Find out how popular the last name Murph is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Murph.

Murph, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Murph surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Murph in America

Murph is the 17625th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Murph surname appeared 1,594 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Murph.

We can also compare 2010 data for Murph to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Murph

The surname Murph is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic name Murchadh, which means "sea warrior" or "sea battler." It dates back to the early medieval period in Ireland, around the 8th or 9th century.

Murph is a variation of the more common Irish surname Murphy, which is an anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Murchadha or Ó Murchadh. The prefix "Ó" means "descendant of," indicating that Murph and Murphy were originally patronymic surnames.

In ancient Irish records, the name Murchadh is mentioned in the Annals of Ulster and the Annals of the Four Masters, which chronicle the lives of important figures and events in Irish history. One notable figure was Murchadh na nGall, also known as Murchadh of the Foreigners, who was a prominent king of Dublin in the 12th century.

The earliest recorded example of the surname Murph can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire, England, from 1194, where it is written as "Murhth." This indicates that the name had spread to England by the late 12th century, likely due to the Norman invasion of Ireland.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Murph or variations of it. One example is Darby Murph, an Irish rebel and leader of the Whiteboys, a secret agrarian society that protested against oppressive landlords in the late 18th century.

Another notable figure is Audie Murph (1924-1971), an American soldier who was one of the most decorated American combat soldiers of World War II. He received numerous medals, including the Medal of Honor, for his heroic actions during the war.

In the literary world, there is the American novelist and short story writer Richard Murpf (1889-1975), known for his works exploring the lives of African Americans in the early 20th century.

The name Murph is also associated with several place names in Ireland, such as Murphystown and Murphystown Lower in County Dublin, and Murphystown in County Wexford. These place names likely originated from families with the surname Murph or Murphy who lived in or owned land in those areas.

Other notable individuals with the surname Murph include Eddie Murph (1894-1983), an American actor and comedian, and Michael Murpf (born 1957), an American actor and filmmaker best known for his roles in films like "Beverly Hills Cop" and "The Nutty Professor."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Murph

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Murph.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Murph was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Murph has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Murph was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Murph, please contact us.

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