2000
#170
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 146,088
First available Census row
Per 100,000 54.15
Common Last name
Moreno
A Spanish surname referring to someone with dark hair, dark complexion, or a Moorish background.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 221,215 Americans carry the last name Moreno. That puts it at #124 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 64.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,549 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Moreno 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 Moreno with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
221K
1 in 1,549
Census rank
#124
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
64.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
193K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 192,910 bearers of the surname Moreno in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 64.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 124th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Moreno, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.4%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Moreno
The surname Moreno originates from Spain, where it first appeared in the 13th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "moreno," which means "dark-skinned" or "swarthy." The name likely referred to someone with a darker complexion, a physical trait that was distinctive in certain regions of Spain.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval Spanish documents and records. For example, a certain Juan Moreno was mentioned in a land grant from the year 1275, issued by King Alfonso X of Castile.
The name Moreno has a rich historical presence in various parts of Spain. In the region of Andalusia, the name was particularly prevalent, reflecting the diverse cultural influences that shaped the area over centuries of Moorish occupation.
One notable figure bearing the surname Moreno was Pedro Moreno, a Spanish soldier and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés during the conquest of Mexico in the early 16th century. Another significant individual was Luis Moreno, a 17th-century Spanish architect who designed several notable buildings in Madrid.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Moreno was also found in various Spanish settlements in the Americas, as explorers and colonists from Spain established new communities in the New World. For instance, a Juan Moreno was among the early settlers of Santa Fe, New Mexico, in the late 16th century.
In the realm of literature, the Spanish playwright and poet Agustín Moreto y Cabaña (1618-1669) was a prominent figure of the Spanish Golden Age. His works, including plays such as "El desdén con el desdén" (Disdain Met with Disdain), have been widely celebrated and studied.
Another notable individual with the surname Moreno was Mariano Moreno (1778-1811), an Argentine lawyer, journalist, and politician who played a crucial role in the Argentine War of Independence from Spain. He is considered one of the founding fathers of Argentina.
As the centuries passed, the Moreno surname spread globally, carried by Spanish emigrants and their descendants to various parts of the world, including Latin America, the Philippines, and other regions influenced by Spanish colonization and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Moreno
Among Census respondents with the surname Moreno, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.4%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Moreno 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 Moreno surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino91.4% · 176,289
- White6.4% · 12,332
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1,671
- Black or African American0.6% · 1,076
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 778
- Two or more races0.4% · 764
Timeline
Historical Census data for Moreno
Moreno 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
#124
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 196,925
+50,837 bearers (+34.8%)
Per 100,000 66.76
Rank movement Up 46 places
2020
#124
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 192,910
-4,015 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 64.54
Rank movement No rank change
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #170 | 146,088 | 54.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #124 | 196,925 | 66.76 | +50,837 bearers (+34.8%) | Up 46 places |
| 2020 | #124 | 192,910 | 64.54 | -4,015 bearers (-2.0%) | No rank change |
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 Moreno 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 | #124 | #124 | 0.0% |
| Count | 196,925 | 192,910 | -2.0% |
| Per 100K | 66.76 | 64.54 | -3.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Moreno bearers went from 196,925 to 192,910 (-2.0% change). The surname held its position in the national ranking, remaining at #124.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Moreno
FAQ
Moreno surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Moreno?
Name Census estimates that about 221,215 living Americans carry the surname Moreno. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,549 residents.
How common is Moreno?
Moreno ranks #124 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 64.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 65 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 192,910 people with the surname Moreno. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (221,215), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 64.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 64.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 65 of them to have the surname Moreno.
Has Moreno become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Moreno went from 196,925 recorded bearers to 192,910. That is a decrease of 4,015 (-2.0%). In the national ranking it stayed at #124.
What does the Census say about the background of Moreno?
Among Census respondents with the surname Moreno, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.4%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Moreno in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (176,289 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Moreno appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (91.4%), White (6.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Moreno (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 Moreno mean?
A Spanish surname referring to someone with dark hair, dark complexion, or a Moorish background. 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 Moreno (64.54 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 Americans have the surname Moreno?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.