NameCensus.

UK surname

Adshead

In the 1881 census there were 1,301 people recorded with the Adshead surname, ranking it #3,147 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 1,351, ranked #4,463, down from #3,147 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Stockport, London parishes and Wilmslow. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Tameside and Stockport.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Adshead is 1,720 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 3.8%.

1881 census count

1,301

Ranked #3,147

Modern count

1,351

2016, ranked #4,463

Peak year

1911

1,720 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Adshead had 1,301 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #3,147 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 1,351 in 2016, ranked #4,463.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 1,720 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Adshead surname distribution map

The map shows where the Adshead surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Adshead surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Adshead over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 785 #3,397
1861 historical 873 #3,182
1881 historical 1,301 #3,147
1891 historical 1,475 #2,984
1901 historical 1,588 #3,252
1911 historical 1,720 #2,848
1997 modern 1,458 #4,002
1998 modern 1,512 #4,017
1999 modern 1,484 #4,123
2000 modern 1,492 #4,083
2001 modern 1,451 #4,101
2002 modern 1,455 #4,169
2003 modern 1,418 #4,175
2004 modern 1,421 #4,172
2005 modern 1,413 #4,162
2006 modern 1,397 #4,198
2007 modern 1,384 #4,265
2008 modern 1,406 #4,246
2009 modern 1,440 #4,242
2010 modern 1,455 #4,286
2011 modern 1,427 #4,303
2012 modern 1,373 #4,372
2013 modern 1,377 #4,432
2014 modern 1,399 #4,400
2015 modern 1,375 #4,413
2016 modern 1,351 #4,463

Geography

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Where Adsheads are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Stockport, London parishes, Wilmslow, Manchester and Cheadle. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Tameside and Stockport. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Stockport Cheshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Wilmslow Cheshire
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Cheadle Cheshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Tameside 017 Tameside
2 Stockport 005 Stockport
3 Stockport 010 Stockport
4 Stockport 009 Stockport
5 Tameside 020 Tameside

Forenames

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First names often paired with Adshead

These lists show first names that appear often with the Adshead surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Adshead

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Adshead, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Baseline UK

Group

Challenged Communities

Nationally, the Adshead surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Adshead household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Residents of these neighbourhoods typically live in households with dependent children, and there are fewer-than-average residents of normal retirement age or over. Identification with ethnic minorities, particularly Black, or Mixed or Multiple ethnicities is common. The rate of Christian religious affiliation is low. Housing predominantly consists of semi-detached houses, along with a significant number of terraced properties and flats. Overcrowded social housing is common, and private renting occurs at average UK levels. Those in employment work mainly in caring leisure and other services; process, plant and machine operation; or elementary occupations. Unemployment is high, and few individuals have degree level qualifications. Many of these neighbourhoods occur in commuter towns or less accessible areas of larger towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

London Fringe

Within London, Adshead is most associated with areas classed as London Fringe, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Predominantly located in neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Greater London, residents of these neighbourhoods typically have their highest qualifications below degree (Level 4) level, with those still in work engaged in skilled trades and occupations in distribution, hotels and restaurants. There is low ethnic diversity in these neighbourhoods and high levels of Christian religious affiliation. Detached or terraced houses predominate, often with spare rooms.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Adshead is most concentrated in decile 9 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

9
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Adshead falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Adshead is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Adshead, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

1881 census detail

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Adshead families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Adshead surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Cheshire leads with 536 Adsheads recorded in 1881 and an index of 19.10x.

County Total Index
Cheshire 536 19.10x
Lancashire 417 2.76x
Yorkshire 74 0.59x
Staffordshire 72 1.68x
Derbyshire 38 1.91x
Middlesex 37 0.29x
Surrey 37 0.60x
Worcestershire 16 0.96x
Warwickshire 13 0.41x
Hampshire 11 0.42x
Lanarkshire 10 0.24x
Durham 8 0.21x
Gloucestershire 8 0.32x
Kent 6 0.14x
Northumberland 6 0.32x
Renfrewshire 6 0.61x
Sussex 5 0.23x
Leicestershire 2 0.14x
Oxfordshire 1 0.13x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Manchester in Lancashire leads with 59 Adsheads recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.70x.

