1881 Census » Yorkshire
Top surnames in Yorkshire from the 1881 British Census
This shows two lists of the most common surnames in Yorkshire, the first sorted by total occurrences and the
second sorted by population index.
At the bottom of the page is a list of all the villages/parishes in Yorkshire, with the most common surnames by total and index.
Top surnames by total occurrences
| Surname | Total | Frequency | Index |
|---|---|---|---|
| SMITH | 46472 | 1.6052 | 1.1369 |
| TAYLOR | 22512 | 0.7776 | 1.2160 |
| WILSON | 22139 | 0.7647 | 1.6650 |
| ROBINSON | 20011 | 0.6912 | 2.1678 |
| WALKER | 19849 | 0.6856 | 2.0481 |
| WOOD | 19144 | 0.6613 | 2.0753 |
| BROWN | 17221 | 0.5948 | 0.9024 |
| JACKSON | 16138 | 0.5574 | 1.9946 |
| THOMPSON | 15828 | 0.5467 | 1.8250 |
| HARRISON | 13770 | 0.4756 | 2.1427 |
Top surnames by population index
| Surname | Total | Frequency | Index |
|---|---|---|---|
| ATHA | 257 | 0.0089 | 10.3452 |
| FLATHERS | 99 | 0.0034 | 10.2414 |
| CLAYBOURN | 58 | 0.0020 | 10.1697 |
| CAPPLEMAN | 105 | 0.0036 | 10.1537 |
| RATHMELL | 165 | 0.0057 | 10.0999 |
| ACEY | 87 | 0.0030 | 10.0005 |
| EDLEY | 90 | 0.0031 | 9.9068 |
| MUFF | 335 | 0.0116 | 9.8456 |
| SORSBY | 134 | 0.0046 | 9.7629 |
| INESON | 519 | 0.0179 | 9.6736 |
Towns/Villages in Yorkshire
- The Total column shows the total number of people in that county or town with this surname. For example, there were people called in at the time of the 1881 census.
- The Frequency column shows the percentage of people in this county or town with this surname. For example, a frequency of in means that % of the people in on census day were called .
- The Index column shows the relative probability of finding someone called in this county or town, compared with the probability of finding them anywhere in Britain as a whole. An index of 1 means that if you pick someone at random from this county or town, you have exactly the same probability of picking someone called a if you picked at random from the whole of the UK. If the index is higher than 1, then you are more likely to find someoen called here than if you picked from the UK as a whole, and if it's lower then you are less likely. The actual figure shows the level of probability - for example, a figure of 2 would indicate that you are twice as likely to find someone called here than in the UK as a whole, and 10 would make it ten times as likely. The value of in means that you are times as likely to find someone with the surname of in than you would be in the whole of the UK.
