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Morris

OriginEnglish variation of Maurice
Meaning"dark-skinned"

About Morris

Morris is as quiet and comfortable as a Morris chair, and has the same vintage feel. Once a Top 100 name in the early 1900s, Morris fell completely off the roster in 1995, probably due to lingering fallout from his identification with Morris the cat's ("the world's most finicky cat") 9 Lives cat food commercials.

A more distingushed namesake is Morris (Mo) Udall, an influential congressman, and, from literature, Morris Townsend in the Henry James novel Washington Square, which was made into a movie titled "The Heiress," with Montgomery Clift playing the part.

The usual nicknames for Morris are Morrie/Maury or Moe; a more distinctive one would be Moss. Morrie Schwartz, subject of the bestseller Tuesdays with Morrie was born Morris.

Pronounced MOR-iss.

As of October 2026, Morris ranked #1762 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #82 in 1912, Nameberry popularity #791.

Editor's take: The name Morris is a boy's name of English origin meaning "dark-skinned".

World rankings

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Morris on lists

Famous Morriss

  • Morris Lee Claiborne

    American NFL football player

  • Morris Lamont Chestnut

    Jr., American actor

  • Morris E. Day

    American R&B musician of The Time

  • Morris

    pen name of Maurice De Bevere, Belgian cartoonist

  • Morris "Morrie" Schwartz

    subject of Mitch Albom's "Tuesdays with Morrie"

Morris in pop culture

  • Morris the Cat

    advertising mascot for 9Lives brand cat food, voiced by John Erwin

  • Morris O'Brian

    character from the TV's "24"

  • Morris

    town in Connecticut

  • Morris

    character in the video game "Stardew Valley"

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Morris in blog posts

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