Moore ( surname ) - wikipedia Moore ( surname ) This article is about the surname. For people who share this surname, see List of people with surname Moore. For other uses, see Moore ( disambiguation ). This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( May 2017 ) Moore Pronunciation / mɔːr, mʊər / Origin Region of origin England, Ireland, Scotland Meaning `` moor '', `` stately and noble '' Footnotes : Frequency Comparisons : Ó Mórda. Moore is a popular English - language surname. It is the 34th most common surname in Australia, 32nd most common in England, and was the 16th most common surname in the United States in 2000. It can have several meanings and derivations, as it appeared as a surname long before written language had developed in most of the population, resulting in a variety of spellings. Variations of the name can appear as O'More or Moor ; as well as the Scottish Gaelic originations Muir, Mure and Mor / Mór ; the Manx Gaelic origination Moar ; the Irish Gaelic originations O'More and Ó Mórda ; and the later Irish variants O'Moore or ' Moore and the French de la Mora ( William De La More ). The similarly pronounced surname Mohr is of Germanic lineage and is not related to the Gaelic / English variations. Contents 1 Meanings and origins 2 Frequency 3 See also 4 References Meanings and origins From Middle English mor meaning `` open land '' or `` bog '' and given to persons dwelling near a moor or heath. The Old Irish Moores are O'Morda, from the Irish Gaelic word morda, meaning `` stately and noble ''. The French persons named de Mora, who were established in Ireland 's Munster province, were known as O'More after 200 years in Co. Leix. After WW1, `` Moore '' as a phonetic rendering of the name derived from the word `` moor '', or `` healthy mountain, '' became the written version for similar - sounding names. Alternatively of Gaelic / Manx origin Moar, this name was for a collector of manorial rents on the Isle of Man. The spelling `` Moore '' was sometimes used to indicate a son of someone called More - this being one use where spelling is significant. Possibly derived from Maurus, a Roman first name which meant `` dark skinned '' in Latin, and related to the Old French More meaning `` Moor, '' such as Berber, a colloquial nickname for a person of dark complexion, often describing someone of North African descent. Possibly originated from early references to persons who worked with boats at a wharf or moorage. The De La Mare surname from French Normandy was progressively anglicized in England as `` de la Mare '' ( Walter de la Mare ), `` De La More '', `` More '', and `` Moore '' in England. Frequency In the United States, `` Moore '' ranked 16th among all surnames in the 2000 census, accounting for 0.26 % of the population, falling from 9th in the 1990 census. See also List of people with the surname Moore Clan Muir List of the most common surnames in Europe References ^ Jump up to : `` Moore Surname Meaning ''. forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2014 ^ Jump up to : `` Frequently Occurring Surnames from the Census 2000 ''. United States Census Bureau. U.S. Department of Commerce. 15 September 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2015. Jump up ^ United States Census Bureau ( 9 May 1995 ). s : 1990 Census Name Files dist. all. last ( 1 - 100 ). Retrieved on 2008 - 07 - 04. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Moore_(surname)&oldid=818977197 '' Categories : English - language surnames Surnames of English origin Surnames of Irish origin Irish families Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from May 2017 All articles needing additional references All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from April 2017 Articles with unsourced statements from October 2012 Talk More Contents About Wikipedia Bân - lâm - gú Deutsch Русский Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 6 January 2018, at 17 : 55. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: where does the last name moore originate from
Answer: From Middle English mor meaning "open land" or "bog" and given to persons dwelling near a moor or heath