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

Morris, 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 Morris surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Morris in America

Morris is the 62nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Morris surname appeared 318,884 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 108 people would have the surname Morris.

We can also compare 2010 data for Morris 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 Morris

The surname Morris is of Welsh origin, derived from the personal name Maurice, itself coming from the Latin Mauritius or Maurus, meaning "Moorish" or "dark-skinned". The name likely originated in the medieval period, when many families adopted hereditary surnames.

Morris is a prominent surname found in several regions of Wales, particularly in the counties of Glamorgan, Monmouthshire, and Pembrokeshire. It is also found in parts of England, especially in the border counties near Wales. The earliest recorded instances of the surname date back to the 13th century.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Moris ap Gruffydd, a Welsh landowner who lived in the late 13th century. Another early record is that of John Morris, listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327. The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname Morris, as it primarily recorded landowners and tenants.

In the 15th century, the Morris surname appeared in various records, such as the Calendars of Wills and Administrations in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. Notable individuals from this period include John Morris (c. 1415-1489), a Welsh clergyman and Bishop of Llandaff, and Sir William Morris (c. 1450-1501), a Welsh soldier and MP for Monmouthshire.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Morris surname continued to spread across Wales and England. Prominent figures included Lewis Morris (1612-1675), a Welsh writer and politician, and Richard Morris (1590-1644), an English physician and author of works on anatomy and medicine.

In the 18th century, the Morris family produced several notable individuals, such as Lewis Morris (1671-1746), a Welsh-American landowner and judge who served as the 16th Governor of New Jersey, and Robert Morris (1734-1806), an American merchant and political leader who financed the American Revolution.

Other famous individuals with the surname Morris include William Morris (1834-1896), an English artist, writer, and socialist who played a significant role in the Arts and Crafts movement, and Gouverneur Morris (1752-1816), an American statesman and one of the authors of the United States Constitution.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Morris

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

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

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

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