Moe
A short surname with several possible roots, including an Old English adjective meaning “large” or “great.”
The #3,238 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 27,690 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Moe is difficult to pin down to one single origin. One 19th-century source glosses Old English "moe" as meaning “large, tall, great,” which makes it plausible as an old descriptive nickname. Other historical notes show similar spellings in Dutch and Celtic contexts, but the evidence is too thin to be certain that all modern bearers share the same source.
History
The name appears in historical name lists and census-style compilations, but the excerpts do not provide a clear family line or a single place of origin. In modern usage it is found in the United States and elsewhere as a relatively uncommon surname. Because the form is so short, it may also have arisen independently in more than one language or region.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because it is only three letters long, Moe is one of those surnames that can easily be confused with a nickname or an abbreviation, even though it can be a genuine inherited family name.
From the historical record
“dear; a term of endearment, a sweetheart. MOE. (Old English.) Large, tall, great. MOEL. Maol, in the Q-aeh'c, signifies bald. MOELYN. (Welsh.) Bald-pate. MOFFATT. Local. Derived from the town of Moffat, in Dumfriesshire, Scotland. MOLEN. (Dutch.) A mill MOLLOY. (Cor. Br.) The dusty or hoary mill. MOLYNEUX. (Fr.)…”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names