NameCensus.

UK surname

Barnes

An occupational surname referring to someone who worked in or owned a barn.

In the 1881 census there were 36,002 people recorded with the Barnes surname, ranking it #87 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 48,703, ranked #101, down from #87 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Rochdale, Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Rossendale, Fenland and Norwich.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Barnes is 50,506 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 35.3%.

1881 census count

36,002

Ranked #87

Modern count

48,703

2016, ranked #101

Peak year

1999

50,506 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Barnes had 36,002 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #87 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 48,703 in 2016, ranked #101.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 49,357 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Barnes surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Barnes surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Barnes 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 20,207 #104
1861 historical 20,642 #102
1881 historical 36,002 #87
1891 historical 37,345 #91
1901 historical 44,629 #88
1911 historical 49,357 #74
1997 modern 48,534 #92
1998 modern 50,268 #93
1999 modern 50,506 #92
2000 modern 50,061 #92
2001 modern 48,734 #93
2002 modern 49,737 #94
2003 modern 48,601 #93
2004 modern 48,520 #94
2005 modern 47,452 #98
2006 modern 47,438 #99
2007 modern 47,713 #99
2008 modern 47,977 #99
2009 modern 49,033 #99
2010 modern 50,255 #98
2011 modern 49,357 #100
2012 modern 48,255 #100
2013 modern 49,338 #100
2014 modern 49,625 #100
2015 modern 49,035 #100
2016 modern 48,703 #101

Geography

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Where Barnes' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Rochdale, Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and Manchester. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Rossendale, Fenland, Norwich and Hyndburn. 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 Rochdale Lancashire
2 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
3 London parishes London 1
4 London parishes London 3
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Rossendale 002 Rossendale
2 Fenland 006 Fenland
3 Norwich 002 Norwich
4 Rossendale 004 Rossendale
5 Hyndburn 004 Hyndburn

Forenames

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First names often paired with Barnes

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Barnes

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

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Barnes surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Barnes household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Barnes is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Barnes 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

Barnes falls in decile 6 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

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

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Barnes is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

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

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Barnes

The surname Barnes originates from the English language and is believed to have first appeared in the 11th century. It is derived from the Old English word "bearn", meaning a child or young man, and the word "hus", meaning a house or homestead. The name was likely given to someone who lived or worked in a barn or outbuilding.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Barn". This record suggests that the name was already in use during the Norman Conquest of England in the 11th century.

In the 12th century, the name was also recorded as "Barne" and "Barns" in various English historical documents. Some of the earliest examples include William Barne, who was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1195, and Robert de Barns, who was recorded in the Curia Regis Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1204.

The name Barnes is also associated with several place names in England, such as Barnes in London, which was originally recorded as "Barne" in the Domesday Book, and Barnes in Sunderland, which was known as "Barn" in ancient records.

One famous individual with the surname Barnes was Juliana Barnes, an English writer and herbalist who lived in the 16th century. She is known for her work "The Herbal or General Historie of Plantes", published in 1598.

Another notable figure was Thomas Barnes, a Puritan minister and author who lived from 1594 to 1667. He was a significant figure in the English Reformation and wrote several influential works on theology and church governance.

In the 18th century, John Barnes, an English naval officer and explorer, was born in 1752. He is best known for his voyages to the Pacific Northwest of North America and his exploration of the regions that are now part of British Columbia and Alaska.

Joshua Barnes, born in 1654 and died in 1712, was an English scholar and writer. He made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek and Latin literature and authored several works on classical texts.

Finally, Susan Barnes, born in 1817 and died in 1910, was an English philanthropist and social reformer. She was instrumental in establishing several charitable organizations and advocating for the rights of women and children in Victorian England.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Barnes families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Barnes 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. Lancashire leads with 6,968 Barnes' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.67x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 6,968 1.67x
Middlesex 4,063 1.16x
Surrey 2,317 1.35x
Yorkshire 2,287 0.66x
Hampshire 1,636 2.27x
Kent 1,595 1.33x
Norfolk 1,186 2.19x
Sussex 912 1.54x
Gloucestershire 872 1.26x
Staffordshire 868 0.73x
Wiltshire 805 2.59x
Essex 778 1.12x
Cheshire 761 0.98x
Warwickshire 744 0.84x
Cumberland 718 2.37x
Dorset 680 2.95x
Nottinghamshire 640 1.35x
Lincolnshire 592 1.05x
Somerset 592 1.05x
Derbyshire 532 0.97x
Durham 518 0.50x
Cambridgeshire 426 1.91x
Suffolk 420 0.98x
Hertfordshire 416 1.72x
Worcestershire 410 0.89x
Northamptonshire 407 1.23x
Buckinghamshire 374 1.76x
Devon 370 0.51x
Berkshire 357 1.35x
Leicestershire 329 0.84x
Northumberland 305 0.58x
Oxfordshire 288 1.33x
Cornwall 237 0.60x
Bedfordshire 230 1.26x
Lanarkshire 136 0.12x
Glamorgan 134 0.22x
Monmouthshire 133 0.52x
Westmorland 117 1.51x
Herefordshire 113 0.78x
Huntingdonshire 101 1.45x
Ayrshire 89 0.34x
Shropshire 88 0.29x
Midlothian 61 0.13x
Channel Islands 56 0.54x
Denbighshire 47 0.35x
Renfrewshire 42 0.15x
Fife 34 0.16x
Royal Navy 34 0.81x
Pembrokeshire 28 0.25x
Roxburghshire 22 0.35x
Brecknockshire 18 0.26x
Montgomeryshire 18 0.22x
Flintshire 17 0.18x
Angus 16 0.05x
Rutland 16 0.62x
Carmarthenshire 14 0.09x
Stirlingshire 13 0.10x
Argyllshire 10 0.10x
Perthshire 10 0.06x
Dunbartonshire 8 0.08x
Dumfriesshire 7 0.09x
Isle of Man 6 0.09x
West Lothian 6 0.11x
East Lothian 4 0.09x
Sutherland 4 0.15x
Aberdeenshire 2 0.01x
Anglesey 2 0.03x
Selkirkshire 2 0.06x
Berwickshire 1 0.02x
Buteshire 1 0.05x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.01x
Cardiganshire 1 0.01x
Kincardineshire 1 0.02x
Kirkcudbrightshire 1 0.02x
Radnorshire 1 0.04x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Haslingden in Lancashire leads with 594 Barnes' recorded in 1881 and an index of 34.38x.

