2000
#17,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,480
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.55
Rare Last name
Murad
A surname reflecting ethnic Turkish or Arabic origins, possibly from "murad" meaning "desired" or "wished for."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,748 Americans carry the last name Murad. That puts it at #12,379 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 124,729 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Murad 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 Murad with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 124,729
Census rank
#12,379
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,396 bearers of the surname Murad in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12379th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Murad, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (19.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Murad
The surname Murad is of Arabic origin, derived from the Arabic word "murad" which means "desired" or "wished for." It originated in the Middle East, specifically in regions where Arabic was the dominant language, such as the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, and parts of the Levant.
The name Murad has a long history, with early records dating back to the 7th century AD during the Islamic Golden Age. It was commonly used as a personal name among Arabs, and later adopted as a surname by some families. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Murad I, the Ottoman Sultan who ruled from 1362 to 1389.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various Islamic manuscripts and historical records, particularly those related to the Ottoman Empire. The Murad family was a prominent dynasty that ruled over parts of Anatolia and the Balkans for several centuries.
During the height of the Ottoman Empire, the name Murad was associated with power and prestige. Notable individuals bearing this surname include Murad II, the Ottoman Sultan who reigned from 1421 to 1451, and Murad III, who ruled from 1574 to 1595.
Beyond the Ottoman Empire, the name Murad has been recorded in various regions throughout the Middle East and North Africa. In the 13th century, the famous Arab traveler and writer Ibn Battuta mentioned encountering individuals with the name Murad during his travels across the Islamic world.
Other notable figures with the surname Murad include Amin al-Husseini Murad (1897-1974), a Palestinian Arab nationalist and Muslim leader who played a significant role in the Arab-Israeli conflict, and Ferid Murad (born 1936), an American physician and pharmacologist of Palestinian descent, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1998.
While the surname Murad has its roots in the Arabic language and Islamic culture, it has since spread to various parts of the world due to migration and diaspora communities. However, its origins can be traced back to the Middle East, where it has a rich historical significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Murad
Among Census respondents with the surname Murad, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (19.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Murad 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 Murad surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.4% · 1,614
- Asian and Pacific Islander19.6% · 469
- Two or more races5.0% · 119
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 103
- Black or African American3.8% · 90
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Murad
Murad 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
#15,784
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,846
+366 bearers (+24.7%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Up 1,756 places
2020
#12,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,396
+550 bearers (+29.8%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Up 3,405 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #17,540 | 1,480 | 0.55 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,784 | 1,846 | 0.63 | +366 bearers (+24.7%) | Up 1,756 places |
| 2020 | #12,379 | 2,396 | 0.80 | +550 bearers (+29.8%) | Up 3,405 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 Murad 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 | #15,784 | #12,379 | 21.6% |
| Count | 1,846 | 2,396 | 29.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.63 | 0.80 | 27.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Murad bearers went from 1,846 to 2,396 (+29.8% change). The surname moved up 3,405 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,784 to #12,379.
FAQ
Murad surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Murad?
Name Census estimates that about 2,748 living Americans carry the surname Murad. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 124,729 residents.
How common is Murad?
Murad ranks #12,379 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.80 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 2,396 people with the surname Murad. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,748), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.80 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 Murad.
Has Murad become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Murad went from 1,846 recorded bearers to 2,396. That is an increase of 550 (+29.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,784 to #12,379.
What does the Census say about the background of Murad?
Among Census respondents with the surname Murad, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (19.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Murad in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.4% (1,614 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Murad appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (19.6%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Murad (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 Murad mean?
A surname reflecting ethnic Turkish or Arabic origins, possibly from "murad" meaning "desired" or "wished for." 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 Murad (0.80 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 have the last name Murad?
See how many people are called Murad on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.