Surnames in the Isles - Now & 1881

[hereward]

Below are some tables that I have compiled showing surname frequencies, percentages and comparative ratios for surnames that are common in the Isles. I started these tables around 12 years ago using telephone directories and other sources. Over the years these tables have been refined thanks to new sources, tools and the internet.
The data for my calculations have come from the following sources;
World Surname Profiler
http://www.publicprofiler.org/worldnames/

The General Record Office in Scotland
Top 100 surnames in Scotland 1999/2000/2001; this has been compiled by using over 335000 Birth/Death registrations from those three years
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files1/stats/01surnames_tablea1.pdf
Top 100 surnames and top 300 surnames for Scotland compiled from 1901 census data
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files1/stats/01surnames_tablea4.pdf
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files1/stats/01surnames_tablea5.pdf
For reference purposes, data showing the top 100 in 1855/56/57 was also studied. Again this data was compiled using Birth & Death registration for those years.
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files1/stats/01surnames_tablea3a.pdf

National Trust Surnames - http://www.nationaltrustnames.org.uk/
British Surnames - http://www.britishsurnames.co.uk/

These last sites have been indispensable with regards to my calculations for the period of 1881.

National population figures;

England
Present - 50 000 000
1881 - 24 370 618

Scotland
Present - 5 194 000
1881 - 3 735 573

Wales
Present - 3 004 600
1881 - 1 604 821

Eire
Present - 4 459 300

Ulster
Present - 1 750 000

Cornwall
1881 - 335 714

5348
The present table shows the top 70 surnames in Wales that are either Welsh in origin or historically peculiar to Wales but not of sole Welsh origin. It shows comparisons to G.B, it also shows ratios for England/Wales ONLY. The 1881 table again shows the top 70 Welsh Surnames plus surnames that are peculiar to Wales but not of sole Welsh Origin. It compares frequencies, percentages and ratios to England.

5349
These tables show the top 100 surnames in Scotland presently and for 1881 in comparison to those same surnames in England.

5350
This table compares the top 250 surnames in England at present to the top 250 surnames in 1881.

5351
This table shows the top 100 surnames in Eire at present in comparison to figures for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

5347
This table shows the top 40 Surnames for Cornwall in 1881. The figures for England are based on England minus Cornwall. The last column shows the Cornwall tally as a percentage of the entire English tally.

If there are any silly mistakes I apologise though the figures have been checked multiple times.

[hereward]

The Welsh figures took me by surprise, I knew the English and the Irish migrated to the industrial parts of Wales between 1880 through to the start of World War 1, but I find it hard to believe the scale of change in Wales. It seems not that far behind England in terms of change. In 1881, those 70 surnames accounted for 65.57% of the Welsh population, presently they only account for 37.33% of the population, which is a 43% reduction. Even more strange is the study carried out by John & Sheila Rowland’s in 'The Surnames of Wales'. They came up with findings to show that those same 70 surnames were even more omnipresent back in the early half of the 1800's. Their research consisted of recording every surname that was entered in marriage registers for all the parishes in Wales for the period 1813 - 1837. Their research suggested that the top 10 welsh surnames alone accounted for 55.85% of the Welsh around 1840; compare that with 44.06% in 1881 and 24.28% presently. That’s a 57% drop in 160 years, which I find hard to reconcile with history.
I don’t doubt the Rowland’s; I just doubt that marriage registers for that time give an accurate/reliable portrait of the population. The drop from 1881 afterwards I can believe, as there was an immigration boom to South Wales etc, mainly from the West midlands and South West of England, which is well documented. The proof of this can be further evidenced in the distribution of surnames.
In 1881, Smith was ranked at roughly the 44th most frequent surname in Wales, being held by around 0.25% (0.21% circa 1840, Rowland’s) of the population, currently, Smith is 12th, representing 0.85% of the population. Contrast Smith with Jones, which was held by 10.8% in 1881, but now has a representation of 5.74%. Every surname that is English/peculiar to the English has increased, whilst every Welsh/peculiar to the Welsh surname has decreased in that time period. It seems absurd that whilst Legions of Welsh travelled the road to England to prosper, thousands of English relocated to Wales in search of work!