Place Total Index
Haslingden 594 34.38x
Accrington 461 12.15x
Islington London 426 1.25x
Lambeth 386 1.26x
Camberwell 344 1.53x
St Pancras London 328 1.16x
Manchester 287 1.53x
Blackburn 274 2.47x
Birmingham 257 0.87x
Preston 239 2.14x
Kensington London 235 1.20x
Battersea 231 1.79x
Portsea 218 1.54x
Shoreditch London 184 1.21x
Hackney London 182 0.92x
Newington 182 1.40x
Liverpool 181 0.71x
Aston 180 0.74x
Newchurch 173 5.07x
Paddington London 172 1.33x
Bethnal Green London 171 1.12x
St Marylebone London 170 0.91x
Deptford St Paul 164 1.77x
West Ham 163 1.06x
Chelsea London 162 1.53x
Great Bolton 160 2.89x
Nottingham St Mary 159 1.30x
Brighton 155 1.30x
Oldham 144 1.07x
Mile End Old Town London 143 1.91x
Southampton St Mary 143 3.16x
Toxteth Park 141 1.00x
Sheffield 139 1.25x
Christchurch 130 8.32x
Hammersmith London 128 1.48x
Salford 128 1.04x
Wigan 128 2.20x
St George Hanover Square 125 2.02x
Everton 124 0.93x
Bury 123 2.58x
Chesham 121 15.44x
Croydon 121 1.27x
Leeds 119 0.60x
Hampstead London 117 2.14x
Bermondsey 112 1.07x
West Derby 109 0.89x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 107 1.65x
Lower Booths 106 14.18x
Little Bolton 104 1.94x
Worsley 103 4.00x
Southwark St George Martyr 102 1.44x
Bishopwearmouth 100 1.11x
Stoke Upon Trent 94 0.75x
Ashton Under Lyne 90 0.99x
Nether Hallam 90 1.91x
Atherton 85 5.60x
Frome 81 5.98x
Leicester St Margaret 80 0.84x
West Bromwich 79 1.16x
Hulme 78 0.90x
Poplar London 78 1.18x
Greenwich 76 1.36x
Lewisham 75 1.17x
Pendleton In Salford 74 1.49x
Spotland 74 1.60x
Broughton In Salford 72 1.89x
Burnley 72 2.05x
Great Yarmouth 72 1.61x
Tottington Lower End 72 3.63x
Kirkdale 71 1.01x
Millbrook 71 3.91x
Little Hulton 70 10.13x
Chorlton On Medlock 68 1.03x
Heigham 68 2.34x
Tottenham 68 1.21x
Macclesfield 67 1.94x
Clerkenwell London 66 0.80x
Poole St James 66 7.61x
Caldewgate 65 3.92x
Bromley London 64 0.83x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 2,358
Elizabeth 1,362
Sarah 1,295
Jane 714
Alice 682
Ann 682
Ellen 574
Emma 522
Eliza 514
Annie 502
Emily 399
Margaret 376
Hannah 326
Martha 316
Louisa 282
Harriet 240
Ada 229
Maria 226
Florence 220
Edith 216
Charlotte 212
Fanny 212
Caroline 191
Kate 168
Clara 162
Susan 158
Frances 150
Catherine 141
Lucy 129
Agnes 128
Amelia 121
Isabella 120
Anne 119
Harriett 114
Esther 98
Susannah 87
Matilda 81
Julia 80
Rose 80
Sophia 80
Rebecca 77
Betsy 73
Elizth. 73
Minnie 69
Gertrude 66
Ethel 65
Amy 63
Eleanor 62
Ruth 62
Jessie 57

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 2,181
John 2,121
George 1,279
James 1,203
Thomas 1,187
Henry 783
Charles 700
Joseph 611
Robert 443
Edward 436
Alfred 412
Richard 360
Arthur 342
Frederick 325
Samuel 308
Walter 289
Albert 255
Harry 209
Herbert 144
Frank 143
Edwin 126
Ernest 126
David 106
Francis 102
Wm. 101
Benjamin 100
Fred 87
Thos. 73
Isaac 72
Daniel 61
Peter 47
Stephen 46
Fredk. 42
Fredrick 41
Tom 41
Geo. 40
Matthew 40
Percy 40
Edmund 38
Mark 34
Sidney 33
Ralph 31
Jonathan 30
Chas. 29
Edgar 29
Alexander 28
Leonard 27
Jesse 25
Philip 24
Sydney 24

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Barnes households.

FAQ

Barnes surname: questions and answers

How common was the Barnes surname in 1881?

In 1881, 36,002 people were recorded with the Barnes surname. That placed it at #87 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Barnes surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 48,703 in 2016. That gives Barnes a modern rank of #101.

What does the Barnes surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to someone who worked in or owned a barn.

What does the Barnes map show?

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