NameCensus.

UK surname

Moore

An English topographical surname referring to someone who lived on a moor or in a fen.

In the 1881 census there were 58,817 people recorded with the Moore surname, ranking it #44 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 95,984, ranked #34, up from #44 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars and Glasgow. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Hinckley and Bosworth, Copeland and Kingston upon Hull.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Moore is 98,434 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 63.2%.

1881 census count

58,817

Ranked #44

Modern count

95,984

2016, ranked #34

Peak year

2010

98,434 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Moore had 58,817 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #44 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 95,984 in 2016, ranked #34.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 83,228 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Moore surname distribution map

The map shows where the Moore surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Moore surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Moore over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 33,816 #56
1861 historical 36,202 #56
1881 historical 58,817 #44
1891 historical 66,057 #41
1901 historical 78,428 #39
1911 historical 83,228 #36
1997 modern 94,247 #34
1998 modern 97,796 #34
1999 modern 98,417 #34
2000 modern 97,980 #34
2001 modern 95,426 #34
2002 modern 97,481 #35
2003 modern 95,074 #34
2004 modern 94,915 #34
2005 modern 93,162 #34
2006 modern 92,884 #35
2007 modern 93,374 #35
2008 modern 93,973 #35
2009 modern 96,199 #35
2010 modern 98,434 #35
2011 modern 96,819 #35
2012 modern 94,801 #35
2013 modern 96,828 #34
2014 modern 97,411 #34
2015 modern 96,434 #34
2016 modern 95,984 #34

Geography

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Where Moores are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars, Glasgow and Liverpool. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Hinckley and Bosworth, Copeland and Kingston upon Hull. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 London parishes London 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars Leicestershire
4 Glasgow Lanark
5 Liverpool Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Hinckley and Bosworth 007 Hinckley and Bosworth
2 Hinckley and Bosworth 010 Hinckley and Bosworth
3 Hinckley and Bosworth 006 Hinckley and Bosworth
4 Copeland 004 Copeland
5 Kingston upon Hull 008 Kingston upon Hull, City of

Forenames

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First names often paired with Moore

These lists show first names that appear often with the Moore surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Moore

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Moore, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Moore surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Moore household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Moore is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Moore is most concentrated in decile 9 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

9
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Moore falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Moore is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Moore, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Moore

The surname Moore has its origins in England and can be traced back to the early Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old English word "mor" meaning "marsh" or "moorland," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name were likely from areas with moorland terrain.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Moore surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de la More," indicating it was originally used as a locational surname for someone who lived near a moor or marshland.

Over time, the spelling of the name evolved, with variations such as Mor, More, Moor, and eventually Moore becoming more common. This surname was particularly prevalent in counties like Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire, where large expanses of moorland were found.

Notable historical figures with the surname Moore include Sir John Moore (1761-1809), a British Army officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and is remembered for his famous retreat to Corunna. Another prominent figure was Henry Moore (1898-1986), the renowned English sculptor known for his abstract monumental bronze sculptures.

Other notable individuals with this surname include Mary Moore (1947-), an American astronomer and educator, and Sir Patrick Moore (1923-2012), a celebrated British amateur astronomer and television presenter. Thomas Moore (1779-1852), an Irish poet and songwriter best known for the lyrics of "The Minstrel Boy" and other Irish melodies, also bore this surname.

