NameCensus.

UK surname

Bake

A surname derived from the occupation of a baker.

In the 1881 census there were 170 people recorded with the Bake surname, ranking it #14,265 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 175, ranked #21,383, down from #14,265 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Halifax, Manchester and St Mary Islington. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Wakefield, County Durham and Kirklees.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bake is 624 in 1861. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 2.9%.

1881 census count

170

Ranked #14,265

Modern count

175

2016, ranked #21,383

Peak year

1861

624 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bake had 170 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #14,265 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 175 in 2016, ranked #21,383.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 624 in 1861.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Young Families in Industrial Towns.

Bake surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bake surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bake 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 290 #7,844
1861 historical 624 #4,284
1881 historical 170 #14,265
1891 historical 406 #8,765
1901 historical 215 #14,478
1911 historical 253 #12,776
1997 modern 235 #15,895
1998 modern 245 #15,903
1999 modern 194 #18,579
2000 modern 175 #19,764
2001 modern 143 #22,133
2002 modern 148 #22,087
2003 modern 149 #21,766
2004 modern 157 #21,168
2005 modern 150 #21,786
2006 modern 146 #22,320
2007 modern 155 #21,726
2008 modern 157 #21,766
2009 modern 174 #20,782
2010 modern 177 #21,034
2011 modern 172 #21,248
2012 modern 161 #22,157
2013 modern 171 #21,654
2014 modern 172 #21,731
2015 modern 171 #21,729
2016 modern 175 #21,383

Geography

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Where Bakes are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Halifax, Manchester, St Mary Islington, Huddersfield and London parishes. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Wakefield, County Durham, Kirklees and Harrogate. 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 Halifax Yorkshire, West Riding
2 Manchester Lancashire
3 St Mary Islington London (North Districts)
4 Huddersfield Yorkshire, West Riding
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Wakefield 018 Wakefield
2 County Durham 051 County Durham
3 Kirklees 059 Kirklees
4 County Durham 059 County Durham
5 Harrogate 004 Harrogate

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bake

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bake

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Bake, 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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Young Families in Industrial Towns

Nationally, the Bake surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Young Families in Industrial Towns, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Bake household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These neighbourhoods house predominantly young, UK-born individuals identifying with a White ethnic group with dependent children. Long-term disability and unpaid care are prevalent, and religious affiliations are uncommon. Housing is terraced or semi-detached and social rented sector housing is the norm. Unemployment is above the Supergroup average, and employment is principally in elementary occupations, as process plant and machine operatives, or in caring and leisure services. Educational attainment is low. The group is scattered throughout former industrial towns in the Midlands and the South Wales Valleys.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Bake is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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

These predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Bake is most concentrated in decile 7 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

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

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bake 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 Bake 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 Bake, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Bake

The surname "BAKE" originated from the Old English word "bakere" or "bakestre", which referred to someone who baked bread or worked as a baker. This occupational surname first emerged in England during the medieval period, particularly in areas with thriving local baking industries.

One of the earliest known references to the surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which listed individuals by their occupations and surnames. The name "Nicholas le Bakere" appeared in records from Huntingdonshire, England, during this time.

In the Domesday Book, a great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, there are several mentions of individuals with variations of the name, such as "Edricus Pistor" (Edric the Baker) and "Robertus Pistor" (Robert the Baker).

The surname "BAKE" was initially concentrated in regions known for their bakeries and bread production, such as Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex in East Anglia. Over time, as people migrated, the name spread to other parts of England and eventually to other countries.

Notable individuals with the surname "BAKE" include Sir John Bake (1548-1629), an English politician and member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Another prominent figure was Robert Bake (1574-1657), an English clergyman and Anglican theologian who served as the Bishop of Norwich.

In Scotland, the name "BAKE" was sometimes spelled as "BAIK" or "BAIK". One example is Alexander Baik (1629-1705), a Scottish clergyman and academic who served as the Principal of King's College, Aberdeen.

