NameCensus.

UK surname

Bandy

Derived from the Middle English word "bandi," referring to someone who was cheerful, lively, or merry.

In the 1881 census there were 425 people recorded with the Bandy surname, ranking it #7,634 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 459, ranked #10,668, down from #7,634 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Padbury, Flamstead and Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Aylesbury Vale, Bedford and Daventry.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bandy is 617 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 8.0%.

1881 census count

425

Ranked #7,634

Modern count

459

2016, ranked #10,668

Peak year

1911

617 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bandy had 425 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #7,634 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 459 in 2016, ranked #10,668.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 617 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Bandy surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bandy surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

Back to top

Bandy 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 209 #10,066
1861 historical 223 #10,942
1881 historical 425 #7,634
1891 historical 500 #7,430
1901 historical 500 #8,060
1911 historical 617 #6,692
1997 modern 474 #9,693
1998 modern 479 #9,928
1999 modern 479 #9,987
2000 modern 474 #10,029
2001 modern 452 #10,192
2002 modern 468 #10,117
2003 modern 449 #10,313
2004 modern 440 #10,494
2005 modern 423 #10,713
2006 modern 424 #10,748
2007 modern 425 #10,837
2008 modern 434 #10,756
2009 modern 448 #10,719
2010 modern 452 #10,880
2011 modern 448 #10,829
2012 modern 464 #10,439
2013 modern 464 #10,589
2014 modern 471 #10,541
2015 modern 458 #10,678
2016 modern 459 #10,668

Geography

Back to top

Where Bandys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Padbury, Flamstead, Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory, Turweston and Dunstable. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Aylesbury Vale, Bedford, Daventry, Central Bedfordshire and East Northamptonshire. 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 Padbury Buckinghamshire
2 Flamstead Hertfordshire
3 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire
4 Turweston Northamptonshire
5 Dunstable Bedfordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Aylesbury Vale 007 Aylesbury Vale
2 Bedford 008 Bedford
3 Daventry 005 Daventry
4 Central Bedfordshire 022 Central Bedfordshire
5 East Northamptonshire 008 East Northamptonshire

Forenames

Back to top

First names often paired with Bandy

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

Modern profile

Back to top

Neighbourhood profile for Bandy

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Bandy, 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 Bandy surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Bandy 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Bandy 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

Bandy is most concentrated in decile 5 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.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bandy falls in decile 10 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

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

10
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Bandy is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

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

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Bandy

The surname Bandy is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "banda," meaning a band or bond, which may have initially referred to someone who performed work related to binding or tying objects together.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bandy can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Bandi" in the county of Hertfordshire. This suggests that the name was already established in parts of England by the 11th century.

Another early reference to the name Bandy appears in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1190, where it is spelled "Bande." This record indicates that individuals with this surname were present in the west of England during the 12th century.

In the 13th century, the surname Bandy emerged in various spellings, such as "Bandi," "Bandy," and "Bandye." These variations likely reflected regional differences in pronunciation and spelling conventions of the time.

One notable individual with the surname Bandy was John Bandy, a member of the Guild of Weavers in York, who was mentioned in the guild records in 1389. This suggests that the Bandy family may have been involved in the textile trade during the late medieval period.

Another early bearer of the name was William Bandy, who was recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327. This indicates the presence of the Bandy family in the West Midlands region of England during the 14th century.

In the 16th century, the surname Bandy was found in various parts of England, including the counties of Cheshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset. One notable individual from this period was Thomas Bandy, who was born in Cheshire around 1520 and served as a justice of the peace during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

During the 17th century, the surname Bandy continued to be documented across England. One notable figure was Richard Bandy, a member of the Parliamentarian forces during the English Civil War, who fought in the Battle of Naseby in 1645.

In the 18th century, the Bandy family was well-established in various regions of England, with individuals bearing the surname appearing in records from counties such as Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, and Yorkshire. One notable individual from this period was John Bandy, a farmer from Oxfordshire who was born in 1712.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

Back to top

Bandy families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bandy 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. Buckinghamshire leads with 112 Bandys recorded in 1881 and an index of 46.55x.

County Total Index
Buckinghamshire 112 46.55x
Bedfordshire 105 50.95x
Middlesex 49 1.23x
Hertfordshire 36 13.12x
Northamptonshire 24 6.41x
Denbighshire 9 5.99x
Lancashire 9 0.19x
Dorset 8 3.06x
Surrey 8 0.41x
Wiltshire 8 2.27x
Gloucestershire 6 0.77x
Warwickshire 6 0.60x
Essex 5 0.64x
Leicestershire 5 1.13x
Sussex 5 0.75x
Derbyshire 4 0.64x
Oxfordshire 4 1.63x
Somerset 2 0.31x
Cambridgeshire 1 0.40x
Channel Islands 1 0.85x
Monmouthshire 1 0.35x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Wing in Buckinghamshire leads with 49 Bandys recorded in 1881 and an index of 2197.31x.

