2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mural
A surname derived from the Spanish word "mural," referring to a person who painted murals or wall decorations.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Mural. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mural 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Mural in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mural, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.8%) and Black (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mural
The surname "Mural" is of Spanish origin, derived from the word "muro," meaning "wall." It is believed to have originated in the 13th or 14th century as a descriptive surname for someone who lived near a wall or fortification, or perhaps a builder of walls.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the "Libro de Armería" (Book of Heraldry) from the 15th century, which mentions a noble family with the surname Mural hailing from the region of Valencia in eastern Spain. This suggests that the name was already well-established in that area by that time.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various legal documents and records from the Spanish territories, such as the "Registro General del Sello" (General Registry of the Seal) from the reign of Philip II, where a certain Juan Mural is mentioned as a landowner in the province of Murcia.
As the Spanish Empire expanded, the surname Mural was carried to the Americas and other parts of the world. One notable individual was Francisco Mural, a soldier who participated in the conquest of Peru in the 1530s and later received land grants in the area now known as Ecuador.
In the 17th century, a branch of the Mural family settled in Mexico, where they became prominent landowners and ranchers. One of their descendants, Ignacio Mural (1688-1768), was a renowned architect who designed several churches and public buildings in the city of Querétaro.
Another notable figure was Margarita Mural (1721-1795), a Spanish nun and writer who authored several religious texts and was known for her pious devotion. Her works were widely read in Spain and its colonies during her lifetime.
During the 19th century, the name Mural continued to be found throughout the Spanish-speaking world. For example, Joaquín Mural (1832-1901) was a Chilean politician and diplomat who served as ambassador to several European countries.
While the surname Mural is most commonly associated with Spain and Latin America, it has also been found in other parts of the world, likely due to migration and intermarriage. However, the origins of the name can be traced back to the medieval Spanish kingdoms and the practice of using descriptive surnames related to occupations or locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mural
Among Census respondents with the surname Mural, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.8%) and Black (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Mural 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 Mural surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino8.8% · 10
- Black or African American4.4% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.4% · 5
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mural
Mural 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+7 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,401 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,001 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 2,401 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 2,001 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 Mural 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 | #145,220 | #147,221 | -1.4% |
| Count | 114 | 113 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mural bearers went from 114 to 113 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 2,001 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #147,221.
FAQ
Mural surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mural?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Mural. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Mural?
Mural ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Mural. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Mural.
Has Mural become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mural went from 114 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Mural?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mural, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.8%) and Black (4.4%). 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 Mural in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mural appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Hispanic (8.8%), Black (4.4%). 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 Mural (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 Mural mean?
A surname derived from the Spanish word "mural," referring to a person who painted murals or wall decorations. 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 Mural (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 Mural?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Mural is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.