In the United States, one of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname was Thomas Bake, who arrived in Virginia in 1635. Another notable American was Samuel Bake (1742-1808), a soldier and officer who fought in the American Revolutionary War.

Other historical figures with the surname "BAKE" include John Bake (1713-1780), an English poet and playwright, and William Bake (1824-1901), a British architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in London.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bake families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bake 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. Yorkshire leads with 93 Bakes recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.69x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 93 5.69x
Lancashire 18 0.92x
Middlesex 17 1.03x
Cheshire 12 3.30x
Gloucestershire 4 1.24x
Hampshire 4 1.18x
Cornwall 3 1.61x
Warwickshire 3 0.72x
Essex 2 0.61x
Kent 2 0.36x
Northamptonshire 2 1.29x
Somerset 2 0.75x
Staffordshire 2 0.36x
Glamorgan 1 0.35x
Norfolk 1 0.39x
Surrey 1 0.12x
Sussex 1 0.36x
West Lothian 1 4.03x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Leeds in Yorkshire leads with 16 Bakes recorded in 1881 and an index of 17.35x.

Place Total Index
Leeds 16 17.35x
Halifax 13 54.21x
Huddersfield 11 46.22x
Ripon 8 211.08x
Ackworth 7 555.56x
Birstwith 6 2142.86x
High Low Bishopside 6 413.79x
Sheffield 6 11.54x
Shoreditch London 6 8.40x
Wetherby 6 566.04x
Islington London 5 3.13x
Hulme 4 9.79x
Liscard 4 60.98x
Oxton 4 194.17x
Bootle Cum Linacre 3 19.32x
Brightside Bierlow 3 9.36x
Bristol St Paul In 3 34.84x
Bromley London 3 8.27x
Golborne 3 117.65x
Hartshill 3 967.74x
Lanteglos 3 348.84x
Lyndhurst 3 322.58x
Poulton Cum Seacombe 3 71.60x
Hoyland Nether 2 49.88x
Kirkdale 2 6.08x
Lewisham 2 6.67x
Passenham 2 312.50x
Stone 2 28.09x
Wakefield 2 15.95x
Wavertree 2 31.95x
Alverthorpe Cum Thornes 1 16.86x
Bilton Cum Harrogate 1 17.89x
Bishop Monkton 1 370.37x
Cardiff St Mary 1 6.33x
Ecclesall Bierlow 1 3.01x
Grassington 1 285.71x
Hackney London 1 1.08x
Heaton Norris 1 8.98x
Hunslet 1 3.93x
Kenninghall 1 142.86x
Kirkliston 1 68.97x
Lambeth 1 0.70x
Manchester 1 1.14x
Manningham 1 4.97x
North Meols 1 5.22x
Oldham 1 1.58x
Paulton 1 82.64x
Portsea 1 1.51x
Romford 1 19.46x
St Pancras London 1 0.75x
Stockport 1 5.34x
Subdeanery 1 47.39x
Tottenham 1 3.81x
Walcot 1 7.08x
West Ham 1 1.39x
Westbury On Severn East 1 13.68x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 10
William 10
Alfred 8
Joseph 5
Arthur 4
Henry 4
Charles 3
Harry 3
Samuel 3
James 2
Thomas 2
Walter 2
Abraham 1
Allen 1
Amos 1
Benjamin 1
Daniel 1
Edmund 1
Ernest 1
Francis 1
Frank 1
Fredk. 1
George 1
Gideon 1
Herbert 1
Hy. 1
Jesse 1
Joe 1
Mark 1
Nathan 1
Oliver 1
Peter 1
Richard 1
Robert 1
Robinson 1
Stanley 1
Stephen 1
Thos. 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Bake surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bake surname in 1881?

In 1881, 170 people were recorded with the Bake surname. That placed it at #14,265 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bake surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 175 in 2016. That gives Bake a modern rank of #21,383.

What does the Bake surname mean?

A surname derived from the occupation of a baker.

What does the Bake map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Bake 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.