2000
#3,419
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,585
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.55
Uncommon Last name
Mohammed
An Arabic patronymic surname indicating the bearer is a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 26,808 Americans carry the last name Mohammed. That puts it at #1,491 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 12,786 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mohammed surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mohammed with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
27K
1 in 12,786
Census rank
#1,491
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
23K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 23,378 bearers of the surname Mohammed in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1491st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mohammed, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 35.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.5%) and White (20.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mohammed
The surname Mohammed has its origins in the Arabic language and is derived from the personal name Muhammad. This name is composed of two Arabic words, "hamd" meaning "praise" and "Allah" referring to the Islamic God. The name Muhammad translates to "one who is praised" or "praiseworthy."
The surname Mohammed traces its roots back to the Arabian Peninsula, specifically the regions now known as Saudi Arabia and the surrounding areas. It is believed to have emerged around the 7th century CE, during the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the early spread of Islam.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mohammed can be found in the Qur'an, the central religious text of Islam, where it refers to the prophet Muhammad himself. Additionally, various historical documents and manuscripts from the early Islamic era, such as the Sirah Rasul Allah (Biography of the Messenger of Allah) by Ibn Ishaq, mention individuals bearing the surname Mohammed.
In the Middle Ages, the surname Mohammed began to spread across the Middle East and North Africa as Islam expanded into these regions. It can be found in various historical records and chronicles from that period, such as the writings of renowned scholars like Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), who was born in Tunis and is considered one of the most influential philosophers and historians of the medieval Islamic world.
One notable individual with the surname Mohammed was Al-Idrisi (1099-1166), a famous Arab geographer, cartographer, and Egyptologist who served at the court of the Norman King Roger II of Sicily. His work, known as the Nuzhat al-Mushtaq (The Pleasure of Him Who Longs to Cross the Horizons), was a pioneering treatise on geography and cartography.
Another prominent figure was Ibn Battuta (1304-1368/1369), a Moroccan explorer and traveler who journeyed across vast regions of the ancient world, including parts of Africa, Asia, and Europe. His travelogue, known as the Rihla (The Journey), is a valuable historical record documenting the cultures, customs, and landscapes he encountered during his extensive travels.
The surname Mohammed also appears in various place names across the Arab world, such as Mohammed Bin Zayed City in the United Arab Emirates and Mohammed V University in Morocco, named after King Mohammed V (1909-1961), a prominent figure in the Moroccan struggle for independence from French colonial rule.
Throughout history, the surname Mohammed has been borne by numerous scholars, rulers, poets, and other influential figures across the Islamic world, reflecting its deep-rooted cultural and religious significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mohammed
Among Census respondents with the surname Mohammed, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 35.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.5%) and White (20.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Mohammed bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Mohammed surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander35.7% · 8,347
- Black or African American34.5% · 8,067
- White20.6% · 4,818
- Two or more races5.8% · 1,363
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 648
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 135
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mohammed
Mohammed appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#2,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,132
+5,547 bearers (+57.9%)
Per 100,000 5.13
Rank movement Up 1,024 places
2020
#1,491
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,378
+8,246 bearers (+54.5%)
Per 100,000 7.82
Rank movement Up 904 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,419 | 9,585 | 3.55 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,395 | 15,132 | 5.13 | +5,547 bearers (+57.9%) | Up 1,024 places |
| 2020 | #1,491 | 23,378 | 7.82 | +8,246 bearers (+54.5%) | Up 904 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Mohammed surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,395 | #1,491 | 37.7% |
| Count | 15,132 | 23,378 | 54.5% |
| Per 100K | 5.13 | 7.82 | 52.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mohammed bearers went from 15,132 to 23,378 (+54.5% change). The surname moved up 904 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,395 to #1,491.
FAQ
Mohammed surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mohammed?
Name Census estimates that about 26,808 living Americans carry the surname Mohammed. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 12,786 residents.
How common is Mohammed?
Mohammed ranks #1,491 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.82 per 100,000 residents, which is about 8 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 23,378 people with the surname Mohammed. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (26,808), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.82 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.82 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 8 of them to have the surname Mohammed.
Has Mohammed become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mohammed went from 15,132 recorded bearers to 23,378. That is an increase of 8,246 (+54.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,395 to #1,491.
What does the Census say about the background of Mohammed?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mohammed, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 35.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.5%) and White (20.6%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mohammed in the 2020 Census, accounting for 35.7% (8,347 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mohammed appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (35.7%), Black (34.5%), White (20.6%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Mohammed (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Mohammed mean?
An Arabic patronymic surname indicating the bearer is a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Mohammed (7.82 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the surname Mohammed?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.