The Moore surname has been carried across the world by emigrants from the British Isles, and it can be found in various countries with significant British heritage, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Moore families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Moore surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Middlesex leads with 6,826 Moores recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.17x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 6,826 1.17x
Yorkshire 6,251 1.08x
Lancashire 5,728 0.83x
Surrey 3,470 1.22x
Staffordshire 2,622 1.33x
Warwickshire 2,477 1.68x
Kent 2,168 1.09x
Norfolk 2,119 2.36x
Durham 1,839 1.06x
Leicestershire 1,760 2.72x
Devon 1,640 1.35x
Cheshire 1,416 1.10x
Essex 1,276 1.11x
Lanarkshire 1,274 0.67x
Hampshire 1,229 1.03x
Suffolk 1,196 1.68x
Sussex 1,170 1.19x
Nottinghamshire 1,133 1.44x
Derbyshire 1,043 1.14x
Worcestershire 1,015 1.33x
Isle of Man 944 8.70x
Northumberland 913 1.05x
Lincolnshire 871 0.93x
Gloucestershire 868 0.76x
Somerset 864 0.92x
Cumberland 698 1.39x
Wiltshire 678 1.31x
Northamptonshire 677 1.23x
Dorset 547 1.43x
Cambridgeshire 504 1.36x
Glamorgan 480 0.47x
Shropshire 353 0.70x
Monmouthshire 312 0.74x
Renfrewshire 309 0.68x
Cornwall 279 0.42x
Berkshire 250 0.57x
Buckinghamshire 228 0.65x
Angus 204 0.38x
Hertfordshire 199 0.49x
Herefordshire 183 0.76x
Bedfordshire 167 0.55x
Ayrshire 159 0.36x
Midlothian 153 0.20x
Oxfordshire 148 0.41x
Westmorland 112 0.87x
Channel Islands 104 0.60x
Huntingdonshire 100 0.86x
Stirlingshire 95 0.44x
Royal Navy 91 1.31x
Pembrokeshire 90 0.48x
Dunbartonshire 71 0.45x
Flintshire 60 0.38x
Radnorshire 49 1.04x
Brecknockshire 42 0.36x
West Lothian 41 0.47x
Denbighshire 39 0.18x
Aberdeenshire 38 0.07x
Roxburghshire 32 0.30x
Wigtownshire 32 0.41x
Fife 29 0.08x
Perthshire 23 0.09x
Argyllshire 21 0.13x
Carmarthenshire 20 0.08x
Caernarfonshire 19 0.08x
Montgomeryshire 19 0.14x
Berwickshire 16 0.23x
Orkney 14 0.22x
Caithness 13 0.16x
Inverness-shire 9 0.05x
Dumfriesshire 8 0.06x
Rutland 8 0.19x
Sutherland 7 0.16x
Buteshire 6 0.17x
Kirkcudbrightshire 6 0.07x
Kincardineshire 4 0.06x
Selkirkshire 4 0.08x
Shetland 4 0.07x
Banffshire 3 0.02x
Merionethshire 3 0.03x
Morayshire 3 0.03x
Cardiganshire 2 0.01x
Clackmannanshire 2 0.04x
Anglesey 1 0.01x
Ross-shire 1 0.01x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Islington London in Middlesex leads with 714 Moores recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.26x.

