NameCensus.

UK surname

Barrigan

An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic word "barraigín" meaning "little summit" or "hillock".

In the 1881 census there were 31 people recorded with the Barrigan surname, ranking it #29,218 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 127, ranked #26,566, up from #29,218 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to No data. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include County Durham, Knowsley and Halton.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Barrigan is 130 in 2015. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 309.7%.

1881 census count

31

Ranked #29,218

Modern count

127

2016, ranked #26,566

Peak year

2015

130 bearers

Map years

3

1998 to 2016

Key insights

  • Barrigan had 31 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #29,218 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 127 in 2016, ranked #26,566.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 58 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Young Families in Industrial Towns.

Barrigan surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Barrigan surname density by area, 2016 modern.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Barrigan 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 10 #31,497
1861 historical 13 #32,208
1881 historical 31 #29,218
1891 historical 58 #29,439
1901 historical 50 #28,590
1911 historical 41 #28,802
1997 modern 115 #24,834
1998 modern 117 #25,190
1999 modern 125 #24,366
2000 modern 119 #25,072
2001 modern 122 #24,366
2002 modern 123 #24,735
2003 modern 126 #24,146
2004 modern 118 #25,317
2005 modern 116 #25,564
2006 modern 116 #25,813
2007 modern 126 #24,860
2008 modern 127 #25,020
2009 modern 129 #25,314
2010 modern 129 #25,900
2011 modern 125 #26,220
2012 modern 120 #26,961
2013 modern 127 #26,452
2014 modern 129 #26,352
2015 modern 130 #26,093
2016 modern 127 #26,566

Geography

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Where Barrigans are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around No data. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to County Durham, Knowsley, Halton, Sunderland and Darlington. 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 No data No data

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 County Durham 031 County Durham
2 Knowsley 001 Knowsley
3 Halton 015 Halton
4 Sunderland 034 Sunderland
5 Darlington 014 Darlington

Forenames

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First names often paired with Barrigan

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Barrigan

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Barrigan, 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 Barrigan surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Young Families in Industrial Towns, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Barrigan 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

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Barrigan is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, 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 primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Barrigan is most concentrated in decile 10 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.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Barrigan 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 Barrigan 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 - Irish

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

Meaning and origin of Barrigan

The surname Barrigan originated in the British Isles, specifically in the regions of Scotland and Ireland, during the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Gaelic words "barr," meaning "top" or "summit," and "gan," meaning "small," which suggests that the name may have referred to a person living on or near a small hill or elevated area.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Barrigan can be traced back to Scottish and Irish parish records from the late 1500s and early 1600s. Some variations of the spelling include Barrigane, Barrighan, and Barrigaine. These spellings are thought to have evolved over time due to regional dialects and the inconsistent nature of record-keeping during that era.

One of the earliest documented individuals with the surname Barrigan was William Barrigane, born in 1612 in Inverness, Scotland. He was a farmer and landowner, and his name appears in local property records from the mid-17th century.

Another notable figure was Eamon Barrighan, an Irish soldier who fought in the Nine Years' War (1594-1603) against the English forces. He was born in County Cork, Ireland, around 1570 and is mentioned in several historical accounts of the conflict.

In the late 17th century, a family by the name of Barrigane settled in the town of Ballymena, County Antrim, Ireland. One member of this family, Robert Barrigane (1652-1721), was a prominent merchant and served as a local magistrate.

A more recent historical figure was Catherine Barrigan (1820-1892), a Scottish author and poet from Aberdeen. She published several collections of poetry and was known for her works celebrating the natural beauty of the Scottish Highlands.

Another individual of note was John Barrigan (1865-1942), an Irish-American politician who served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in the late 19th century. He was born in County Mayo, Ireland, and immigrated to the United States in the 1880s.

While the surname Barrigan is relatively uncommon, it has a rich history that spans several centuries and multiple regions within the British Isles. Its origins are rooted in the Gaelic languages and reflect the geographic features of the areas where it first emerged.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Barrigan families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Barrigan 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 23 Barrigans recorded in 1881 and an index of 6.41x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 23 6.41x
Middlesex 6 1.98x
Lanarkshire 2 2.05x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Bootle Cum Linacre in Lancashire leads with 8 Barrigans recorded in 1881 and an index of 280.70x.

Place Total Index
Bootle Cum Linacre 8 280.70x
Wavertree 8 695.65x
West Derby 4 38.10x
Hammersmith London 3 40.27x
Liverpool 3 13.77x
St George Martyr London 3 491.80x
Shettleston 2 227.27x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 5
Amelia 2
Joan 2
Margaret 1
Maria 1
Sarah 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 4
John 4
Thomas 3
Henry 1
Michael 1
Richard 1
Robert 1
Samuel 1

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 Barrigan households.

FAQ

Barrigan surname: questions and answers

How common was the Barrigan surname in 1881?

In 1881, 31 people were recorded with the Barrigan surname. That placed it at #29,218 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Barrigan surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 127 in 2016. That gives Barrigan a modern rank of #26,566.

What does the Barrigan surname mean?

An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic word "barraigín" meaning "little summit" or "hillock".

What does the Barrigan map show?

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