NameCensus.

UK surname

Bate

An English occupational surname referring to a coppersmith or metalworker, derived from the Middle English word "bate."

In the 1881 census there were 5,082 people recorded with the Bate surname, ranking it #877 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 5,810, ranked #1,154, down from #877 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Wolverhampton, Sedgley and Halesowen (all except Hunnington, Romsley; partly in Halesowen, Worcestershire). In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Warrington, Cornwall and Dudley.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bate is 7,062 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 14.3%.

1881 census count

5,082

Ranked #877

Modern count

5,810

2016, ranked #1,154

Peak year

1911

7,062 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bate had 5,082 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #877 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 5,810 in 2016, ranked #1,154.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 7,062 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Young Families in Industrial Towns.

Bate surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bate surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bate 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 3,950 #724
1861 historical 3,798 #740
1881 historical 5,082 #877
1891 historical 5,420 #866
1901 historical 6,240 #887
1911 historical 7,062 #733
1997 modern 6,047 #1,085
1998 modern 6,303 #1,081
1999 modern 6,349 #1,079
2000 modern 6,177 #1,101
2001 modern 6,097 #1,091
2002 modern 6,245 #1,092
2003 modern 6,066 #1,095
2004 modern 6,014 #1,103
2005 modern 5,846 #1,122
2006 modern 5,883 #1,108
2007 modern 5,926 #1,110
2008 modern 5,914 #1,123
2009 modern 6,010 #1,128
2010 modern 6,045 #1,144
2011 modern 5,969 #1,140
2012 modern 5,780 #1,153
2013 modern 5,868 #1,155
2014 modern 5,903 #1,155
2015 modern 5,828 #1,155
2016 modern 5,810 #1,154

Geography

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Where Bates are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Wolverhampton, Sedgley, Halesowen (all except Hunnington, Romsley; partly in Halesowen, Worcestershire), Warrington and Birmingham Town: Birmingham. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Warrington, Cornwall, Dudley and South Staffordshire. 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 Wolverhampton Staffordshire
2 Sedgley Staffordshire
3 Halesowen (all except Hunnington, Romsley; partly in Halesowen, Worcestershire) Staffordshire
4 Warrington Lancashire
5 Birmingham Town: Birmingham Warwickshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Warrington 012 Warrington
2 Cornwall 008 Cornwall
3 Dudley 025 Dudley
4 Dudley 033 Dudley
5 South Staffordshire 007 South Staffordshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bate

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bate

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Bate 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

Bate 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

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

Meaning and origin of Bate

The surname BATE is of English origin, deriving from various locations and placenames in England and Scotland. It likely emerged as an occupational surname in the 12th or 13th century, referring to someone who lived near a small valley or hollow.

The name BATE is believed to have originated from the Old English word "bat," meaning a hollow or valley. It was often used as a placename suffix, such as in Battenhall, Worcestershire, or Battersea in London, which means "Batte's island."

In the Domesday Book of 1086, the surname is recorded as "Bate" and "Batte," referring to landowners and tenants in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname is Thomas Bate, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1191. Another early bearer was William de Bate, recorded in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273.

Notable historical figures with the surname BATE include George Bate (1608-1668), an English writer and clergyman; Henry Bate (1695-1773), a Welsh physician and author; and John Bate (1775-1859), an English artist and engraver.

In Scotland, the name BATE is found in various spellings, such as Bait, Bate, and Baitt. One prominent Scottish figure was William Bate (c. 1625-1699), a Presbyterian minister and theologian who wrote extensively on church government and religious matters.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Henry Bate Dudley (1745-1824), an English clergyman and author who published works on botany and natural history.

The surname BATE has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Bate's Green in Suffolk, Bate's Croft in Gloucestershire, and Bate's Farm in Oxfordshire, reflecting the surname's geographical origins.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bate families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bate 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. Staffordshire leads with 1,134 Bates recorded in 1881 and an index of 6.79x.

County Total Index
Staffordshire 1,134 6.79x
Lancashire 1,068 1.82x
Cheshire 432 3.95x
Cornwall 427 7.62x
Worcestershire 396 6.13x
Warwickshire 259 2.07x
Devon 205 1.99x
Shropshire 191 4.47x
Middlesex 181 0.37x
Surrey 145 0.60x
Kent 93 0.55x
Yorkshire 78 0.16x
Gloucestershire 60 0.62x
Derbyshire 51 0.66x
Hampshire 37 0.36x
Lincolnshire 30 0.38x
Glamorgan 28 0.32x
Denbighshire 26 1.39x
Somerset 23 0.29x
Nottinghamshire 21 0.31x
Essex 20 0.20x
Angus 19 0.41x
Flintshire 15 1.13x
Durham 14 0.10x
Monmouthshire 14 0.39x
Northumberland 11 0.15x
Leicestershire 9 0.16x
Sussex 7 0.08x
Lanarkshire 6 0.04x
Norfolk 6 0.08x
Northamptonshire 6 0.13x
Pembrokeshire 6 0.38x
Royal Navy 6 1.02x
Carmarthenshire 5 0.24x
Midlothian 5 0.08x
Suffolk 5 0.08x
Cumberland 4 0.09x
Fife 4 0.14x
Cambridgeshire 3 0.10x
Dorset 3 0.09x
Channel Islands 2 0.14x
Isle of Man 2 0.22x
Montgomeryshire 2 0.18x
Perthshire 2 0.09x
Radnorshire 2 0.50x
Westmorland 2 0.18x
Wiltshire 2 0.05x
Aberdeenshire 1 0.02x
Anglesey 1 0.11x
Argyllshire 1 0.07x
Bedfordshire 1 0.04x
Berkshire 1 0.03x
Buckinghamshire 1 0.03x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.05x
Hertfordshire 1 0.03x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Warrington in Lancashire leads with 199 Bates recorded in 1881 and an index of 28.58x.

