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Origins of the Moore surname

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What does the name Moore mean?

The Moore surname has a number of hypothesised points of origin, and is popular throughout the English-speaking world. The most common believed source is in England, from the Middle English 'mor', which means a heath, or bog (sometimes referring to open land, and the modern usage of the word moor) and would be given to someone living at or on one of these geographic features. In Ireland, the surname Moore can derive from an anglicisation of the Gaelic 'mordha', which is given to someone who is noble or stately. More rarely, the name Moore could be given to an Isle of Man collector of manorial rent (a moar), or as a descriptive for someone of dark complexion (a moor).

Alternative variations of the name Moore

Moore, More, Moor, Moir, Moores

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Where do most Moores live?

In 1921, most Moores lived in London.


Census records trace your ancestors through each generation, so you can follow where your relatives lived through each decade.

Interesting facts about Moores

How common is your surname?

37th most common surname in the UK

We have 628,000 records for the Moore surname. The oldest one dates back to 1220.

Who were Moores most likely to marry?

Smiths

&

Johnsons

Our Marriage record sets tell us which families married Moores.

What are the most common Moore first names?

  • John
  • William
  • Mary
  • Elizabeth

Our birth record sets tell us the names of Moore family members

Common jobs for Moores

Men and women often performed different types of jobs, so these are displayed by gender to maintain their historical accuracy.

Common Female occupations for Moores in 1921
Dressmaker

2,866

Laundress

1,589

Domestic Servant

1,480

General Servant Domestic

1,353

Living On Own Means

1,170

Common Male occupations for Moores in 1921
Agricultural Labourer

2,522

General Labourer

2,253

Coal Miner

2,045

Farm Hands

1,874

Farmer

1,634

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We found over 1,300,000 family trees with the Moore surname

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