973,162 MOORE members around the world

MOORE Family History

Family spelling variants include Moor, More, Murr, Moores, O’Moore, Morey, Mower.

There are approximately 973,162 Moore family members around the world. In general you can double this figure to include those related to the Moore names to allow for those connected to the name through maiden name connections.

It is estimated that the largest group of Moore family members live USA with 758,759 (78%) members, England with 79,292 (8.1%), Canada with 43,233 (4.4%), Australia with 37,869 (3.9%), South Africa with 21,223 (2.2%), Ireland with 16,689 (1.7%), Scotland with 6,314 (0.6%), New Zealand with 5,640 (0.6%) and Wales with 4,143 (0.4%).

An English locative name from Middle English more ‘moor, marsh, fen’ or an area of uncultivated land (Old English m?r). Hence topographic name for someone who lived at a moor or toponymic from Moore (Cheshire), More (Shropshire), or any of numerous other places named the same term.

A Norman English relationship name from the Middle English personal name More (Old French More, Maur, Latin Maurus ), originally denoting either ‘a Moor’ or someone with a swarthy complexion.

Early bearers of the surname include: William de More, 1086 in Domesday Book (Suffolk); Lefric de la Mora, 1169 in Pipe Rolls (Northants); Matthew del More, 1275 in Wakefield Court Rolls; John Bythemore, 1327 in Subsidy Rolls (Somerset); John in le Mor, 1332 in Subsidy Rolls (Staffs); John of Moore, 1467 in Bury Saint Edmunds Wills; Elizabeth Moore, 1538 in IGI (Great Gransden, Hunts); John Moore, Robert More, 1538 in IGI (Kirkby Lonsdale, Westm); Thomas Moore, 1538 in IGI (Canterbury, Kent); Elizabeth Moore, 1539 in IGI (Pitcombe, Somerset).

In 1891, there were 63,632 occurrences of the surname in England and Wales and a further 1,775 in Scotland. 

In 1881, the surname was widespread across England and was particularly frequent in the county of Kent with 2,168 occurrences. 

In 1881, Agricultural Labourer, Labourer and Farmer were the top 3 reported jobs worked by Moore. The most common Moore occupation was Agricultural Labourer and a less common occupation was Coal Miner.

1881, 1891 Census

1881 Census in Kent

Dictionary of American Family Homes, P Hanks OUP 2003

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain, H.B. Guppy, London 1890

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, P.Hanks, Coats, McClure OUP 2016

1860 Lower, Mark A Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom, London: J.R Smith. Public Domain

1857 Arthur, William An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. New York: Sheldon, Blakeman. Public Domain

J.M.P