2000
#15,177
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,783
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.66
Rare Last name
Moscoso
A toponymic surname derived from the Spanish place name Moscoso, likely referring to someone from that locality.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,296 Americans carry the last name Moscoso. That puts it at #10,629 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.96 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 103,991 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Moscoso 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
3.3K
1 in 103,991
Census rank
#10,629
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,874 bearers of the surname Moscoso in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.96 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10629th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Moscoso, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 86.8%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Moscoso
The surname Moscoso originated in the northwestern region of Spain, particularly in the province of Galicia. It can be traced back to the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century. The name is believed to derive from the Galician-Portuguese word "musgo," meaning "moss" or "lichen," possibly indicating a connection to a place abundant in these types of vegetation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Moscoso name appears in the Tumbo Viejo de Castilla, a medieval cartulary from the 13th century. It mentions a nobleman named Rodrigo Moscoso who held lands and properties in the region of Galicia. The name also appears in various other historical documents from that period, such as land grants and property deeds.
The Moscoso family played a significant role in the history of Galicia and Spain during the Middle Ages and beyond. One notable figure was Pedro Moscoso, a military commander who fought alongside King Ferdinand III in the Reconquista, the Christian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors. He was born around 1190 and participated in the conquest of Seville in 1248.
Another prominent member of the Moscoso family was Álvaro Moscoso, a 15th-century nobleman and diplomat who served as the ambassador of Castile to the Holy Roman Empire. He was born in Galicia around 1420 and played a crucial role in the negotiations that led to the marriage of Philip the Handsome, the son of Emperor Maximilian I, and Joanna of Castile, known as Joanna the Mad.
In the 16th century, the Moscoso name gained prominence in the Americas due to the involvement of several members of the family in the Spanish conquest and colonization efforts. One noteworthy figure was Alonso Moscoso, a conquistador and explorer who participated in the expedition led by Hernando de Soto to explore and conquer parts of present-day Florida, Georgia, and the Southeastern United States. He was born in Galicia around 1510.
Another notable Moscoso was Juan Moscoso, a Spanish conquistador and explorer who led an expedition to explore parts of present-day New Mexico and Texas in the late 16th century. He was born in Galicia around 1550 and is credited with establishing the first European settlement in the region, known as San Gabriel del Yungue, near present-day El Paso, Texas.
The Moscoso surname has persisted throughout history and can still be found in various parts of Spain, as well as in Latin American countries with Spanish heritage, such as Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia. It serves as a testament to the rich cultural and historical legacy of the Galician region and its influential families during the medieval and colonial periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Moscoso
Among Census respondents with the surname Moscoso, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 86.8%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Moscoso 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 Moscoso surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino86.8% · 2,494
- White7.0% · 201
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.8% · 137
- Black or African American0.8% · 24
- Two or more races0.6% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Moscoso
Moscoso 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
#11,739
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,669
+886 bearers (+49.7%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 3,438 places
2020
#10,629
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,874
+205 bearers (+7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Up 1,110 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,177 | 1,783 | 0.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,739 | 2,669 | 0.90 | +886 bearers (+49.7%) | Up 3,438 places |
| 2020 | #10,629 | 2,874 | 0.96 | +205 bearers (+7.7%) | Up 1,110 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 Moscoso 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 | #11,739 | #10,629 | 9.5% |
| Count | 2,669 | 2,874 | 7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.90 | 0.96 | 6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Moscoso bearers went from 2,669 to 2,874 (+7.7% change). The surname moved up 1,110 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,739 to #10,629.
FAQ
Moscoso surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Moscoso?
Name Census estimates that about 3,296 living Americans carry the surname Moscoso. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 103,991 residents.
How common is Moscoso?
Moscoso ranks #10,629 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.96 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,874 people with the surname Moscoso. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,296), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.96 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.96 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Moscoso.
Has Moscoso become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Moscoso went from 2,669 recorded bearers to 2,874. That is an increase of 205 (+7.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,739 to #10,629.
What does the Census say about the background of Moscoso?
Among Census respondents with the surname Moscoso, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 86.8%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Moscoso in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.8% (2,494 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Moscoso appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (86.8%), White (7.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%). 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 Moscoso (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 Moscoso mean?
A toponymic surname derived from the Spanish place name Moscoso, likely referring to someone from that locality. 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 Moscoso (0.96 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 common is the surname Moscoso?
Want to know how many people have the surname Moscoso? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.