indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Meaning & History
Meaning uncertain. The name is thought to be a short form of Frisian given names that contain either Old Frisian moar (also môr) meaning "bog, marsh, moor, swamp" or Old Frisian moark meaning "dark-coloured". Both words are etymologically related to the Old Norse adjective myrkr meaning "dark, murky".Later on, the name came to be associated with Latin Maurus meaning "dark-skinned, Moorish" (see Maurus). As a result, it is also used as an abbreviation or pet form of given names that are ultimately derived from that Latin word, such as Mauritius.