How common is the surname Murray?

184,910 people in the United States had the surname Murray in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 1,670 Americans. It ranked 136th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Murray?

Bill Murray, American actor and comedian, followed by Chad Michael Murray.

Where is the surname Murray most common?

Wikidata records people named Murray in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and 3 other countries.

How do you pronounce Murray?

Murray is /ˈmʌɹi/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Murray getting more or less common?

More common. 178,414 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 184,910 in 2010, up 3.6%.

Is Murray also a first name?

Yes. Murray is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Murray

A Scottish Gaelic place surname, carried by 184,910 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈmʌɹi/ 2 syllables Soundex M600 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Murray is more common than 99.9% of them.

Origin

Scottish Gaelic origin

Scottish surname derived from the place name Moray in northeastern Scotland, from Medieval Latin Moravia, Morauia, from Scottish Gaelic Moireibh, Moireabh, Moreb, ultimately from Proto-Celtic *mori (“sea”) + *trebā (“settlement”).

Murray is a place surname: taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.

One of 277 Scottish Gaelic surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 184,910 people named Murray in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 1,670 Americans. That is up 3.6% since 2000, when the Census counted 178,414.

#136

rank among US surnames

184,910

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+3.6%

change since 2000 (was #123)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#127	Hayes	194,246	1,589
#128	Bryant	192,773	1,602
#129	Herrera	192,711	1,602
#130	Gibson	190,667	1,619
#131	Ellis	188,968	1,634
#132	Tran	188,498	1,638
#133	Medina	188,497	1,638

Who is named Murray

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

75% of people named Murray identified as white (not Hispanic), 19% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 75%
Black (not Hispanic) 19%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.6%
Two or more races 2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.6%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Murrays

80 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Bill Murray
American actor and comedian, born 1950
Chad Michael Murray
American actor, born 1981
Margaret Murray
Anglo-Indian Egyptologist (1863–1963)
Douglas Murray
British author and political commentator (born 1979)
Sean Murray
American actor (born 1977)
Don Murray
American actor (1929–2024)
Henry Murray
American psychologist and academic (1893–1988)
Ashleigh Murray
American actress and singer, born 1988
Jillian Murray
Actress, born 1984
Pauli Murray
American writer, activist, lawyer and Episcopal priest (1910-1985)
Mae Murray
American actress, dancer, film producer, screenwriter (1885–1965)
Joel Murray
American actor, born 1963

Notable Murrays come mostly from the United States (55), the United Kingdom (8) and Australia (8).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Murray

Murray has the Soundex code M600, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code M600.

Other Scottish Gaelic surnames

All 277 Scottish Gaelic surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Murray come from?: Scottish surname derived from the place name Moray in northeastern Scotland, from Medieval Latin Moravia, Morauia, from Scottish Gaelic Moireibh, Moireabh, Moreb, ultimately from Proto-Celtic *mori (“sea”) + *trebā (“settlement”).
How common is the surname Murray?: 184,910 people in the United States had the surname Murray in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 1,670 Americans. It ranked 136th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Murray?: In the 2010 Census, 75% of people named Murray identified as white (not Hispanic), and 19% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Murray?: Bill Murray, American actor and comedian, followed by Chad Michael Murray.
Where is the surname Murray most common?: Wikidata records people named Murray in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and 3 other countries.
How do you pronounce Murray?: Murray is /ˈmʌɹi/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Murray?: Murray is a place surname, taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.
Is the surname Murray getting more or less common?: More common. 178,414 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 184,910 in 2010, up 3.6%.
Is Murray also a first name?: Yes. Murray is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.