Mo (Korean surname)

Bori Mo (보리 모; 牟; lit. "barley"), also called so uneun sori Mo (소 우는 소리 모; 牟; lit. "the sound that a cow makes"), is the more common of the two hanja used to write the surname Mo. In 1960 it was the 92nd-most common surname in South Korea, falling to 93rd by 1985.[1] The 2000 South Korean census found 18,955 people with this family name, and 5,838 households.[3] The surviving bon-gwan (origin of a clan lineage, not necessarily the current residence of clan members) at that time included:

• Hampyeong, South Jeolla (see Hampyeong Mo clan): 17,939 people and 5,546 households.[3] They trace their lineage back to Mo Gyeong (모경; 牟慶), who came from Song dynasty in present-day Henan, China to Korea, and aided in suppressing the rebellion by Yi Ja-gyeom during the reign of Injong of Goryeo.[5]
• Jinju, South Gyeongsang: 972 people and 285 households.[3] They are likely a branch of the Hampyeong Mo clan. They trace their linage back to Mo Sun (모순; 牟恂), an official during the reign of Taejo of Joseon.[6][7]
• Naju, South Jeolla: Two people and zero households.[3]
• Other or unknown: 34 people and seven households.[3]

Teoreok Mo (터럭 모; 毛; lit. "hair") is the less common of the two hanja used to write the surname Mo. In 1960 it was the 146th-most common surname in South Korea, falling to 164th by 1985.[2] The 2000 South Korean census found 879 people with this family name, and 272 households.[3] The surviving bon-gwan at that time included:

• Gongju, South Chungcheong: 352 people and 114 households.[3]
• Guangzhou, China: 309 people and 95 households.[3] Members of the Guangzhou Mo clan[lower-alpha 1] trace their ancestry back to Xihe (西河, present-day Shaanxi), but the records are not clear. It is believed that the clan lived over several generations in Chongju, North Pyongan.[8][9]
• Gimhae, South Gyeongsang: 101 people and 28 households.[3]
• Seosan, South Chungcheong: 91 people and 26 households.[3]
• Other or unknown: 26 people and nine households. "Other" includes people listing their bon-gwan as Jeonju, North Jeolla; Papyeong, Gyeonggi; Pyeonghae, North Gyeongsang; Hamyeol, North Jeolla; and Haepyeong, North Gyeongsang.[3]

People with this surname include:

• Moh Youn-sook (모윤숙; 毛允淑; 1910–1990), South Korean poet
• Mo Myeong-hui (모명희; 牟明姬; born 1963), South Korean sprinter
• Mo Ji-soo (모지수; 牟智洙; born 1969), South Korean speed skater
• Mo Joong-kyung (모중경; 牟重炅; born 1971), South Korean golfer
• Mo Chang-min (모창민; 牟唱民; born 1985), South Korean baseball player
• Mo Tae-bum (모태범; 牟太釩; born 1989), South Korean speed skater

• Category:Mo clans of Korea