Based on my calculations, around 15-18% of the ancestry of today’s Welsh comes from England, with around 8-9% coming from Ireland.
I came across an article online 2 weeks back, where a genealogist suggested that around 25% of modern Welsh ancestry came from England, thanks to the late 1800s. Cannot find it currently, if anyone knows of it, please post the link.
Lastly, I would like to comment on the movements of the Welsh. Of the populations of the Isles, the Welsh were least likely to leave the Isles, instead, they were more likely to migrate to others parts of the Kingdom. By 1881, I estimate that the Welsh input of England accounted for 5.9% of the population. This should not come as a surprise, as the Welsh started to arrive in England in large numbers in the first half of the 19th Century. They were already settling the Counties that fell between Gloucestershire and Lancashire by the late 1700's. The top destination for the Welsh was England, followed by Austrailia. Compared to the rest of the Islander's, the Welsh settling of America and Canada was negligible.

[hereward]

Scotland presents a challenge when studying the distribution of its surnames. Demographic change in Scotland varies with each region, more so than the rest of the Isles, with events in History leading to differing migration patterns. Highland Scots were far more likely to migrate out of the Isles than their Lowland counterparts. If the highland Scots were to be considered their own entity, then they, proportionately, were more likely to immigrate out of the Isles than any other population.
The top destination of Highland Scots appears to be Canada, Australia and New Zealand; this can be evidenced by looking at the dispersal of Highland surnames.
The Lowland Scots seem to be more likely to leave for England, which is evidenced by the strong representation of surnames in England hailing from the lowlands.
Scotland saw inward migration from the rest of the Isles at this time, just like all of the Nations of the Isles. Though with Scotland, the largest input came from Ireland, mainly via historic Ulster and Northern Leinster, ironically the very places previously settled by thousands of Scots in the 1600s and 1700s. According to my surname calculations, around 20-22% of the ancestry of today’s Scottish population hails from Ireland, though you will find other studies etc quoting higher figures.
Immigration from England and Wales during this period was not as high; it mostly took place during the latter stages of the 1800’s up and till the commencing of the First World War. English immigration to Scotland mainly came from the Northern Counties, though individual professionals arrived from the other parts. Welsh surnames entered Scotland indirectly via England, from Lancashire, Yorkshire etc; most of its bearers would have been only partially Welsh as opposed to fully Welsh directly from Wales. In 1901, according to the Scottish G.R.O, the surname Jones was ranked the 269th most common surname in Scotland, with it bearer’s constituting 0.075% of the total population. Contrast this with the present, where Jones is ranked
79th, accounting for 0.17% of the population. I estimate that presently, English and Welsh ancestry, due to the 1800's and 1900's, amounts to around 6% and 1% respectively of the Scottish population.
By 1881, I estimate that the Scottish input of English ancestry amounted to 5.98%, with the vast majority of that input having hailed from the Borders, Lothian, and Dumfriesshire and up the East coast to Aberdeenshire. In 1881 most of the carriers of these surnames in England would have been Scottish born, as opposed to being partially Scottish but born in England.

[Wulfhere]

What's wrong with British Isles? I thought you were talking about the Hebrides or something. Surely, of all places, this forum should not fall prey to political correctness and trendy reinventions of our language.

[Jack B]

What's wrong with British Isles? I thought you were talking about the Hebrides or something. Surely, of all places, this forum should not fall prey to political correctness and trendy reinventions of our language.

I never used to realize people were actually referring to the whole island of Ireland when I heard this term, seems kinda out of date considering the majority of it is a Republic. I can see how it confuses foreigners that think Ireland as a whole is part of the UK. You don't hear it being used here that's for sure.

[Wulfhere]

I never used to realize people were actually referring to the whole island of Ireland when I heard this term, seems kinda out of date considering the majority of it is a Republic. I can see how it confuses foreigners that think Ireland as a whole is part of the UK. You don't hear it being used here that's for sure.

It pre-dates the British state by thousands of years, being used by the Ancient Greeks.

[Osweo]

I never used to realize people were actually referring to the whole island of Ireland when I heard this term, seems kinda out of date considering the majority of it is a Republic. I can see how it confuses foreigners that think Ireland as a whole is part of the UK. You don't hear it being used here that's for sure.
Is there another term for the archipelago as a whole? 'The Isles' is one I've seen from the Europhile (Pope-ophile too for what that's worth! :p) historian John Davies, but to me it's utterly absurd to try to promote such a contentless term, meaningless elsewhere in the world.

