2000
#15,648
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,715
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.64
Rare Last name
Moura
A Portuguese toponymic surname referring to someone from any of several places called Moura, meaning "moorish town".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,902 Americans carry the last name Moura. That puts it at #11,826 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.85 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 118,110 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Moura 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 Moura with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 118,110
Census rank
#11,826
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,531 bearers of the surname Moura in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.85 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11826th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Moura, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Black (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Moura
The surname Moura has its origins in Portugal, where it first emerged in the 14th century. It is believed to be derived from the Portuguese word "moura," which means "Moorish" or "Muslim," referring to the Moors who ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula for several centuries. The name may have been given to those who had connections with the Moorish culture or who lived in areas formerly under Moorish rule.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Moura can be found in medieval Portuguese documents from the 15th century. During this time, the name was often associated with noble families and individuals of prominence in Portuguese society. For example, João de Moura was a prominent military commander who served under King João II in the late 15th century.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the Moura surname began to spread beyond Portugal's borders as Portuguese explorers and settlers established colonies in various parts of the world. One notable figure from this period was Diogo de Moura Corte-Real, a Portuguese navigator and explorer who led expeditions to the northern regions of North America in the late 16th century.
As the Portuguese empire expanded, the surname Moura became associated with various place names and locations across the globe. For instance, Moura, a town in southern Portugal, and Moura, a municipality in Brazil, both bear this name, likely due to the influence of early Portuguese settlers in these areas.
Throughout history, several individuals with the surname Moura have left their mark in various fields. In the 19th century, José Joaquim de Moura Coutinho was a Brazilian politician and diplomat who played a crucial role in the independence movement of Brazil. Another notable figure was Manuel de Moura Filho, a Brazilian writer and journalist who lived from 1893 to 1952.
In the 20th century, the surname Moura gained further recognition with individuals such as Viriato da Cruz Moura, a Portuguese writer and literary critic born in 1939, and Helder Moura Pereira, a Portuguese film director and screenwriter born in 1964. Additionally, Flávio Moura, a Brazilian footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s, and Lúcia Moura, a Brazilian actress and singer born in 1975, have also carried this surname with distinction.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Moura
Among Census respondents with the surname Moura, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Black (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Moura 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 Moura surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.7% · 2,016
- Hispanic or Latino9.0% · 229
- Black or African American4.6% · 117
- Two or more races3.2% · 82
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 74
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Moura
Moura 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
#13,976
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,157
+442 bearers (+25.8%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Up 1,672 places
2020
#11,826
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,531
+374 bearers (+17.3%)
Per 100,000 0.85
Rank movement Up 2,150 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,648 | 1,715 | 0.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,976 | 2,157 | 0.73 | +442 bearers (+25.8%) | Up 1,672 places |
| 2020 | #11,826 | 2,531 | 0.85 | +374 bearers (+17.3%) | Up 2,150 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 Moura 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 | #13,976 | #11,826 | 15.4% |
| Count | 2,157 | 2,531 | 17.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.73 | 0.85 | 16.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Moura bearers went from 2,157 to 2,531 (+17.3% change). The surname moved up 2,150 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,976 to #11,826.
FAQ
Moura surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Moura?
Name Census estimates that about 2,902 living Americans carry the surname Moura. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 118,110 residents.
How common is Moura?
Moura ranks #11,826 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.85 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 2,531 people with the surname Moura. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,902), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.85 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.85 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 Moura.
Has Moura become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Moura went from 2,157 recorded bearers to 2,531. That is an increase of 374 (+17.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,976 to #11,826.
What does the Census say about the background of Moura?
Among Census respondents with the surname Moura, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Black (4.6%). 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 Moura in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.7% (2,016 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Moura appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.7%), Hispanic (9.0%), Black (4.6%). 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 Moura (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 Moura mean?
A Portuguese toponymic surname referring to someone from any of several places called Moura, meaning "moorish town". 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 Moura (0.85 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 Moura?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.