2000
#127,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Mossler
Originally an occupational surname for someone who gathered moss.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Mossler. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mossler 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Mossler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mossler, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.5%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mossler
The surname Mossler is of German origin, emerging in the late medieval period around the 14th or 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the German word "Moos," meaning "moss," and may have been an occupational name for someone who gathered or worked with moss, or a locational name for someone living near a mossy area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Mossler name can be found in the records of the town of Thüringen, Germany, where a certain Hans Mossler is mentioned as a resident in 1487. Another early record dates back to 1523, when a Jakob Mossler is listed as a landowner in the village of Schönau, located in the present-day state of Baden-Württemberg.
The Mossler name appears to have been particularly prominent in the regions of Franconia and Bavaria, with several notable individuals bearing the surname emerging from these areas throughout history. One such individual was Johann Mossler (1597-1668), a Lutheran theologian and rector of the Gymnasium in Coburg, Bavaria, who published several works on religious topics.
Another notable Mossler was Georg Mossler (1724-1793), a German composer and organist born in Augsburg, Bavaria. He served as the court organist for the Prince-Bishop of Eichstätt and composed numerous sacred works, including masses, motets, and oratorios.
In the 19th century, the Mossler name gained recognition through the work of Johann Andreas Mossler (1803-1880), a German painter and lithographer born in Nuremberg. He is best known for his landscape paintings and lithographs depicting scenes from the Franconian and Bavarian regions.
Moving into the 20th century, one notable figure with the Mossler surname was Otto Mossler (1889-1962), a German architect and urban planner who played a significant role in the reconstruction efforts following World War II. He was responsible for the design and planning of several housing developments and urban renewal projects in cities like Frankfurt and Stuttgart.
Throughout its history, the Mossler surname has also been associated with various place names and locations, particularly in Germany. For instance, the village of Mosslerau in the district of Forchheim, Bavaria, likely derived its name from the Mossler family, indicating their presence and influence in the area.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mossler
Among Census respondents with the surname Mossler, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.5%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Mossler 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 Mossler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.0% · 92
- Two or more races6.5% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mossler
Mossler 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
+3 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,862 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-20 bearers (-15.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,591 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,186 | 124 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 5,862 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -20 bearers (-15.7%) | Down 18,591 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 Mossler 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 | #133,048 | #151,639 | -14.0% |
| Count | 127 | 107 | -15.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mossler bearers went from 127 to 107 (-15.7% change). The surname moved down 18,591 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #151,639.
FAQ
Mossler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mossler?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Mossler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Mossler?
Mossler ranks #151,639 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 107 people with the surname Mossler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Mossler.
Has Mossler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mossler went from 127 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 20 (-15.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Mossler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mossler, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.5%) and Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Mossler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.0% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mossler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.0%), Two or More Races (6.5%), Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Mossler (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 Mossler mean?
Originally an occupational surname for someone who gathered moss. 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 Mossler (0.04 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 Mossler?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Mossler, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.