battles or skirmishes on the moorlands of northern England.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 13th century in Yorkshire, where several variations of the spelling were found, including Morfyt, Morfitt, and Murfitt. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Morfitt, who was mentioned in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name appeared in various parish records and tax rolls across northern England, particularly in Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Durham. Notable individuals from this period include William Morfitt, who was christened in Grinton, Yorkshire, in 1588, and Edward Morfitt, who was born in Darlington, Durham, in 1612.
In the 18th century, the name spread to other parts of England, as well as to Scotland and Wales. One notable bearer was Robert Morfitt, a merchant from Newcastle upon Tyne, who was born in 1724 and died in 1798.
The 19th century saw the name being carried to other parts of the world by British emigrants. One such individual was John Morfitt, who was born in Sunderland, England, in 1818 and later emigrated to Australia, where he became a prominent settler and businessman.
Another notable figure was Sir William Morfitt, a British civil servant and diplomat who was born in 1834 and served as the British Consul-General in Egypt from 1880 to 1889.
In more recent times, the name has been borne by individuals such as Robert Morfitt, an English artist and illustrator who was born in 1915 and is known for his work in children's books, and Wendy Morfitt, a British actress and writer who was born in 1942 and appeared in several television shows and films in the 1960s and 1970s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Morfitt
Among Census respondents with the surname Morfitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Morfitt 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 Morfitt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.3% · 247
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 8
- Two or more races2.3% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Morfitt
Morfitt 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
#72,332
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 269
+20 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Up 385 places
2020
#78,629
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 262
-7 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Down 6,297 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #72,717 | 249 | 0.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #72,332 | 269 | 0.09 | +20 bearers (+8.0%) | Up 385 places |
| 2020 | #78,629 | 262 | 0.09 | -7 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 6,297 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 Morfitt 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 | #72,332 | #78,629 | -8.7% |
| Count | 269 | 262 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.09 | 0.09 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Morfitt bearers went from 269 to 262 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 6,297 positions in the national ranking, going from #72,332 to #78,629.
FAQ
Morfitt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Morfitt?
Name Census estimates that about 300 living Americans carry the surname Morfitt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,142,514 residents.
How common is Morfitt?
Morfitt ranks #78,629 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.09 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 262 people with the surname Morfitt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (300), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.09 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 Morfitt.
Has Morfitt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Morfitt went from 269 recorded bearers to 262. That is a decrease of 7 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #72,332 to #78,629.
What does the Census say about the background of Morfitt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Morfitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Morfitt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.3% (247 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Morfitt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.3%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Morfitt (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 Morfitt mean?
A variant spelling of the English surname "Moffat," derived from the Scottish town of that name. 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 Morfitt (0.09 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 have the last name Morfitt?
You can see how many people are called Morfitt on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.