2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Muirheid
Scottish surname referring to a person from Muirhead, a place name denoting a headland or promontory.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Muirheid. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Muirheid 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Muirheid in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Muirheid, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Black (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Muirheid
The surname Muirheid originates from Scotland and can be traced back to the 15th century. It is derived from the Scots word "muir," meaning a moor or heath, and "heid," meaning a height or hill. This suggests that the name was likely given to someone who lived near or was associated with a moorland or heathland on higher ground.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the records of the Burgh of Aberdeen in 1488, where a William Muirheid is mentioned as a resident. The name also appears in various Scottish parish records and legal documents from the 16th and 17th centuries, with variations in spelling such as Muirhead, Moorhead, and Morehead.
In the 17th century, the Muirheids were a prominent family in the Scottish Borders region, with connections to the town of Lauder. A notable figure from this time was John Muirheid, a minister and theologian who was born in Lauder in 1620 and served as the Principal of the University of Edinburgh from 1684 until his death in 1708.
Another significant bearer of the Muirheid name was Robert Muirheid, a Scottish judge and Senator of the College of Justice, who lived from 1756 to 1828. He was appointed as a Lord of Session in 1808 and took the judicial title Lord Pencaitland.
Moving into the 19th century, James Muirheid (1796-1870) was a Scottish civil engineer and surveyor who worked on several major infrastructure projects, including the construction of the Forth and Clyde Canal.
In the literary world, Lewis Muirhead (1834-1908) was a Scottish novelist and playwright who wrote under the pen name Lewis Grassic Gibbon. His most famous work, "Sunset Song," is considered a classic of Scottish literature.
The Muirheid surname has also been associated with various place names throughout Scotland, such as Muirhead in North Lanarkshire, Muirhead in South Ayrshire, and Muirhead in Stirlingshire, further solidifying its connection to the Scottish landscape.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Muirheid
Among Census respondents with the surname Muirheid, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Black (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Muirheid 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 Muirheid surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.6% · 114
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Muirheid
Muirheid 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,531 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+7 bearers (+6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,836 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 10,531 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.3%) | Up 4,836 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 Muirheid 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 | #148,347 | #143,511 | 3.3% |
| Count | 111 | 118 | 6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Muirheid bearers went from 111 to 118 (+6.3% change). The surname moved up 4,836 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #143,511.
FAQ
Muirheid surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Muirheid?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Muirheid. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Muirheid?
Muirheid ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Muirheid. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Muirheid.
Has Muirheid become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Muirheid went from 111 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 7 (+6.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Muirheid?
Among Census respondents with the surname Muirheid, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Black (0.8%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Muirheid in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.6% (114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Muirheid appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.6%), Hispanic (2.5%), Black (0.8%). 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 Muirheid (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 Muirheid mean?
Scottish surname referring to a person from Muirhead, a place name denoting a headland or promontory. 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 Muirheid (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 many people are called Muirheid?
You can see how many people have the surname Muirheid on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.