Place Total Index
Wing 49 2197.31x
Dunstable 27 426.54x
Flamstead 20 790.51x
Mile End Old Town London 19 22.43x
Padbury 17 2361.11x
Bedford St Mary 16 301.32x
Turweston 13 3095.24x
Rushden 11 219.56x
Stotfold 11 278.48x
Kensington London 10 4.52x
Buckingham 9 184.05x
Culcheth 9 291.26x
St Asaph 9 588.24x
Aylesbury 8 75.05x
Bedford St Paul 8 56.62x
Melcombe Regis 8 73.94x
Milton Bryant 8 2666.67x
Pewsey 8 308.88x
Luton 7 19.62x
Lambeth 6 1.73x
Leighton Buzzard 6 67.72x
Northampton St Giles 6 42.08x
Rugby 6 44.18x
Steeple Claydon 6 517.24x
Willersey 6 1111.11x
Mayfield 5 125.94x
Sileby 5 179.86x
Arlesey 4 153.85x
Aspley Guise 4 203.05x
Danbury 4 300.75x
Derby St Peter 4 20.15x
Elstow 4 526.32x
Fenny Stratford 4 175.44x
Hackney London 4 1.79x
St Albans St Peter 4 43.20x
Wavendon 4 300.75x
Goldington 3 379.75x
Hemel Hempstead 3 24.27x
Studham 3 265.49x
Tottenham 3 4.73x
Aldenham 2 80.00x
Ashford 2 63.69x
Bicester Market End 2 44.35x
Brackley St Peter 2 77.82x
Hampstead London 2 3.23x
Harpenden 2 47.85x
Houghton Regis 2 60.79x
Milton 2 202.02x
St Albans 2 35.59x
St Pancras London 2 0.62x
Westminster St John 2 4.13x
Alvescot 1 204.08x
Bedford St Peter 1 18.69x
Boughton 1 227.27x
Bovingdon 1 69.44x
Brackley St James 1 116.28x
Brampton Ash 1 625.00x
Bridgewater 1 5.75x
Camberwell 1 0.39x
Great Gaddesden 1 78.13x
Hendon 1 6.98x
Hitchin 1 8.08x
Islington London 1 0.26x
Kempston 1 21.37x
Lyncombe Widcombe 1 5.96x
Newington 1 0.68x
Norwood 1 10.99x
Paddington London 1 0.68x
Simpson 1 99.01x
St Andrewthe Less 1 3.47x
St George Hanover Square 1 1.43x
St Helier 1 2.60x
Usk 1 42.02x
West Ham 1 0.58x
Wolverton 1 20.08x
Wootton 1 68.03x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 29
Sarah 22
Elizabeth 14
Ann 11
Ellen 8
Hannah 8
Annie 7
Eliza 7
Alice 6
Jane 6
Emma 5
Ada 4
Catherine 4
Edith 4
Emily 4
Harriett 4
Louisa 4
Kate 3
Maria 3
Amelia 2
Betsy 2
Charlotte 2
Fanny 2
Florence 2
Julia 2
Leah 2
Lucy 2
Martha 2
Rebecca 2
Ruth 2
Susan 2
Clara 1
Clementia 1
Dora 1
Elizh. 1
Elizth. 1
Esther 1
Florance 1
Gertrude 1
Leonora 1
Lilla 1
Lilley 1
Liza 1
Lizzie 1
Mareta 1
Maryann 1
Mathilda 1
Minnie 1
Nellie 1
Zi 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 34
George 25
Thomas 14
Joseph 13
James 12
Harry 9
Henry 9
John 8
David 6
Frederick 6
Samuel 6
Arthur 5
Alfred 4
Charles 4
Albert 2
Daniel 2
Edmund 2
Frank 2
Fredk. 2
Herbert 2
Percy 2
Zebedee 2
Allen 1
Arther 1
Clement 1
Dan 1
Dennis 1
Dick 1
Earnest 1
Edgar 1
Edward 1
Edwin 1
Elie 1
Elisha 1
Ephraim 1
Ernest 1
Fredk.Ernest 1
Habbdon 1
Harold 1
Jas. 1
Jonah 1
Josiah 1
Levi 1
Peter 1
Prince 1
Sidney 1
Sydney 1
Wallis 1
Walter 1
Zina 1

FAQ

Bandy surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bandy surname in 1881?

In 1881, 425 people were recorded with the Bandy surname. That placed it at #7,634 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bandy surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 459 in 2016. That gives Bandy a modern rank of #10,668.

What does the Bandy surname mean?

Derived from the Middle English word "bandi," referring to someone who was cheerful, lively, or merry.

What does the Bandy map show?

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