Republics, Kingdoms and what not are irrelevant, to the real need for a clear geographic term. And the archipelago IS a distinct entity of its own. And that goes for culture and ethnicity too. We aren't sealed from each other, just cos of political events a few generations ago. My own personal life sprawls across an Mean Muir, indeed.

***

Hereward, do you plan on going deeper? Might the 1841 results get examined, some time? 1881 is already rather 'after the event' in many ways viz. the Industrial Revolution. :thumbs up

[Jack B]

It pre-dates the British state by thousands of years, being used by the Ancient Greeks.

So way out of date then, should I also refer to Ireland as Hibernia? I was explaining why people would have reasons other than political correctness for not using a term that appears out of date in modern times, not a gripe with the actual name itself, I hear it all the time on the internet and I couldn't care less but I wouldn't refer to Ireland as part of the "British Isles" down my local pub, not for politically correct reasons but because I would look like a complete retard for more obvious social and cultural reasons.

[Treffie]

In 1881, Smith was ranked at roughly the 44th most frequent surname in Wales, being held by around 0.25% (0.21% circa 1840, Rowland’s) of the population, currently, Smith is 12th, representing 0.85% of the population. Contrast Smith with Jones, which was held by 10.8% in 1881, but now has a representation of 5.74%. Every surname that is English/peculiar to the English has increased, whilst every Welsh/peculiar to the Welsh surname has decreased in that time period. It seems absurd that whilst Legions of Welsh travelled the road to England to prosper, thousands of English relocated to Wales in search of work!

My father's side (Smith) came to Wales from England to find work, via Yorkshire, Gloucestershire before finally setting for the Rhondda valleys. Wales, like many parts of industrial England and Scotland was in the forefront of the Industrial Revolution.


Based on my calculations, around 15-18% of the ancestry of today’s Welsh comes from England, with around 8-9% coming from Ireland.
I came across an article online 2 weeks back, where a genealogist suggested that around 25% of modern Welsh ancestry came from England, thanks to the late 1800s. Cannot find it currently, if anyone knows of it, please post the link.
Lastly, I would like to comment on the movements of the Welsh. Of the populations of the Isles, the Welsh were least likely to leave the Isles, instead, they were more likely to migrate to others parts of the Kingdom. By 1881, I estimate that the Welsh input of England accounted for 5.9% of the population. This should not come as a surprise, as the Welsh started to arrive in England in large numbers in the first half of the 19th Century. They were already settling the Counties that fell between Gloucestershire and Lancashire by the late 1700's. The top destination for the Welsh was England, followed by Austrailia. Compared to the rest of the Islander's, the Welsh settling of America and Canada was negligible.

Perhaps this is what you're looking for? I posted this some time last week.
It states that approximately 3.8% of the population of the states had some sort of Welsh ancestry.

http://www.theapricity.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17473

[hereward]

Thanks Ken, though it is not what I am after. I was pretty sure it was linked to the BBC or the National statistics office, though I still can't find it. Within a month, with the way I look for things, I will stumble upon it again, unintentionally, at that point I will post it, hopefully.
For those of you put out by the use of the 'Isles', it is only used for geographic purposes, nothing more.

[hereward]

Ireland, like Scotland, has a lot of regional variation, also, like its Celtic brethren; it has a relatively low level of surname diversity (though none of the nations of the Isles come close to the Welsh). From my table you may notice that I have kept the 6 Counties separate, I have done this for clarity. If included, the surnames which are particular to Northern Ireland would appear higher in the top 100, though a lot of Irish surnames would have been displaced by English and Scottish (especially) surnames, thus portraying an imperfect picture of the make up of Ireland.
Contrary to popular belief, Ireland was the latecomer to immigration compared to its three neighbours. The potato famine would herald the start of a mass movement of people that continued well up unto the late 20th Century, with the number peaking, proportionately speaking, at various points from the 1870’s onwards up until the First World War. This can be noted via the relatively low frequency of Irish surnames present in the rest of the Isles in 1881. Post World War 2, Irish immigration to any part of the Isles was of a much higher incidence than any other intra migration involving the Nations of the Isles.
According to my research, Irish from Ulster, Leinster and eastern Munster were proportionately more likely to settle in the rest of the Isles than those from Connaught or western Munster, who in turn were more likely to set sail for North America. By 1881, my estimate for Irish ancestry in the Isles amounts to around 1% for Wales, no more than 3.2% for England and Scotland around 8%. The vast majority of people with Irish surnames, at this time in the British Isle, were Irish born and recent arrivals.
Migration to Ireland from the rest of the Isles occurred in the 19th Century, but at a very low rate, mostly consisting of individuals in hold of certain professions. The great inward Migration to Ireland took place in the 1600/1700’s; Scots settling Ulster and northern Leinster, with the English and to a lesser degree Welsh, settling Leinster and eastern Munster. I would like to point out that I am a result of English migration to Ireland from both the 1600/1700’s and the dawn of the 1900’s.
I cannot give an estimate for the percentage of English, Scottish and Welsh ancestry in Ireland based on my surname study. I will tender some estimates though based on MY reading of History; for Leinster and eastern Munster I would estimate English ancestry to account for 12-15%, for the whole of Ireland I would hazard no more than 6-8%. Scottish input I would place at 16%, though the overwhelming bulk of this percentage will be found in the nine counties of Ulster, I doubt whether the Scots percentage would constitute more than 2% for the rest of Ireland.

