2000
#11,214
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,592
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.96
Rare Last name
Mossman
An occupational surname referring to someone who gathered moss or lived near a place where moss grew.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,659 Americans carry the last name Mossman. That puts it at #12,709 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 128,903 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mossman 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 Mossman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 128,903
Census rank
#12,709
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,319 bearers of the surname Mossman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12709th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mossman, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.1%) and Two or More Races (7.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mossman
The surname Mossman originated in Scotland, deriving from a Scottish Gaelic word "mos" which means "moss" or "mossy place." This suggests that the name likely first arose as a descriptive term for someone who lived near a mossy or swampy area. It may have also been an occupational surname for someone who gathered moss or peat from mossy bogs.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Mossman is found in the records of Roxburghshire, Scotland, dating back to the 16th century. The name appeared in various spellings such as Mossman, Moseman, and Mosman, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling at the time.
In the 17th century, the Mossman name appears in parish records in Ayrshire, Scotland. A notable example is John Mossman, born around 1620 in Kilwinning, Ayrshire. He was a farmer and landowner, and his descendants continued to use the Mossman surname in that region for generations.
The Mossman surname also has connections to place names in Scotland. For instance, the village of Mossman in East Ayrshire likely derived its name from the same root word, indicating the presence of mossy or boggy terrain in that area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Mossman surname outside of Scotland is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which recorded landowners and their holdings in England after the Norman Conquest. A landowner named Hugo Mosman is listed as holding lands in Oxfordshire.
In the 18th century, a prominent figure bearing the Mossman surname was James Mossman (1737-1824), a Scottish poet and minister from Arbroath, Angus. His works include "The Auld Toon o' Arbroath" and "The Cottar's Sunday," which provide insights into Scottish rural life and culture of that era.
Another notable Mossman was Thomas Mossman (1826-1885), a Scottish-born architect who emigrated to Australia. He designed several significant buildings in Melbourne, including the Fitzroy Town Hall and the former Melbourne Orphan Asylum.
In the 19th century, James Mossman (1820-1888) was a Scottish-born businessman and philanthropist who made his fortune in the tea trade in London. He founded the Mossman Trust, which provided funding for educational and charitable causes in Scotland.
While the Mossman surname is most prevalent in Scotland and areas with Scottish immigration, it can also be found in other parts of the world. For example, Richard Mossman (1849-1919) was an American physician and writer from Wisconsin, known for his work in promoting public health and hygiene.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mossman
Among Census respondents with the surname Mossman, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.1%) and Two or More Races (7.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Mossman 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 Mossman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.2% · 1,836
- Hispanic or Latino8.1% · 188
- Two or more races7.6% · 177
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.0% · 93
- Black or African American0.9% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mossman
Mossman 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
#10,245
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,146
+554 bearers (+21.4%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Up 969 places
2020
#12,709
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,319
-827 bearers (-26.3%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 2,464 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,214 | 2,592 | 0.96 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,245 | 3,146 | 1.07 | +554 bearers (+21.4%) | Up 969 places |
| 2020 | #12,709 | 2,319 | 0.78 | -827 bearers (-26.3%) | Down 2,464 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 Mossman 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 | #10,245 | #12,709 | -24.1% |
| Count | 3,146 | 2,319 | -26.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 0.78 | -27.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mossman bearers went from 3,146 to 2,319 (-26.3% change). The surname moved down 2,464 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,245 to #12,709.
FAQ
Mossman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mossman?
Name Census estimates that about 2,659 living Americans carry the surname Mossman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 128,903 residents.
How common is Mossman?
Mossman ranks #12,709 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 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 2,319 people with the surname Mossman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,659), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 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 Mossman.
Has Mossman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mossman went from 3,146 recorded bearers to 2,319. That is a decrease of 827 (-26.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,245 to #12,709.
What does the Census say about the background of Mossman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mossman, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.1%) and Two or More Races (7.6%). 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 Mossman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.2% (1,836 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mossman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.2%), Hispanic (8.1%), Two or More Races (7.6%). 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 Mossman (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 Mossman mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who gathered moss or lived near a place where moss grew. 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 Mossman (0.78 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 Americans have the surname Mossman?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.