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

Mosby, 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 Mosby surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mosby in America

Mosby is the 4699th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mosby surname appeared 7,549 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Mosby.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mosby 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 Mosby

The surname Mosby is of English origin and is believed to have originated in the county of Leicestershire, England, during the late medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old Norse byname "Musse," which means "little mouse," and the Old English word "by," meaning a town or village. This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a small settlement or hamlet.

One of the earliest records of the name Mosby can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which mentions a William de Mussebi. This indicates that the name was already in use by the 13th century. The Subsidy Rolls of Leicestershire from 1327 also contain references to individuals with the surname Mosby or similar spellings, such as Robert de Mussebury and John de Mussebury.

In the 15th century, the name appeared in various historical documents, including the Paston Letters, which were a collection of correspondence between members of the Paston family in Norfolk. One letter, dated 1472, mentions a Sir John Mosby.

The earliest known person with the surname Mosby was likely Sir John Mosby, who lived in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. He was a prominent landowner and knight in Leicestershire and is mentioned in several legal records from the time.

Another notable individual with the Mosby surname was Sir Nicholas Mosby, who was born around 1505 and served as the High Sheriff of Leicestershire in 1557. He was a wealthy landowner and played a role in local politics during the Tudor period.

In the 17th century, one of the most famous bearers of the Mosby name was John Mosby, a British soldier and politician who lived from 1629 to 1688. He served as a Colonel in the English Civil War and later became a Member of Parliament.

During the American Civil War, the Confederate cavalry officer John Singleton Mosby, also known as the "Gray Ghost," gained notoriety for his daring raids behind Union lines. He was born in 1833 and died in 1916.

Another noteworthy individual with the Mosby surname was Walter Mosby, an English actor and playwright who lived from 1672 to 1739. He was known for his roles in Shakespearean plays and his own theatrical works.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mosby

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

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

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

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