[Treffie]

I cannot give an estimate for the percentage of English, Scottish and Welsh ancestry in Ireland based on my surname study. I will tender some estimates though based on MY reading of History; for Leinster and eastern Munster I would estimate English ancestry to account for 12-15%, for the whole of Ireland I would hazard no more than 6-8%. Scottish input I would place at 16%, though the overwhelming bulk of this percentage will be found in the nine counties of Ulster, I doubt whether the Scots percentage would constitute more than 2% for the rest of Ireland.

Get yourself a 23andme DNA test - I was surprised how much Irish ancestry I've got after having the test. :)

[hereward]

Get yourself a 23andme DNA test - I was surprised how much Irish ancestry I've got after having the test. :)

No need, my Irish ancestry is only marginally shaded by my English ancestry:):mad:.
I am very suspect of certain commercial claims and attributes when it comes to current D.N.A tests, Niall of the Nine Hostages, 'I1a, ah, a Viking etc. The Welsh, for all intents and purposes, should be indistinguishable from the Irish, so long as a pedigree has been checked.

[hereward]

I included Cornwall partly because of surname variation and partly because I could. Cornwall was the only County in 1881( barring Westmoreland, who’s top 10 still represented the surname distribution of the other northern Counties) that did not have Smith present in its top ten, nor was the top 10 consistent with other South-western Counties; Taylor, White, Hill, Tucker and Baker were absent. In fact, the top 10 bares a closer resemblance to Wales; though I must point out, the Surnames they share are not the results from migration between the two. Fast forward to the present and the Cornish top 10 resembles the rest of the Counties of present day England. The usual suspects are now present; Smith, Jones, Brown and Taylor have moved in displacing James, Stephens and Pearce.
From my investigations, I can say that the Cornish favoured the destinations of Australia and New Zealand above anywhere else. This does not differ from the migration patterns of the rest of Southwest England when it comes to leaving the Isles.

[hereward]

As can be evidenced from surname distributions, England underwent huge demographic changes in the 1800/1900’s. Across the land, the population started to change, with people either migrating to the growing industrial centres or emigrating to the ‘promised lands’ beyond the sea. Also, depending on the period, vast numbers of Welsh, Scots and Irish would arrive in search of work, replacing the English numbers that ventured abroad; ultimately they would marry into the English population.
Based on calculations from my research, I have concluded that the total Welsh, Irish and Scottish input amounts to 35.87% of ‘modern’ English ancestry. The Welsh have contributed 11.97%, the Scots 13.6% and the Irish 10.3%. The Irish input, as mentioned, is the most recent, the Welsh input, in terms of proportions, was the earliest. I would also say that if Welsh migration in the 20th Century was sustained at near 19th Century levels, their percentage in England would be far in excess of Scotland.
I have thought about making an estimated circa 1700’s top 250 surname list for England but it could involve a lot of unwanted supposition. Also common names with common variants would have to be grouped together, like my top 100 Irish list. Before 1881 the spelling of a surname would vary, even on records for the same individual. A surname study for Clark and its variants, has shown that by the 1800’s the spelling Clerk had become rare, whilst in the in 1600/1700s it approached a ratio of 6/1 with Clark/e.