Place Total Index
Warrington 199 28.58x
Kingswinford 164 27.03x
Sedgley 133 21.43x
Wolverhampton 119 9.26x
Aston 109 3.17x
Birmingham 101 2.43x
Golborne 87 113.64x
Walsall Foreign 85 9.85x
Stoke Upon Trent 67 3.78x
Tipton 63 12.31x
Gradley 61 195.33x
Rowley Regis 61 13.10x
Runcorn 54 21.43x
Dudley 51 6.49x
West Bromwich 46 4.81x
Windle 45 13.61x
Latchford 44 60.61x
Parr 40 19.03x
Camberwell 39 1.23x
Toxteth Park 39 1.96x
Cradley 38 65.00x
Cannock 37 12.69x
Sutton 35 17.76x
Wednesfield 35 14.23x
Bilston 34 10.50x
Lambeth 34 0.79x
Manchester 34 1.29x
Kings Norton 32 5.52x
Belbroughton 31 92.43x
Lymm 31 39.02x
Bedford 30 24.41x
Stoke Damerel 30 4.16x
Oldbury 29 9.12x
St Endellion 29 149.33x
St Merryn 28 303.03x
Cainham 27 136.16x
Little Hulton 27 27.76x
Northfield 27 22.01x
Plymouth St Andrew 27 3.40x
Padstow 24 64.43x
St Pancras London 24 0.60x
Willenhall 24 7.67x
Liverpool 23 0.64x
Lowton 23 57.56x
Barton Upon Irwell 22 4.97x
Salford 21 1.22x
Stoke In Nantwich 21 628.74x
Pennington In Leigh 20 17.74x
Amblecote 19 39.88x
Bitterley 19 112.36x
Appleton 18 72.70x
Chatham 18 3.87x
Culcheth 18 46.78x
East Stonehouse 18 8.87x
Egloshayle 18 68.49x
Hasbury 18 42.57x
Helsby 18 130.81x
Pattingham 18 257.14x
Cheslyn Hay 17 55.74x
Hackney London 17 0.61x
Lanivet 17 97.42x
Newton In Makerfield 17 9.45x
Plymouth Charles The 17 3.74x
Portsea 17 0.85x
Wellington 17 7.07x
Widnes 17 4.01x
Bodmin 16 17.25x
Cardinham 16 312.50x
Hampstead London 16 2.08x
Helland 16 484.85x
Litchurch 16 5.13x
Tettenhall 16 15.66x
Lilleshall 15 22.94x
Newington 15 0.82x
St Marylebone London 15 0.57x
Great Wyrley 14 77.14x
Islington London 14 0.29x
Kenyon 14 354.43x
Monks Coppenhall 14 3.40x
Tywardreath 14 38.90x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 393
Elizabeth 216
Sarah 195
Ann 130
Eliza 86
Emma 81
Ellen 80
Jane 77
Alice 76
Annie 59
Hannah 58
Martha 58
Emily 51
Margaret 50
Harriet 40
Clara 33
Catherine 29
Fanny 29
Caroline 28
Frances 26
Ada 24
Florence 23
Louisa 23
Maria 23
Anne 21
Charlotte 21
Edith 21
Elizth. 15
Esther 15
Matilda 14
Agnes 13
Bertha 13
Lucy 13
Harriett 12
Lydia 12
Amelia 11
Phoebe 11
Susan 11
Bessie 10
Grace 10
Rachel 10
Rose 10
Ruth 10
Eleanor 9
Jessie 9
Rebecca 9
Selina 9
Amy 8
Julia 8
Kate 8

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 323
William 310
Thomas 219
James 167
Joseph 140
George 138
Henry 101
Charles 80
Richard 76
Samuel 68
Edward 55
Alfred 50
Arthur 41
Albert 34
Walter 28
Frank 26
Frederick 25
Harry 25
Peter 24
Robert 24
David 23
Edwin 22
Benjamin 18
Ernest 18
Wm. 16
Ralph 15
Francis 14
Herbert 11
Matthew 11
Isaac 10
Philip 10
Stephen 10
Mark 8
Moses 8
Thos. 8
Daniel 7
Enoch 7
Job 7
Mathew 7
Fredrick 6
Jesse 6
Abraham 5
Henery 5
Josiah 5
Paul 5
Richd. 5
Solomon 5
Willm. 5
Ambrose 4
Hugh 4

FAQ

Bate surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bate surname in 1881?

In 1881, 5,082 people were recorded with the Bate surname. That placed it at #877 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bate surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 5,810 in 2016. That gives Bate a modern rank of #1,154.

What does the Bate surname mean?

An English occupational surname referring to a coppersmith or metalworker, derived from the Middle English word "bate."

What does the Bate map show?

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