Place Total Index
Manchester 59 8.70x
Pownall Fee 55 438.25x
Bosden 48 557.49x
Stockport Etchells 48 802.68x
Bredbury 47 289.41x
Stockport 42 29.09x
Norbury 40 611.62x
Hulme 34 10.80x
Cheadle 32 59.71x
Walsall Foreign 31 13.99x
Dukinfield 28 21.60x
Salford 26 5.86x
Ashton Under Lyne 25 7.58x
Hyde 23 27.78x
Spotland 22 13.12x
Clapham 20 12.59x
Macclesfield 20 16.04x
Bramhall 19 163.51x
Burslem 19 15.46x
Heaton Norris 19 22.13x
Northen Etchells 18 547.11x
Chorlton On Medlock 17 7.10x
Dudley 16 7.93x
Mile End Old Town London 16 5.91x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 15 12.78x
Altrincham 14 28.55x
Ardwick 14 10.29x
Failsworth 12 34.77x
Fulshaw 12 232.56x
Gorton 12 8.46x
Blackburn 11 2.74x
Castleton 11 7.30x
Glossop Dale 11 11.80x
Tutbury 11 105.16x
Disley Stanley 10 69.25x
Haughton 10 45.45x
Holbeck 10 11.98x
Marple 10 51.92x
Newington 10 2.13x
Portsea 10 1.96x
Stanley Cum Wrenthorpe 10 17.09x
Droylsden 9 18.29x
Fairfield 9 67.62x
Liverpool 9 0.98x
Wavertree 9 18.64x
Birmingham 8 0.75x
Bollin Fee 8 64.31x
Chorlton Cum Hardy 8 80.00x
Govan 8 0.79x
Upton In Chester 8 254.78x
Worsley 8 8.60x
Wotton St Mary 8 61.87x
Ashton On Mersey 7 48.24x
Aspull 7 19.73x
Bishopwearmouth 7 2.16x
Brinnington 7 26.71x
Cheetham 7 6.22x
Denton 7 20.95x
Ludworth 7 74.71x
Mexborough 7 28.00x
Newton In Makerfield 7 15.16x
Urmston 7 71.50x
Withington 7 14.41x
Broughton In Salford 6 4.35x
Chorley 6 7.09x
Eastwood 6 9.89x
Eccleston In Prescot 6 7.92x
Flixton 6 77.62x
Pendleton In Salford 6 3.34x
Siddington 6 338.98x
Walsall Borough 6 18.01x
Aston 5 0.57x
Brighton 5 1.16x
Brightside Bierlow 5 2.02x
Darton 5 38.76x
Horton In Bradford 5 2.54x
Leeds 5 0.70x
Mile End New Town London 5 19.91x
Whitechapel London 5 3.99x
Deptford St Paul 4 1.20x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Adshead surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 116
Sarah 57
Elizabeth 55
Hannah 30
Ann 29
Alice 23
Emma 20
Annie 17
Martha 17
Margaret 16
Jane 14
Eliza 13
Ellen 13
Edith 11
Harriet 11
Emily 10
Charlotte 9
Ada 8
Florence 6
Louisa 6
Maria 6
Agnes 5
Clara 5
Esther 5
Fanny 5
Matilda 5
Nancy 5
Catherine 4
Elizth. 4
Julia 4
Kate 4
Margt. 4
Susan 4
Susannah 4
Amy 3
Anne 3
Harriett 3
Isabella 3
Minnie 3
Rebecca 3
Rose 3
Bertha 2
Betty 2
Caroline 2
Eleanor 2
Ethel 2
Gertrude 2
Laura 2
Lizzie 2
Ruth 2

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Adshead surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

FAQ

Adshead surname: questions and answers

How common was the Adshead surname in 1881?

In 1881, 1,301 people were recorded with the Adshead surname. That placed it at #3,147 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Adshead surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 1,351 in 2016. That gives Adshead a modern rank of #4,463.

What does the Adshead map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Adshead bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.