[hereward]

Hereward, do you plan on going deeper? Might the 1841 results get examined, some time? 1881 is already rather 'after the event' in many ways viz. the Industrial Revolution.

:eek:
Ah, the humour:thumbs up. An impossibility, I would have to spend the rest of my life examining the not wholly intact 1841 census. Who knows, some decent folk might process the 1841 census, allowing me to do the calculations. As I said, I might conjure up a list in regards to England in the 1700's.:thumb001:

[hereward]

Attached is a table that I have produced, showing the top 350 surnames present in England around the middle of the Eighteenth Century.
My previous resources, tables and the information garnered from them aided me in creating this current table. For further assistance and reference, I also consulted the IGI plus a number of books I have at my disposal.

Oxford History of England
- 'The Whig Supremacy 1714-1760' by Basil Williams
- 'The Reign of George III' by J. Steven Watson

The above gave assistance in regards to migration patterns and population densities.

‘A Dictionary of English Surnames' By Reaney & Wilson

5413

As mentioned earlier in this thread, due to the high incidence of spelling variation, surnames with spelling variants holding high frequencies have been combined. This can be noted when a surname appears with a V in the far left column

[Albion]

A few things I'll just add:


Many Lowland Scots surnames are also native to Northern England and so you cannot presume them to be Lowland Scots
Many surnames can have both Irish or English origins. My surname is English but can also be a rare anglicised Irish surname
You have to be carefully with surnames derived from many languages such as smith or green

[Logan]

I included Cornwall partly because of surname variation and partly because I could. Cornwall was the only County in 1881( barring Westmoreland, who’s top 10 still represented the surname distribution of the other northern Counties) that did not have Smith present in its top ten, nor was the top 10 consistent with other South-western Counties; Taylor, White, Hill, Tucker and Baker were absent. In fact, the top 10 bares a closer resemblance to Wales; though I must point out, the Surnames they share are not the results from migration between the two. Fast forward to the present and the Cornish top 10 resembles the rest of the Counties of present day England. The usual suspects are now present; Smith, Jones, Brown and Taylor have moved in displacing James, Stephens and Pearce.
From my investigations, I can say that the Cornish favoured the destinations of Australia and New Zealand above anywhere else. This does not differ from the migration patterns of the rest of Southwest England when it comes to leaving the Isles.

Perhaps so, but I would add mine, an English one, a pre-conquest East-Cornwall and Devonshire surname. Not in the top ten, but there.

[rhiannon]

Five of the eight or so family names I have in recent history are on that list:) (England)

[hereward]

A few things I'll just add:


Many Lowland Scots surnames are also native to Northern England and so you cannot presume them to be Lowland Scots
Many surnames can have both Irish or English origins. My surname is English but can also be a rare anglicised Irish surname
You have to be carefully with surnames derived from many languages such as smith or green


1. There is no presumption. Names like Wilson, Smith etc. are shared, I have not stated otherwise. There is a difference in frequency depending on the name in question.
2 & 3. Thankfully, since the 90's institutions such as Trinity College are showing via research of the records, that most English & Scottish surnames in Ireland are, surprise surprise, the result of the 1600s & 1700s. There are a few common English surnames that can be argued as having an indigenous majority, such as Clark/e, Butler etc. Then there are the Anglicisation’s, such as Buckley, Fenney, Harrington, Healy etc, that are not only more common amongst the Irish, but indeed are found in higher numbers.
I am careful with surnames, I have been doing this for over 12 years; by Green, you must be referring to Greene (Same BrownE). Seeing this surname is an English TOP 15, you can bet its position in Ireland just outside the top 100 is a result of English migration. Regardless, all frequencies for English, Scottish, Welsh surnames, where ever they are located at different points in History have been taken into account.
Please remember, whether, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, depending on the time frame, you can tell what name belongs to who, as all indigenous surnames have decreased, whilst the foreign ones have increased.


Perhaps so, but I would add mine, an English one, a pre-conquest East-Cornwall and Devonshire surname. Not in the top ten, but there.

Am not sure what your reply is in regards to; I do not make claims to anything like a Cornish ethnicity? In fact I should have made one for Herefordshire, as that County HAD a very unique top 50.
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I have noticed that both the Scotland & Wales 1880 tables are missing, I will upload them.

[hereward]

17655

17656

Contains both Present and 1880.