Contents [hide]

Moor History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Citations

Moor History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany
Ireland
Scotland

The Moor surname in Scotland is thought to have been a topographic name for someone who resided near a moor, or heath. 1 In Gaelic, Mor means great or big; therefore, a scribe may have mistaken the adjective Mor as a surname More or Muir. This may explain the occurrence of the surname Muir, or a variant in Northern Scotland.

The name Muir would seem out of place in that region because it holds a meaning of "living by a moor or heath," not the typical landscape of the highlands. Judging by its meaning, Muir is a local name of the south that described the area, in which the original bearer lived or held land. 2

Early Origins of the Moor family

The surname Moor was first found in Ayrshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Inbhir Àir), formerly a county in the southwestern Strathclyde region of Scotland. Thomas de la More was the executor of the will of Devorguilla de Balliol in 1291. While the first spelling of the name was More, it gradually evolved to Muir which became more popular, and by 1300 the name Muir had become the preferred spelling. Donald, Adam, Renaud, Gilchrist and Simon Muir, all rendered homage on behalf of their Clan to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland in 1296.

"Adam de la More and William de la More were jurors on the lands of Lady Elena la Zuche in Conyngham, 1296. Ade More who held lands of Reltone in Rerwickshire, in 1315-1321 may be Adam More or Moire, knight, who witnessed charters by Bruce in 1328-1329. Elizabeth Mere, daughter of Sir Adam Mure of Rowallan, became queen of King Robert 11, 1347. Adam of Mwre was juror on inquest in Kirkwall, 1369. John Mvr of Enerothyll was witness, 1460, and John Mur or Muyr was vicar general of the Predicant Order in Scotland, 1469-1470 ." 2

Early History of the Moor family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Moor research. Another 178 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1458, 1526, 1541, 1559, 1594, 1657, 1700, 1740, 1753, 1760, 1765, 1771, 1787, 1793, 1798, 1800, 1810, 1812, 1822, 1829, 1869, 1887, 1890 and 1959 are included under the topic Early Moor History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Moor Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Muir, Mure, Moor, Moore, Mure, More, Moorman and many more.

Early Notables of the Moor family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Sir William Mure (1594-1657), Scottish writer and politician; John Muir, a Sanskrit scholar, and his brother Sir William Muir, who was an Arabic scholar and biographer of Mohammed; and Edwin Muir (1887-1959), a noted poet and critic. Thomas Muir (1765-1798), parliamentary reformer, was born at Glasgow on 24 Aug. 1765, being the only son of Thomas Muir, a flourishing tradesman, who in 1753 published a pamphlet on England's foreign trade. He was educated at Glasgow grammar school and at the university, intending at first to enter the church, but ultimately deciding on the bar...
Another 156 words (11 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Moor Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Moor Ranking

In the United States, the name Moor is the 10,449^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Migration of the Moor family to Ireland

Some of the Moor family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 84 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Moor migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Moor Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Moor, who landed in New Hampshire in 1630 4
Henry Moor, who landed in Maryland in 1649 4
Jane Moor, who landed in Maryland in 1652-1653 4
Roger Moor, who landed in Maryland in 1652-1653 4
Ann Moor, who landed in Maryland in 1652-1653 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Moor Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Margaret Moor, who arrived in Virginia in 1701 4
Rebecca Moor, who landed in Virginia in 1703 4
Gilbert Moor, who arrived in Virginia in 1705 4
Andreas Moor, who arrived in New York in 1709 4
Henrich Moor, who arrived in New York, NY in 1710 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Moor Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Gabriel Moor, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1812 4
James Moor, aged 23, who arrived in Delaware in 1812 4
Samuel D Moor, aged 27, who landed in New York, NY in 1821 4
Lewis Moor, aged 22, who landed in America in 1822 4
Johannes Moor, who arrived in Texas in 1840-1850 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Moor migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Moor Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. Mosa Moor U.E. who settled in Eastern District [Cornwall], Ontario c. 1784 he served in Jessups Rangers 5
Mr. Thomas Moor U.E. who settled in Kingston, Kings County, New Brunswick c. 1784 5
Mr. William Moor U.E. who settled in Adolphus Town [Adolphustown], Ontario c. 1786 he was in the Works, Engineers Department 5

Moor Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Richard Moor, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1825
Mary Mullany Moor, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1831

Moor migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Moor Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Edward Moor, British Convict who was convicted in Newark (Newark-on-Trent), Nottinghamshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. William Moor, British Convict who was convicted in Newark (Newark-on-Trent), Nottinghamshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. Joseph Moor, English convict who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Asiatic" on 5th June 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. John Moor, English convict who was convicted in North Riding, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 8
Robert Moor, English convict from York, who was transported aboard the "Albion" on May 29, 1828, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Moor migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Moor Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Simon Moor, (b. 1860), aged 19, Scottish farm labourer, from Orkney travelling from Clyde aboard the ship "Nelson" arriving in Invercargill, Southland, South Island, New Zealand on 28th August 1879 10
Sarah Moor, aged 34, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Rimutaka" in 1886
Henry R. Moor, aged 11, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Rimutaka" in 1886
Thomas Moor, aged 10, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Rimutaka" in 1886
Emma M. Moor, aged 8, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Rimutaka" in 1886
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Moor (post 1700) +

Wyman Bradbury Seavy Moor (1811-1869), American politician and lawyer, United States Senator from Maine in 1848
Terry Moor (b. 1952), American former tennis player
Drew Moor (b. 1984), American professional soccer player
Andy Moor (b. 1962), Scottish musician
William Moor (b. 1765), English sailor and explorer associated with the Hudson’s Bay Company
Ian John Moor (b. 1974), English singer
Henry Moor (1809-1877), English lawyer and politician who emigrated to Australia in 1842 where he became Mayor of Melbourne (1842-1854)
George Raymond Dallas Moor VC, MC & Bar (1896-1918), Australian soldier, recipient of the Victoria Cross for his actions on 5th June, 1915
Edward Moor (1771-1848), British soldier and Indologist, known for his book The Hindu Pantheon, Fellow of the Royal Society in 1806
Davey Ray Moor, Australian-born, England-based songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Moor family +

RMS Titanic

Mrs. Beila Moor, aged 29, Russian Third Class passenger from Romania who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and survived in the sinking in life boat 14 11
Master Meier Moor, aged 7, Russian Third Class passenger from Romania who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and survived in the sinking in life boat 14 11

SS Atlantic

Eliz. Moor, who was traveling aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, died in the sinking
Mr. Patrick Moor, British traveler who was aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, survived the sinking

The Moor Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Duris non frangor
Motto Translation: I am not disheartened by difficulties.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/batavia
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dromedary
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 24) Albion voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1828 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/albion/1828
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html