Place Total Index
Islington London 714 1.26x
Birmingham 636 1.30x
Lambeth 614 1.21x
Aston 566 1.40x
Liverpool 526 1.25x
St Pancras London 497 1.06x
Camberwell 438 1.17x
Hackney London 421 1.29x
St Marylebone London 392 1.26x
Kensington London 387 1.19x
Leicester St Margaret 386 2.44x
Shoreditch London 362 1.43x
Keighley 351 5.69x
Bethnal Green London 348 1.37x
Barony 324 0.68x
Nottingham St Mary 319 1.57x
West Bromwich 319 2.83x
Govan 317 0.68x
Portsea 314 1.34x
Leeds 309 0.95x
West Ham 302 1.19x
Battersea 295 1.37x
Toxteth Park 292 1.24x
Glasgow 288 0.86x
West Derby 270 1.33x
Everton 267 1.21x
Manchester 265 0.85x
Mile End Old Town 258 2.80x
Brighton 251 1.26x
Bermondsey 248 1.43x
Onchan 248 7.94x
Stoke Upon Trent 241 1.15x
Newington 235 1.09x
Paddington London 231 1.08x
St George Hanover 218 2.86x
Croydon 201 1.27x
Chelsea London 195 1.11x
Wolverhampton 195 1.29x
Bradford 181 1.29x
Chorlton On Medlock 179 1.63x
Sheffield 178 0.97x
Bishopwearmouth 175 1.17x
Bedworth 171 15.91x
Birkenhead 168 1.63x
Hulme 164 1.13x
Leicester St Mary 163 3.11x
Heigham 158 3.28x
Southwark St George Martyr 158 1.34x
Walsall Foreign 158 1.55x
Blackburn 152 0.82x
Bingley 149 4.04x
Great Yarmouth 144 1.94x
Salford 144 0.71x
Tottenham 144 1.55x
Hammersmith London 142 0.99x
Rotherhithe 142 1.97x
Northowram 137 3.38x
Bow London 135 1.82x
Ecclesall Bierlow 133 1.13x
Stoke Damerel 131 1.54x
Harborne 129 2.04x
Brightside Bierlow 128 1.13x
Fulham London 127 1.50x
Lewisham 127 1.19x
Greenwich 125 1.34x
Clerkenwell London 124 0.90x
Coventry Holy Trinity 123 2.80x
St Luke London 121 1.29x
Bromley London 120 0.93x
Haworth 120 8.72x
Westoe 119 1.21x
Kirkdale 117 1.00x
Lindley Cum Quarmby 117 8.01x
Middlesbrough 117 1.55x
Horton In Bradford 116 1.28x
Hinckley 114 7.42x
Rushen 114 15.54x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 112 1.04x
Huddersfield 111 1.32x
Cottenham 109 22.17x
Deptford St Paul 109 0.71x
Gateshead 106 0.81x
Hawes 106 28.00x
Preston 104 0.56x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Moore surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 3,829
Elizabeth 2,235
Sarah 2,021
Jane 1,120
Ann 1,095
Ellen 937
Eliza 918
Emma 890
Alice 832
Annie 820
Emily 685
Hannah 604
Margaret 598
Martha 514
Louisa 383
Harriet 365
Maria 337
Fanny 328
Catherine 327
Florence 320
Ada 312
Edith 311
Charlotte 301
Caroline 288
Kate 271
Clara 248
Anne 231
Lucy 219
Agnes 218
Frances 217
Harriett 208
Isabella 208
Susan 184
Rose 159
Minnie 154
Amelia 153
Rebecca 146
Esther 141
Julia 141
Susannah 130
Sophia 121
Matilda 119
Eleanor 115
Jessie 113
Anna 106
Gertrude 103
Lydia 97
Amy 94
Ethel 94
Elizth. 93

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Moore surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 3,551
John 3,509
Thomas 2,015
George 1,999
James 1,845
Henry 1,150
Charles 1,076
Joseph 997
Robert 764
Edward 606
Alfred 586
Arthur 538
Frederick 509
Samuel 469
Richard 466
Albert 386
Harry 357
Walter 352
Frank 251
Herbert 233
Ernest 224
Francis 203
Edwin 199
David 173
Wm. 162
Isaac 158
Benjamin 146
Fred 121
Thos. 108
Tom 107
Daniel 103
Stephen 84
Patrick 81
Peter 78
Alexander 75
Michael 73
Fredrick 70
Fredk. 69
Geo. 63
Christopher 58
Sidney 57
Abraham 56
Chas. 54
Percy 52
Robt. 48
Willm. 48
Jonathan 47
Horace 45
Mark 45
Edmund 44

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Moore households.

FAQ

Moore surname: questions and answers

How common was the Moore surname in 1881?

In 1881, 58,817 people were recorded with the Moore surname. That placed it at #44 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Moore surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 95,984 in 2016. That gives Moore a modern rank of #34.

What does the Moore surname mean?

An English topographical surname referring to someone who lived on a moor or in a fen.

What does the Moore map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Moore bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.